Fall2004 11

Praxis: A Writing Center Journal (20032011) Sections

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Consultant Spotlight Relaxed and listening with Marilyn Little at College of Lake County Writing Center

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Submissions Submit an article to Praxis Marilyn E. Little CONSULTANT SPOTLIGHT Name: Marilyn E. Little Age: A perennial 39 Writing center: College of Lake County Writing Center Grayslake, IL (A two-year college) School enrollment: 15,828 Year in school and area of study: I earned an Associate of Arts degree in Languages in 2003. I’m currently enrolled in an ESL for teachers certificate program.

Number of years working in writing center: Approximately three years.

Job title: Specialist Tutor Describe the work you do in the writing center. My duties in the Writing Center include teaching English 104 students, who are mostly ESL students. I also tutor other students who are in college-level classes. Occasionally, I conduct tours of the Center for incoming classes.

Describe the training you’ve participated in. During my first semester of tutoring, the faculty coordinator, Martin Ley, conducted a class in methods of tutoring. We also participated in workshops conducted by others in the field.

The current faculty coordinator is Jennifer Staben, who will be completing her doctorate later this year. She has carried on the tradition of special classes and additional workshops. Both she and the acting writing center specialist,

Katherine Fiorelli, are on hand for consultation. I am currently enrolled in a linguistics course as part of a certificate program.

How do you normally start a consultation? Normally, I begin a consultation by introducing myself and asking the student for his/her name and information about the assignment. I also like to have the student explain what her/his goals are for the paper.

Describe your consulting style. A method that has consistently worked for me is to read the paper back to the student. This way the student often finds her/his own errors. If a sentence isn’t clear to me, I stop and ask for an explanation. We then rework the sentence together.

My greatest strength as a consultant is . . . Listening. Listening to the writer and asking for information related to the paper is very important. To complete a well-written paper it is important that the tutor has information about the assignment and the writer’s ideas on the subject.

My greatest weakness is . . . Being impatient. It is hard for me not to show my dismay when a student drops his/her paper in front of me and says, “Fix it.”

Many times the paper is due in an hour. Not much can be done within so short a time.

What I like about working in a writing center is . . . Being part of the Writing Center has given me a greater understanding of the problems newcomers to the United States face. They not only have to learn a new language, but also have personal struggles with red tape and a new culture. I am constantly amazed at the stories they tell of the trials they have gone through to reach our shores.

What I don’t like is . . . Not having continuity with students. My first tutoring assignment was in an ESL class. I enjoyed this class so much because I could see over time a group of students improve and find their own voices. I am now in the Writing Center and have a variety of students. However, I do have groups of students who are enrolled in a specialized course, English 104. This course is structured according to the students’ needs and consists of twelve one-hour sessions. It is gratifying to see them improve and to have them feel more comfortable as writers.

My oddest consultation was. . . when a student brought in an especially graphic and very controversial paper. I began reading the paper back to him and by the time I reached the middle of the first page, I handed it back to him and asked him to take the paper to another tutor. I felt that this paper was written for shock value and not to be informative.

What advice would you give to beginning consultants? My advice to a beginning tutor would be to relax and listen to the writer. Find out all you can about the assignment. Remember that in a thirty-minute session there is only so much that can be done when there are more than surface level errors. Try to help with the most important points, encourage them to return when revisions are done and be sure to never correct with a red pen or pencil.

What kind of writing do you do? I have written a paper and two poems that have been published in the College of Lake County journal, Prairie Voices. I am also working on a TV script and additional prose poems.

What else do you want to tell us about yourself? My plans are to continue

tutoring in the Writing Center while taking additional classes in ESL for teachers. I also wish to devote more time to my writing.

Praxis is a project of the Undergraduate Writing Center at the University of Texas at Austin Editor login