During my observation at the writing center I connected some
of the theories found in, "Tutoring Writing" to the session I sat
through. Both the tutor and student demonstrated "Collaborative Learning" and "Talking and Writing" theories to achieve the goal
initially set out prior to the session's initiation. The student came in
search of guidance as it related to his short essay 'pitch' as a tour agent for
his Introduction to E-Business class. Furthermore, the student asked the tutor
for specific help as it pertained to the structure of his paper as well as the
vocabulary and punctuation throughout. The tutor firstly set about her job by
silently reading the paper, followed by stating her initial reaction to the student. The tutor then re-read the paper along with the student to identify the main points of correction that she thought was required. They went over each sentence focusing on choice of words, punctuation, and general flow. There was good communication between the pair, with the other lengthy silent moments. Additionally, the tutor was very friendly as it pertained to helping the student with the occasional moment of laughter. Overall, I thought it was quite an interesting experience observing such a session and I look forward to another soon.
One of the most interesting things about what you observed is how the tutor read once to herself, and once out loud, sentence by sentence to the student. That is a strategy I myself would use, especially when focusing on grammar and word choice. Also, focusing on the flow of the paper is important since it is for a mock pitch type paper, so making sure you're using the right flow is important. I believe you observed a very interesting and successful session, very similar to what I hope my own would seem like.
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