Just in Case
Well I know that we are supposed to write these once a week. I figured this week I would express my feelings about the first week of tutoring. It should follow last weeks entry nicely. All right, I admit it. On Tuesday morning when I went into the writing center for work for the first time, I was a little nervous. I managed to push it away by diving into my American Lit. homework. In any case I took the second tutee of the new writing center season and it was loads of fun. It just so happened that the tutee was an ESL student attempting to plan an essay. I was definitely relieved that it wasn't a senior with a twenty page paper to review, but I wasn't really expecting that anyway. In any case the session went well and my understanding of Spanish was useful in attempting to explain certain planning ideas and techniques. With a breath of fresh air I had officially taken the plunge. Because the confidence shown in my first blog was partially imagined, having the first session done was definitely a relief.
My second tutee was with another student who spoke English as a second language. She later told me that she was a regular at the writing center. We mostly just read over her paper and reviewed basic sentence structure and word conjugations. It was difficult at times to guide her through finding and solving these problems with out actually do it for her, but we managed to get through it and I think she was reminded of a few grammar rules as well.
Since that Tuesday I have done many more sessions and I am enjoying that satisfaction that comes when a student realizes how his paper can be better and how exactly he can go about improving his work.
I have also realized that there isn't really enough time nor the opportunity to fix all of the problems of a paper. It was helpful to lay out the different types of writing problems in class and then prioritize them. I found the information very beneficial when I was dealing the students.
One of the reasons I wanted to be a tutor was because I was tired of having jobs where you are required to be a machine, destroying your personality, talents, and intelligence. Finally I can go to work and use my head and talents for the good of someone else.
I found my first week to be rewarding and fun. I am no longer nervous but rather excited for the ensuing weeks of work.
My second tutee was with another student who spoke English as a second language. She later told me that she was a regular at the writing center. We mostly just read over her paper and reviewed basic sentence structure and word conjugations. It was difficult at times to guide her through finding and solving these problems with out actually do it for her, but we managed to get through it and I think she was reminded of a few grammar rules as well.
Since that Tuesday I have done many more sessions and I am enjoying that satisfaction that comes when a student realizes how his paper can be better and how exactly he can go about improving his work.
I have also realized that there isn't really enough time nor the opportunity to fix all of the problems of a paper. It was helpful to lay out the different types of writing problems in class and then prioritize them. I found the information very beneficial when I was dealing the students.
One of the reasons I wanted to be a tutor was because I was tired of having jobs where you are required to be a machine, destroying your personality, talents, and intelligence. Finally I can go to work and use my head and talents for the good of someone else.
I found my first week to be rewarding and fun. I am no longer nervous but rather excited for the ensuing weeks of work.
posted by Anonymous at 3:02 PM
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