They would have been good things to know
First off, as a student in a tutoring course I wish I would have taken the advice a little more seriously about starting my bibliographic essay quite early. Ha, ha. (Man! That is REALLY not funny.)
But as a tutor I guess I would have like to have known APA and Chicago styles a little bit better beforehand. Although, having worked with APA in the Writing Center throughout the semester helped me to understand the format even better when we did learn it. I had one session where I helped a lady with a bio med paper. This was one of my first sessions dealing with APA. I learned quite a bit even though I did not know that much to begin with. I pretended that I did though. Sometimes I have found that, that helps reassure the student and moves the session along. Don’t get me wrong though. I don’t think that misinforming the student because I don’t really know the answer is a good thing. But finding the answer with the student and sounding confident can definitely be.
Another thing that I would have liked to know is how to work with ESL students. My very first session was with an Asian student who was near graduation. She was preparing a resume, and Sam gave me the opportunity to tutor her (In other words she made me tutor her. Nevertheless, I do not hold a grudge.) This first experience was rather a beastly one. I believe I took the paper, mumbled stuff to myself, and my nerves may have caused me to fix errors that were not in fact errors. Yikes! My experiences now with ESL students are so much better because I know a little more about what I can do. I usually read the paper because they do not feel comfortable doing so. While I am doing this I know that it is probably okay to skip the small stuff unless they ask me not to. If I understand it, then all is well. The best technique that I have found when I do not understand what they have written is to simply ask them what they mean. They are usually able to explain quite well their intentions. And from that they are able to effectively write a sentence.
This strategy works just as well with non-ESL students. We all write sentences that make sense to us but when others read them it is a different story. I have found that taking a break from the paper and asking them what they mean really, really works. I wish I would have applied this technique in the beginning. It is a beautiful way to organize a nonsensical paper. I have also seen cases when it helps the writer to develop a concrete thesis instead of a bunch of wishy-washy words. One of the essays that I am using in my bibliographic essay is about off-topic conversation and how it can help generate new ideas. It is quite interesting to see how a little bit of conversation with students can relax the atmosphere and at the same time explore new grounds that the writer has not thought about.
But as a tutor I guess I would have like to have known APA and Chicago styles a little bit better beforehand. Although, having worked with APA in the Writing Center throughout the semester helped me to understand the format even better when we did learn it. I had one session where I helped a lady with a bio med paper. This was one of my first sessions dealing with APA. I learned quite a bit even though I did not know that much to begin with. I pretended that I did though. Sometimes I have found that, that helps reassure the student and moves the session along. Don’t get me wrong though. I don’t think that misinforming the student because I don’t really know the answer is a good thing. But finding the answer with the student and sounding confident can definitely be.
Another thing that I would have liked to know is how to work with ESL students. My very first session was with an Asian student who was near graduation. She was preparing a resume, and Sam gave me the opportunity to tutor her (In other words she made me tutor her. Nevertheless, I do not hold a grudge.) This first experience was rather a beastly one. I believe I took the paper, mumbled stuff to myself, and my nerves may have caused me to fix errors that were not in fact errors. Yikes! My experiences now with ESL students are so much better because I know a little more about what I can do. I usually read the paper because they do not feel comfortable doing so. While I am doing this I know that it is probably okay to skip the small stuff unless they ask me not to. If I understand it, then all is well. The best technique that I have found when I do not understand what they have written is to simply ask them what they mean. They are usually able to explain quite well their intentions. And from that they are able to effectively write a sentence.
This strategy works just as well with non-ESL students. We all write sentences that make sense to us but when others read them it is a different story. I have found that taking a break from the paper and asking them what they mean really, really works. I wish I would have applied this technique in the beginning. It is a beautiful way to organize a nonsensical paper. I have also seen cases when it helps the writer to develop a concrete thesis instead of a bunch of wishy-washy words. One of the essays that I am using in my bibliographic essay is about off-topic conversation and how it can help generate new ideas. It is quite interesting to see how a little bit of conversation with students can relax the atmosphere and at the same time explore new grounds that the writer has not thought about.
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