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UWCCONSULTANTHANDBOOK

2012-2013

THE UNDERGRADUATE WRITING CENTERDEPARTMENT OF RHETORIC AND WRITING

THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN


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The Undergraduate Writing Center

Contact Information

Main Phone Number: (512) 471-6222

Fax Number: (512) 471-6139

Campus Mail Code: G3000

Mailing Address: The Undergraduate Writing CenterThe University of Texas at AustinFlawn Academic Center, Room 2112304 Whitis Ave., Stop G3000

Austin, TX 78712-1522

Staff Listserv: [email protected]

Administrative Staff Contacts:

Peg Syverson [email protected] 471-6222

Alice Batt [email protected] 232-2730

Vince Lozano [email protected] 232-2719

Michele Solberg [email protected] 232-2725

Mary Hedengren [email protected] 232-2724

Thomas Lindsay [email protected] 232-2724

Gerald Tilma [email protected] 232-2724

Emergency phone numbers are posted at the front desk and in the break room.


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Table of Contents

Chapter One: The UWC .......................................................................... 1History ............................................................................................................................................... 1Mission .............................................................................................................................................. 2

Policies ............................................................................................................................................... 3Populations Served ..................................................................................................................... 3Degree of Help ............................................................................................................................ 3The Writers Ownership of the Text ........................................................................................ 3Confidentiality ............................................................................................................................. 3

Job Descriptions .............................................................................................................................. 4Dates and Hours of Operation ...................................................................................................... 5

Chapter Two: Administra tive Aspects of Being a Consultant ........... ........ 6Consultant Responsibilities ............................................................................................................ 6UWC Work Basics ........................................................................................................................... 6

Scheduling .................................................................................................................................... 6

Consulting Hours and Project Hours ...................................................................................... 7The Writers Advice Line ........................................................................................................... 7The Card Queue .......................................................................................................................... 8Time Sheets .................................................................................................................................. 9Missing a Shift.............................................................................................................................. 9

Training ........................................................................................................................................... 13Incoming (New) Consultant Training .................................................................................... 13All Consultant Training ............................................................................................................ 13

Professional Development Groups ............................................................................................ 14Observations................................................................................................................................... 14Opportunities ................................................................................................................................. 15

Join/Form a Project Group .................................................................................................... 15Conduct and Present Research ............................................................................................... 16Resources ........................................................................................................................................ 17

Resources for Professional Development ............................................................................. 17Resources for Working with Writers ..................................................................................... 17

Space ................................................................................................................................................ 18Chapter Three: The Consultat ion ........... ........... ........... ........... ........... ... 19

The Three Principles of Consulting ............................................................................................ 19The Consultant-Writer Relationship ........................................................................................... 20

Differences between Consultants and Instructors ............................................................... 20Differences between Consultants and Peer Reviewers ....................................................... 20Graduate Consultants and Their Students ............................................................................ 20Undergraduate Consultants and Their Classmates .............................................................. 21

The Chronology of a Consultation ............................................................................................. 21Assess the Situation .................................................................................................................. 21Greet the Writer and Set the Tone ......................................................................................... 22Ask Questions ............................................................................................................................ 22Set Priorities ............................................................................................................................... 24Choose a Reading Strategy ...................................................................................................... 26Hold the Student Responsible ................................................................................................ 28


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Possible Strategies for Three Common Consultation Scenarios ....................................... 29Engage with the Paper and Consult ....................................................................................... 30End the Consultation ............................................................................................................... 33Tips for Ending a Consultation at 45 Minutes ..................................................................... 34Have the Student Check Out .................................................................................................. 34

Complete the Consultation Record ........................................................................................ 35Consulting with ESL Students ................................................................................................ 35Working with Students with Disabilities ............................................................................... 36Final Note on Consulting Strategies ...................................................................................... 36

Chapter Four: Using the UWC Computers ........... ........... ........... ........... . 38UWC Computer Guidelines ......................................................................................................... 38

More Computer Etiquette Issues ........................................................................................... 39How to Use the Computers ......................................................................................................... 39

Logging In .................................................................................................................................. 39Logging Out ............................................................................................................................... 39Saving Personal Material .......................................................................................................... 39

Using FileMaker ............................................................................................................................. 40

Opening Your Consultation Record ...................................................................................... 40Locating Previous Records ...................................................................................................... 41

Electronic Services and Resources .............................................................................................. 42The Staff Listserv ...................................................................................................................... 42UWC E-Mail .............................................................................................................................. 42

Chapter Five: Completing the Consultation Record ................. ........... ... 43Steps to Complete the Consultation Record ............................................................................. 43Indicating Kinds of Work Done ................................................................................................. 45Completing the Brief Description of Work Done (the Note) ............................................ 47

Why Write Notes? ..................................................................................................................... 47The Ideal Note........................................................................................................................... 48

A Suggested Note Template .................................................................................................... 48Common Note-Writing Challenges ....................................................................................... 49

Append ix 1: Gett ing Your Ques tions Answered .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. . 51 Append ix 2: Se lec ted Readings on Writ ing Cente r Theory and Pract ice .. 52 Append ix 3: Sa mple Whi te Paper .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. . 54 Append ix 4: The Cons ul ta nt Observa tion Repor t ... .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. . 58


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UWC Consultant Handbook 1

Chapter One: The UWC

History

The Undergraduate Writing Center had its beginnings in the widely publicized events leadingto the creation of the Division of Rhetoric and Writing at The University of Texas in 1993.Until that time, the Universitys required first-year composition course (E 306, now RHE306) was offered and overseen by the Department of English. Debate about the 306curriculum in 1989 and 1990 led to a study by the University Council (now Faculty Council)Committee on the Undergraduate Experience. On January 21, 1992, the Committeesubmitted a report recommending that a Division of Rhetoric and Writing be established inthe College of Liberal Arts that would be responsible for the administration, staffing, andteaching of first-year and advanced composition courses. Following PresidentCunninghams approval of the new division in August, the DRW began operating on June 1,1993. Incoming faculty stipulated the creation of a writing center as a condition for their

involvement in the DRW, and thus The Undergraduate Writing Center was born.

For the 1993-1994 school year, the UWC operated out of a room in Parlin Hall and servedonly students in English and DRW classes. Professor Sara Kimball, the Writing Centersfounding director, along with Scarlett Bowen and Randi Voss, set up UWC policies andpractices with significant help from the Temple University Writing Center. On January 28,1994, the University Council Committee to Examine the Undergraduate Writing Programsubmitted a proposal to fully implement the Undergraduate Writing Center as soon aspossible as part of its efforts to support and improve the teaching of Substantial WritingComponent classes. By that time, plans were already under way to move the Center fromParlin Hall to its current location in Flawn Academic Center 211. On September 21, 1994,the UWC began operating in its current capacity.

Further expansion of the UWCs mission and physical space began in the 2000-2001 schoolyear. In summer 2001, the UWC formed a partnership with the Office of Graduate StudiesIntellectual Entrepreneurship Program to explore providing graduate writing services inselect departments. In January 2001, the UWC received a $300,000 grant from the HoustonEndowment to expand UWC outreach to instructors of Substantial Writing Componentcourses. This grant funded the creation of an SWC Resource Coordinator position tosupport SWC faculty directly. Most recently, the FAC 211 space doubled in size after anexpansion project was completed in June 2001.


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Mission

Maybe in a perfect world, all writers would have their own readyauditora teacher, a classmate, a roommate, an editorwho wouldnot only listen but draw them out, ask them questions they would not

think to ask themselves. A writing center is an institutional responseto this need.Stephen North, The Idea of a Writing Center

The Undergraduate Writing Center operates under the auspices of The Department ofRhetoric and Writing (DRW) at The University of Texas at Austin. Undergraduate studentsat the University can come to the UWC to think and talk about writing and to receiveprofessional assistance with their writing projects. Our philosophy is student-centered. Werespect students and their texts; in our daily operations and our planning for future services,undergraduate students interests come first.

Our goal is to help undergraduate students grow as writers by helping them develop theirwriting. We accomplish this goal primarily in individual tutorials, called consultations, inwhich a student works one-on-one with a graduate or undergraduate writing consultant. Weuse the term consultantto denote our role as professionals; we view students as competentadults who may not be experts in writing but who nevertheless possess substantialknowledge.

In our work with students, we use the terms problems and difficulties advisedly. Astudent who has difficulty in a particular area of writing is often treated as someone with aninherent deficiency who has failed to master a basic skill. In contrast, a professor revising anarticle for publication who asks a colleague to comment on a draft can solve their writingproblems without being defined as a problem writer. As writing consultants, we follow the

example of the professors colleague by fulfilling students needs for interested and helpful,but non-evaluative, readers.

The help we provide is intended to foster independence. We do not, therefore, revise, edit,or proofread student papers. Instead, we teach students how to revise, edit, and proofreadtheir own work more accurately and efficiently. The advice we give in consultations isprofessional but nondirective. The invention of ideas and supporting statements remains thewriters responsibility, and the consultation itself belongs to the student. Because studentvisits are confidential, students have access to our records of their work with us, and wenotify instructors of their students visits only if students ask us to.

We also view as central to our mission the support of faculty who teach undergraduatecourses. Every semester we send Writing Flag and other faculty a letter informing them ofour services, and throughout the semester we support them indirectly by working with theirstudents. In addition, we give presentations and workshops for the classes of facultymembers who request our services.


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Policies

Populations Served

A portion of the combined student fee currently funds the UWC. We are, therefore, open to

all undergraduates enrolled in any University course. We do not currently have the fundingor resources to work with graduate students, including graduate students enrolled inundergraduate courses. (The Graduate Student Writing Service, located in the LearningCenter in Jester Hall, offers separately funded writing support for graduate students.) Weserve the greater University and Austin communities through the Writers Advice Line,which is open to anyone with brief questions about writing. We also provide advice andmaterials, both in print and online, for faculty teaching undergraduate courses and forcollege-level writers.

Degree of Help

Since our goal is to help writers mature, we do not edit, proofread, or rewrite their papers.We do, however, discuss all aspects of the writing process from brainstorming throughdrafting, revising, and final editing.

To ensure that we can provide access to all writers who want to use our service, and todiscourage over-dependence, we do not provide more than three sessions on each writingproject. For the same reasons, we only work on a project once per day.

We work on any kind of writing undergraduates bring us, including employment andgraduate school applications and personal and public writing not assigned for class. We willonly work with writers on take-home exams if their instructors have informed us we may doso. We do not work with writers whose work is due fewer than two hours from the time theconsultation begins.

The Writers Ownership of the Text

Although the consultant acts as the expert in a writing consultation, the writer should alwaysbe the one in control. In order to successfully collaborate with a writer without colluding, wemust work to preserve the writers ownership of the text. Likewise, a writer who always staysin control of the work will have an easier time practicing independently the strategies learnedduring a consultation. Thus, only the writer should generate the prose and the arguments.While we can offer opinions and suggestions about what might work best, ultimately thewriter must decide how to construct the paper. Refer to The Chronology of a

Consultation starting on page 21 for some ways to help ensure the writer maintainsownership of the text.

Confidentiality

Consultation records are confidential; they will not be released without writers permission.We do, however, encourage writers to let us communicate with their instructors throughnotes describing work conducted in sessions. Our notes are correspondence with the


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student, and we only copy the note to the instructor if the student requests that we do so.These notes should be our only communication with the instructors about our consultations.If you have concerns that you would like to communicate to the instructor (such assuspicions of plagiarism), please communicate these concerns to the writer instead.

Job Descriptions

Director. Peg Syverson.The director of the UWC is a senior member of the DRW faculty andthe chief administrator of the UWC, charged with ensuring the effective operation of theunit. The director is ultimately responsible for all policy, staffing, and budgetary mattersinvolving the Center. The director also communicates with other administrators, faculty, andthe larger public.

Coordinator.Alice Batt.The coordinator is a full-time employee responsible for the day-to-dayrunning of the UWC. Along with the director, the coordinator initiates long-range planningfor the Center and participates in the training of graduate and undergraduate consultants.

Most of the coordinators time is spent hiring, scheduling, supervising, and evaluating a staffof 80 or more. The rest of the coordinators time is spent reacting to the unpredictable andimmediate demands of the UWC (putting out fires).

Business Manager. Michele Solberg.The business manager oversees the day-to-day details of theWriting Center and takes care of accounting issues, scheduling, appointments, supplies, thefront desk, and other questions or problems that arise. She is a full-time employee and oftenworks in a human resources capacity.

Assistant Directors.Mary Hedengren, Tom Lindsay, and Gerald Tilma. In addition to consultants,the UWC employs three graduate students as assistant directors. They work on projects thatimprove the quality and breadth of the UWCs services to writers. Assistant directorscoordinate project groups, such as Praxis and Presentations. They are responsible for givingpresentations publicizing the UWC and organizing orientation, consultant training, and othermeetings.

Consultant. Consultants primary task is to collaborate with UT undergraduates in one-on-oneconsultations to help them improve as writers. They assist with day-to-day operations, likestaffing the front desk and answering the Writers Advice Line. In addition, consultantsconduct original writing center-related research and contribute to ongoing projects in theCenter, such as project groups and public relations efforts.

Systems Analyst. Vince Lozano.The systems analyst is a full-time employee who sets up and

maintains the hardware and software environment through which the UWCs core day-to-day businessconsulting with over 10,000 undergraduates a yearcan happen. Hemaintains the user directory, FileMaker, mail, and web servers. He performs regularmaintenance on the servers and clients, including updating operating systems andapplications and upgrading hardware as needed. He creates and maintains accounts for allusers and ensures that resources are shared equitably. The systems analyst provides technicalsupport for consultants and administrators. He also offers technical support for project


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groups and assists them in installing Drupal and other software they use. Lastly, he evaluatesnew technologies that may help the Centers core business.

Dates and Hours of Operation

The UWC opens on the first class day of each semester and remains open until the first dayof the final-exam period. In the 2012-2013 school year, we will open for the fall on August29 and close on December 12. In the spring semester, we will open on January 14 and closeon May 8.

The UWC, located in FAC 211, is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to7 p.m. and Friday from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. The UWC stops accepting writers forconsultations one hour before closing time.


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Chapter Two: Administrative Aspects of Being aConsultant

Consultant Responsibilities

Writing consultants work on an individual basis with writers who come to the UWC; theymay also act as guides and a resource for writers working in groups on collaborative projects.Consulting includes maintaining accurate consultation records and providing a note to thewriters instructor when the writer requests that a note be sent. (See Chapter Four for moreon keeping records and writing instructor notes.) Also, when the situation requires, writingconsultants take turns doing other jobs, including working at the front desk and answeringthe Writers Advice Line telephone. When not working with writers, consultants help outwith administrative tasks, such as folding brochures, designing and distributing flyers, andmaintaining the cleanliness of the UWC.

Consultants may also utilize off-peak times to work on project groups, research, or otherUWC-related projects. Project groups include the Presentations Group, the Research &Publications Group, the Praxis Project Group, and the Events Group. Project groupsprovide voluntary opportunities to pursue writing-related interests backed by the supportand resources of the UWC. Consultants engaged in project work can do so in place ofconsulting work. Check in with your project group leader to see when you can work onproject hours (see Consulting hours and project hours on the next page andOpportunities on page 15). If you would like to initiate a project group or join an existingone, contact a member of the administrative staff.

Because we invite instructors to request UWC presentations and workshops, consultants

should also be ready to respond to inquiries about them. Instructors should be directed tothe Schedule a Presentation section of the UWC website where they can submit an onlinerequest: http://uwc.utexas.edu/presentation/request.

UWC Work Basics

Graduate consultants who also have appointments as assistant instructors in the DRW orthe English Department are required to work seven hours per week consulting in the UWCor in the CWRL. Graduate consultants who do not have a teaching appointment may workfor the UWC in a limited number of ten- and twenty-hour-per-week placements. Prospective

undergraduate consultants must first take RHE 368C, the Writing Center Internship course,in the spring. The director and the coordinator will decide who from the class to hire as paidconsultants. Undergraduate consultants usually work in the Writing Center for about tenhours per week and have the same staffing responsibilities as graduate consultants.

Scheduling

The UWCs coordinator, Alice, and business manager, Michele, are responsible for


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scheduling staff at the beginning of each semester. Prior to the start of each semester,Michele will send an email to all consultants with an online form to fill out that will allowconsultants to block out times in which they are unable to work at the UWC and to indicatetheir work preferences. Take note of these guidelines when you complete your schedule: (1)please do not request shifts that will last less than 3 hours and (2) be aware that you will be

required to conform your schedule to the scheduling needs of the UWC, including possiblytaking on hours during the morning and early afternoon, when we are most busy. If youneed to make permanent schedule changes during the course of the semester, talk to Alice orMichele about your request.

Consulting Hours and Project Hours

Consultants can choose whether to consult for all the hours they are scheduled to work or towork on other projects (see the Opportunities section on page 15 for some of the hours.Because the UWC values a collaborative workplace, time consultants spend on non-consulting projects counts toward scheduled consulting hours. Thus, you can choose to varythe kinds of work you do here and enhance your professional development at the same time.

However, to maintain the high level of services we give to our clients, we need to beconscientious about how we trade our consulting hours for project hours. If you worked for,say, four hours on a UWC poetry workshop, and you now want take off four hours fromyour consulting schedule, consult with Michele about choosing a time when the Center isnot extremely busy. She has the final say over when consultants can and cannot trade inproject hours. Consultants are expected to be flexible as consulting is the top priority.

The Writers Advice Line

UWC staff also field brief enquiries about word usage, citation, and grammar via the Writers

Advice Line. This service is offered free-of-charge to both the UT community and to thegeneral public, as it provides a simple and effective means of community outreach. Whenthe telephone rings, answer Writers Advice Line: how may I help you? Consultants areencouraged to collaborate with other members of staff if they do not know the answer to thecallers question and can also consult the folder of handouts next to the telephone.

Consultants are not required to give lengthy advice or to send any information to the callervia e-mail and/or in writing; politely decline such requests. The call should not last longerthan five minutes. If people call the Writers Advice Line to schedule an appointment,inform them of the correct number to call (471-6222).


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The Card Queue

At the beginning of the semester, Michele prints a card listing the consultants name, hours,and areas of specialty. Here is a sample consultant card:

Keep your consultant card in your UWC mailbox when you are off duty. When you arrivefor your shift, place your card in the first (front) slot of the holder at the front desk, behindany other cards there.

AT THE START OF YOUR SHIFT:

PLACE YOUR CARD IN THE BACK OF THE FIRST SLOT

(Back of the Front)

Receptionist Card Holder Entrance to UWC

Bodette ErasmusM 1-3 PMT 7 -10 PMTh 9-11 AM

Rhetoric & CompositionEthnic/Third WorldAnthropology

Technical Writing


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AFTER YOUR FIRST CONSULTATION:

PLACE YOUR CARD IN THE BACK OF THE SECOND SLOT

(Back of the Back)

Receptionist Card Holder Entrance to UWC

Time Sheets

All consultants who are paid on an hourly basis are required to fill out time sheets indicatinghow many hours they have worked during each two-week pay period. Just before the end ofeach pay period, Michele will put a time sheet in your box. At the end of each pay period(around the 15th and the last day of each month), place your completed, signed time sheet inMicheles inbox in her cubicle.

Missing a Shift

Our primary responsibility is to meet writers needs. To ensure that we can, we ask that you1) honor your scheduled hours, 2) arrive promptly for scheduled shifts, 3) ask otherconsultants to cover anticipated absences, 4) report unanticipated absences through Wufoo,and 5) make up all hours you miss (including those for which you obtained coverage) andrecord your made-up hours through Wufoo.

Anticipated Absences

An anticipated absence is one you know about well in advance (a conference, religious

holiday, university-approved absence, etc.). To prepare for an anticipated absence, pleasesend a request for coverage to the UWC e-mail list ([email protected]) at least threedays in advance. As soon as you have found someone to cover your shift, submit the WufooAbsence Submission Form (pictured below) to alert the front desk of the change in staff. Ifyou cant get the shift covered, please be sure to submit the Wufoo form before your shiftbegins.


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You can access the Absence Submission Form through the Absence Submission Formlink in the For Consultants section of the menu on the left side of the UWC homepage.After submitting this form, you will automatically receive an e-mail with a link to the MakeUp Hours Form. Be sure to save this e-mail so you can access the Make Up Hours Formafter you have made up your missed hours (more on this process below).

Unanticipated Absences

An unanticipated absence is one with less than a three-day lead time: sudden illness, a caraccident, a death in the family. In one of these situations, submit the Wufoo AbsenceSubmission Form as soon as possible to notify the UWC of your impending absence. If youcannot get to a computer before your shift begins, please call the Front Desk at 471-6222.While we do not expect you to obtain coverage for absences you do not anticipate, send arequest for coverage to the UWC e-mail list ([email protected]) if you can.

Reporting Make Up Hours

Both anticipated and unanticipated absences must be made up, regardless of whether or notyou obtained coverage for your missed hours. You may make up your missed hours bycovering another consultants hours or by making other shift arrangements with MicheleSolberg ([email protected]). After you make up your hours, fill out the Make UpHours Form (pictured below), which will be e-mailed to you automatically when you fill outthe Absence Submission Form.

Maintaining A Professional Ethos

As with any professional workplace, we at the UWC expect our employees to work unless aserious circumstance prevents them from doing so. If an employer outside the University

would not accept your reason for being absent, we will likely not accept it either. Meeting aprofessor, studying for a test, and visiting financial aid are not acceptable reasons to missshifts.

Grounds for Termination

Several circumstances are grounds for termination: 1) missing a shift without submitting theWufoo form (or calling the Front Desk) in advance, 2) having three or more unanticipatedabsences, and 3) failing to make up absences. In any of these instances, please expect that theCoordinator will schedule a conference with you to find out whats going on and the bestway to move forward.


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When you know youre going to be absent, fill out thisAbsence Submission Form.A linkto this form is available under For Consultants in the menu on the left side of the UWChomepage.


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Once you have made up your missed hours, fill out this Make Up Hours Form. A link tothis form will be e-mailed to you after you submit your Absence Submission Form.


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Training

Incoming (New) Consultant Training

During the first two weeks of the semester, each new consultant must complete the

Incoming Consultant Training log. You will observe two consultations with two differentconsultants. After each consultation, sit down with the consultant you observed to talk aboutthe strategies they1 employed. The goals of observations are to demystify the consultingprocess and to allow new consultants to get a sense of different consulting styles. Have theconsultant sign your Incoming Consultant Training Log after each consultation.

Once you complete the two observations, you will do a collaborative consultation with anexperienced consultant. Have the consultant sign the Training Log and put it into one of theAssistant Directors mailboxes. After completing the Training Log, the two of you will meetto discuss how your initial training and consulting experiences are going as well as anyconcerns you may have. Either an assistant director or your consulting group leader will also

observe you at some point in the semester.

Note on Collaborative Consulting. Throughout the year, all consultants have the option ofconsulting in pairs when we are not busy. Simply ask another consultant on your shift ifthey would like to do a collaborative consultation, and then ask the desk person to pair you.For even the most experienced consultant, collaborative consulting can be a great way tolearn new strategies.

Note on Undergraduate Interns. Undergraduate interns follow a similar procedure to the onedescribed above, but only the coordinator observes them.

All Consultant Training

Orientation and Training. Before the fall semester, every consultant is required to attendorientation. Each semester, we will hold additional training sessions that are required for allconsultants. Mandatory trainings will typically take place in Professional DevelopmentGroups during your regularly scheduled hours. Options for supplemental training will beannounced periodically, and you are invited to participate in as many of them as you like.

Professionalization. There are many opportunities to develop professional skills at the UWC.Former consultants consistently report that the skills they developed while working herehave helped them acquire employment and perform well in their workplaces.

1Throughout this handbook, well be employing the gender-neutral singular pronoun they where

appropriate, in accordance to the 14th edition of the Chicago Manual of Style. Since they is already commonlyused to solve the pronoun dilemma, it seems likely that they will transition to standard use. The UWC,therefore, positions itself in the vanguard.


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Professional Development Groups

Professional Development groups are an initiative to foster community among consultants,to provide professional development, and to serve as a forum for training andtroubleshooting. Most mandatory trainings (ESL training, etc.) will take place during

Professional Development groups.

Veteran consultants lead Professional Development groups. Groups are composed of bothveteran and new consultants; all members of each group share a shift at the UWC. Inaddition to training sessions, groups meet periodically over the course of the semester todiscuss work at the UWC and to generate new ideas for consulting practices. Group leadersare also available during their shifts to discuss any questions that you might have abouttraining or professionalization. If they dont have specific answers to your concerns, they canhelp you find the resource that best fits your need.

Observations

New UWC consultants are observed by an assistant director or their professionaldevelopment group leader as well as by Alice.

These observations provide staff development opportunities for all those involved.Administrators have a chance to connect with consultants and to talk with them about theirexperiences working in the Writing Center. Also, observations provide helpful snapshots ofyour work as a consultant important for consultants who plan to request letters ofrecommendation from the director or coordinator. These observations provide a chance toreflect on the work we do here and for graduate consultants to consider how that work hasinformed their views on teaching writing.

Observations of new UWC employees will be conducted throughout the fall semester. Oncethe observation is scheduled and the writer has checked in, the receptionist explains theobservation arrangement to the writer and asks their permission to have a guest sit in on theconsultation. At the end of the consultation, the observer and consultant discuss the session,and the observer writes a short summary of the conversation. A subsequent observationmay be carried out when appropriatefor example, if the observer finds significantproblems or if the consultant feels the session did not realistically reflect their work.

Veteran consultants will be observed by an assistant director once per year to help veteransfind ways of building on their particular strengths. For instance, an assistant director might

encourage a veteran who excels at consulting with business students to write a Praxiscolumnor develop a Back Wall page based on their experience. In addition, veteran consultants mayrequest to be observed if they would like feedback on a particular aspect of theirperformance or if they have asked Alice to write them a letter of recommendation.


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Opportunities

Join/Form a Project Group

While the individual writing consultation is always at the center of our mission, many

consultants have interests and energies that extend beyond the forty-five minuteconsultation. Consultants can make the most of the UWCs resourcesincluding otherconsultantsby forming project groups around those interests. Apart from our few standingproject groups (Presentations, Praxis, Events, New Media), project groups are formed on anad hoc basis by consultants who see an opportunity to improve on their knowledge and skillsas a writer, a writing consultant or a writing professional. Project groups can address specificchallenges faced by writers or consultants, research particular questions connected to thewriting center, build or expand UWC resources (handouts, etc.), or otherwise explore andsupport the central work of consulting.

Every consultant has the option of forming or joining a project group. The groups infuse

fresh energy and ideas into ongoing tasks in the UWC; participation can also be a change ofpace from the rather intense job of consulting. An example of one of our most successfulproject groups was the Virgil Group, which created an award-winning writing advice website(http://projects.uwc.utexas.edu/virgil/) that leads its users through a series of questions andanswers in a process meant to mimic a live consultation.

The hours you spend on project group work are in place of, rather than in addition to,consulting hours. In other words, if you sign up for a group that requires two hours perweek, plan to subtract two hours from your consulting commitment. Consult with yourgroup leader and Michele to decide on a schedule that accommodates project group hours attimes that wont leave our clients in the lurch. And when the Center is busy, you may beasked to do fewer project group hours that week. Consultations are our first priority. Belowis a list of the active 2012-13 project groups. We encourage consultants to join a projectgroup or talk to other consultants about forming groups around their shared interests.

Presentations Group gives presentations about the UWC and various aspects ofwriting to classes and other student groups. In addition to ten-minute presentationsabout the UWC, we offer thirty- to fifty-minute writing workshops on topics such asintroduction to college writing, the writing process, research in the humanities,research in the sciences, and revising RHE 306 papers. Previous presenters have leftdetailed outlines of the presentations they have given, and members of this groupusually work together to prepare and offer workshops.

Praxis Group publishes the Praxisonline journal, which is entering its second yearas a peer-reviewed journal. Members of the group choose a theme for each issue,solicit articles, evaluate submissions, copy-edit, and upload the journal to the web.Members of this group have the opportunity to network with writing centers acrossthe country and write or edit for an audience of thousands.

Research Groupworks to raise the UWCs profile in the field of writing centerresearch and to provide additional professional development opportunities to our


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staff. Members generate ideas for research projects, which may involve quantitativedata analysis or a qualitative discussion of writing center philosophies and practices.They then analyze their research findings and write relevant papers, articles andessays for submission to appropriate conferences and journals. The research groupalso coordinates the UWCs white paper series, which gives all consultants the

opportunity to publish writing center scholarship in a low-pressure, but professional,context. The Research Group meets once a month to discuss developing researchprojects.

Outreach Group offers specialized workshops and presentations that lie outside thescope of the Presentations Group. Members of the Outreach Group developworkshops and presentations to reflect their particular writing-related interestsand/or to meet the needs of specific on-campus and off-campus groups. In the past,consultants have hosted workshops and delivered presentations on revising labreports, writing personal statements, reading and writing poetry, and creating fiction.Group members work with the Outreach Group leader and with one another todevelop, deliver, host, and publicize the groups specialized workshops andpresentations. Hours spent presenting workshops are considered project hours.

Hospitality Group will assist the administrative staff in planning and staging theUWC 20th Anniversary Celebration and Symposium, which are scheduled forFebruary 22nd and 23rd. Members of this project group will help arrange housing,transportation, entertainment, decorations, food, and publicity for the weekendsfestivities. They will also gain practical experience in symposium planning by helpingthe administrative team design panels, communicating with attendees before theevent, and being on hand during the events to ensure that everything runs smoothly.

Handouts Group takes responsibility for creation, revision, and analysis of theUWCs handouts. Members come up with new ideas for handouts, maintain andupdate the content of historically well-used ones, suggest substantive changes tohandouts where appropriate, and assist in analyzing the traffic each handout receives,in both its paper and digital forms.

Conduct and Present Research

Consultants are strongly encouraged to use their work in the UWC as the basis forpublishable research. In the past, consultants have presented papers based on their work inthe UWC at conferences such as the Conference on College Composition andCommunication (4Cs), Computers and Writing, Rhetoric Society of America, and the

International Writing Centers Association. Presenting at professional conferences andwriting articles for writing center journals also allow consultants to combine UWC work withtheir academic pursuits.

Many opportunities exist for both graduate and undergraduate students to publish or presentconference papers. Even people who dont consider themselves experts in the field will findchances to participate in the writing center research community. Publication opportunitiesrange from articles in major journals to brief questions or comments in newsletters.


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The administrative staff is here to support your writing center-related scholarship. We arehappy to work with you to develop a topic, suggest resources, read drafts, and identifyappropriate journals or conferences for your work. Many conference presentations andjournal articles can begin as white papers, which are published on the UWCs website.

Contact an assistant director or a member of the Research Group for more information.

Resources

The UWC is chock-full of resources designed to make you a successful consultant andcollaborator in the UWC.

Resources for Professional Development

The Website.The UWC website contains many professional development resources and

opportunities. Praxisand the UWC White Paper Series feature publications on many writing-center-related topics and also offer accessible opportunities for consultants to publishoriginal scholarship. The For Consultants section of the website includes a link to theUWC Consultant Handbook, materials from consultant trainings, and links to professionalresources.

The Library.Whether youre looking to strengthen your consulting practice or publish anarticle, the UWC library is a good place to start. Explore the Writing Centers,Teachers/Tutors, and Journals sections of the library. The Journals section contains themajor journals in the field. Other sections contain texts about rhetoric, composition studies,and teaching English as a second language.

The UWC Staff. Of course, the UWC staff is our best resource. Were here to help each otherachieve our professional goals. Talk to your fellow consultants and the members of theadministrative staff about how we can strengthen our training and consulting practices.Work with each other to conduct research or assemble a conference panel.

Handouts.The UWC has a series of handouts for consultants at the front of the Center and isdeveloping additional handouts for professional development. These handouts are intendedfor use during consultations and to respond to consultants common concerns.

The Back Wall Wiki. Contains an electronic repository of collective wisdom, specificstrategies and other resources to use during consultations. Various project groups also

coordinate their efforts using Back Wall pages. You will be invited to join the Back Wallthrough the email address you have on file with the University.

Resources for Working with Writers

The Website. Get familiar with the UWC website. It contains features, such as the handouts,consultants can use during consultations and recommend writers visit in their own time.


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Going to the site with writers during a consultation is also a good way to model locating animportant resource for undergraduate writers.

The Computers. In addition to the UWC website, consultants and clients can use the UWCcomputers during consultations for help with research and brainstorming. You can show

them how to use NoodleBib (http://www.lib.utexas.edu/noodlebib/index.html), an onlineresource that helps writers generate works cited pages for MLA or APA style documentationand the library websites.

The UWC Library. The UWC library has extensive resources that you can use during yourconsultations and that UT undergraduates can come to the Center to use anytime. Most ofthe books that you will use during consultations are shelved on the east wall of the library.Feel free to photocopy a short section of a book that you think may help a writer. If thewriter wants to study a book more extensively, invite them to do so inside the Center at theirleisure.

Handouts. At the front of the UWC, we offer numerous handouts addressing a variety of

writing issues such as grammar, style, format, documentation, and the writing process.Students are invited to take handouts for quick reference of material. Theyre availableonline and in trays by the front desk. There are original copies of additional handouts in thebinders at the front desk you can ask the front desk staff for the binders if you would liketo review them.

Space

Store all belongings you are not actively using in the consultant drawers in the back of the

UWC. Do not leave your belongings around computers in the back consulting room whileyou are engaged in a consultation. Unattended belongings will be moved to the consultantdrawers in the back of the UWC.

You are welcome to store food in the refrigerator in the break room. With the exception offront desk staff who cannot leave their desks, consultants should only eat meals in the breakroom. This helps us protect the considerable investment in our computers, and it also helpsmaintain a professional atmosphere in the spaces reserved for consultations. All drinks nearcomputers should have lids.


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Chapter Three: The Consultation

The Three Principles of Consulting

All the recommendations that we make in this handbook attempt to help consultantsimplement three basic consultation goals:

1. Consultations are non-evaluative.

2. Writers retain ownership of their texts and make all final decisions about revision.

3. Consultants are sensitive to writers emotional investments in the writing process.

This chapter offers guidance based on collective experience. However, every consultation isunique. Consultants have to stay flexible and be creative. We hope that by keeping these

basic goals in mind, youll be able to adapt what weve offered to your own style andsituation. Heres a little elaboration on the basics:

Why should consultations be non-evaluative?General evaluative language (Thispaper/sentence/thesis is weak/good/terrible.) tips the balance of power away from thewriter and toward the consultant. The writer often ceases to view the consultant as acollaborator and advisor and begins to view them as the final authority on good writing.Since our goal is to help students make decisions for themselves, this is not desirable. A non-evaluative approach also prevents the consultant from inadvertently competing with theinstructor for authority by implying that a paper deserves a certain responsegrade,comments, or other. Obviously, youll often have to tell students that they havemisunderstood the audience or the assignment, but youll want to do so with as muchspecificity and as little evaluation as possible.

What does it mean for a writer to retain ownership of the text?Ideally, it means that consultants willhelp writers to move away from a passive position where they wait for their paper to becorrected. Writers will then take an active position where they can use the consultantsconsiderable expertise as a resource for making their own decisions about a piece of writingthat is truly their own, rather than an exercise performed for others. Our aim is to helpstudents become stronger writers rather than to improve any one piece of text. Askingstudents to generate strategies, choose among them, and implement them on their own helpsensure that the resulting texts are ones they feel they truly wrote themselvesand that theywill be able to tackle the next assignment that comes their way.

What kind of emotional investments in the writing process can we expect, and what is entailed in beingsensitive?Being non-evaluative and helping students maintain a sense of ownership, go along way toward mediating student responses, but navigating emotions in a one-on-oneconsultation can still be tricky. For students at UT, who spend the bulk of their time in largelecture courses, intensive one-on-one attention itself sometimes feels strange andintimidating. Often, the only kind of intensive attention theyve received is negative. Wevemade suggestions throughout the handbook about how to be sensitive to these reactions,


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but the best course is often simply to observe the writers reaction and to check in directlywith the student by asking them questions about how they are doing.

The Consultant-Writer Relationship

Consultants are not and should not be authority figures in ways that instructors are. Instead,we measure progress in terms of what the writer is learning about writing. Is the writersensitive to the conventions and demands of writing in an academic setting? Have theyenvisioned an audience for their work and established a tone consistent with that audience?Will the structure of the paper enable them to make a convincing argument? In other words,we are more concerned with helping writers develop general writing strategies than we arewith making any particular paper correct.

Differences between Consultants and Instructors

Setting Goals: A consultant may make recommendations for what the goals of the session will

be, but the writer makes the final decision. An instructor, by contrast, will usually specifyareas the writer should work on.

Content: The instructor defines the parameters of assignments, while the consultant asksquestions that prompt the writer to assess the demands of the topic and to determineappropriate modes of expression.

Diagnosis vs. Evaluation: Evaluation denotes a process of observing people or things andranking them. Diagnosis involves observation, but it results in suggesting a course of actionthat leads to improvement rather than pronouncing a judgment that merely assigns status.Both consultants and instructors assess students writing and make decisions about coursesof action that will help students improve as writers. The instructor, who must eventuallygrade students, also evaluates their work; the consultant does not.

Differences between Consultants and Peer Reviewers

The consultants role is very different from that of one classmate helping another with apaper: the consultant is a professional writing expert, while the classmate is not. Theconsultant and the peer reviewer also have different goals. The peer reviewer is concernedwith the product, helping the writer improve the paper. A consultant is concerned with thewriters process, helping to improve the writer. While neither has to have all the answersabout grammar, formatting, documentation, and so on, the consultant should be able toshow the writer strategies for finding the answers.

Graduate Consultants and Their Students

Since the help that writing centers provide undergraduate students should be non-evaluative,and since instructors eventually have to grade their students writing, graduate writingconsultants may not provide consultations for students currently enrolled in their courses.This policy does not preclude consultations with former students. Because graduateconsultants are not acting as classroom instructors in the UWC, they may not hold office


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hours while they are on duty. Likewise, consultants should not have their students pick up ordrop off work at the Writing Center.

Undergraduate Consultants and Their Classmates

In order to avoid blurring the lines between peer reviewer and consultant, undergraduateconsultants may not work with students from classes in which they are currently enrolled.Having an open exchange about writing concerns or anxieties with a classmate can beuncomfortable. Undergraduate consultants may, of course, work with classmates from oneclass on papers for another class that they do not share.

The Chronology of a Consultation

A UWC consultation is a teaching and learning event in which writers and consultants workcollaboratively. Consultants aim to lead writers to greater awareness of their own writingprocesses and with every consultation gain a better understanding of how to share their

knowledge for the writers benefit. Writers benefit from our consultants greater knowledgeof and experience with the writing process, but they also teach us how to be more effectiveconsultants and better writers. The writer maintains ownership of and responsibility for thetext and holds authority for making final writing judgments and decisions. Every one of thefollowing steps in the consultation process reflects this intention.

The desk person will pair you with a writer either when you are next in the queue or whenthe writer has made an appointment to work with you. The desk person will already havecreated a consultation record on the UWC database and will introduce you to the writer andtell you what kind of paper the writer brought and what the writer wants to work on. Withthis information you can begin to determine what kind of consultation you will be giving andset priorities.

Assess the Situation

Take a few minutes to review the intake form, which will indicate the writers name, the kindof paper and what the writer wants to work on. On the reverse side, the writer may haveindicated if he/she is struggling with certain aspects of the writing process (i.e. focus, writersblock, dyslexia, etc.). It is also important to note if English is the writers first language andwhat college they are in at UT. Noting the time and writing it down on the intake form willhelp you stay within the 45-minute limit. You might use the writers name during theconsultation to emphasize the collegial relationship. When you write the note after theconsultation, you will want to indicate what kind of paper it was and what the writer initially

wanted to work on, even if you decide on other priorities during the consultation.

Because your time with the student is limited, youll want to make the most of theconsultation. Some clients writing will require only a little revision; others will have severalmajor areas to improve. You cannot deal with every concern in every paper. The key to agood consultation is realizing as early as possible just what can be accomplished realisticallyto best help the student become a better writer, which is not necessarily the same as helpingthem get a better grade on this particular paper. Let the student help you determine what


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areas these are. Establish priorities, concentrating first on those aspects of the paper thatmake it most difficult for a reader to understand. Abiding by the 45-minute time limit foreach consultation requires planning and prioritizing, sometimes dramatically.

Greet the Writer and Set the Tone

Your first task is to set the writer at ease. Always remember that showing your writing to astranger can be daunting. Demonstrate from the start that the undergraduate writers whocome to us are in good hands by showing that we are kind, concerned people who aregenuinely interested in them as writers. Make the student the sole focus of your attention.Smile. Be energetic and engaged. Begin establishing a rapport to set the respectful andsupportive tone of the consultation.

Ask where the writer prefers to sit in the Center. The writer takes the lead, makes the firstdecision of the session, chooses the most appealing area of the Center, and hopefully startsto feel more at ease.

When a student comes in with an electronic document, ask if you will be consulting on theirlaptop, if the assignment is saved on a USB flash drive, or if it is accessible online. If yes, askthe student if they have enough battery power or if you need to work close to a powersupply. If the computer cannot run on its battery for the next 45 minutes, use a USB flashdrive at the front desk and open the document on a UWC computer. Conduct yourconsultation on one of our computers. When logging in, the i.d. and password are indicatedat the bottom of the monitor. Please see page 29 for more information about consultingwith electronic documents.

Once you choose a location in the Center, sit next to, rather than across from, a writer tosignal your collaboration on the work. Place the paper or the laptop/computer between the

two of you, where both of you can read it.

Ask Questions

Asking a few questions about the writers work before you begin reading it will help you puttheir writing in context. It will also help you determine where you should focus your energiesand how much you can realistically accomplish during the consultation.

- Have you been to the Writing Center before?If so, the writer already knows about the timelimit and has an idea of how we work. If not, this is your chance to explain the 45-minute limit right off the bat, before it is a problem or an embarrassment. It is alsothe time to explain or remind the student of our non-directive, non-evaluativephilosophy and mention the brief end-of-consultation surveys.

- What is the writing task as you understand it? Can I see your assignment prompt?Whenbeginning consultations, it is essential that you read the assignment prompt and thatyou get a feel for how the writer understands it. If the writer does not have a copy ofthe prompt, or the instructor did not provide one, ask the writer to describe theassignment. Listening should give you a sense of how comfortable, confused, oranxious the writer is about the assignment, which will help you tailor your approach


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and your feedback to the writers practical and emotional needs. For instance, if thewriter is confused or anxious about the assignment, you should probably focus firston putting them at ease and helping them interpret what theyve been asked to do.Usually, the two of you will be able to come to a clear understanding of theassignment. If the prompt is vague or confusing, the best plan of action may be

to refer the writer to their instructor for clarification. Conversely, if the student isclear and confident about what theyre being asked to do, you can move morequickly into setting up a plan for the consultation (more on this below). If thestudent has generated a thesis and/or content, you should verify that these thingsmatch the assignment prompt before addressing any other concerns the student has.

- When is the paper due? What are your instructors expectations and/or comments?Weve allhad consultations in which we realize three-fourths of the way through that thepaper were working on is due much sooner than when we first assumed, or thatweve focused on an aspect of the paper that the writers instructor does not deemparticularly important. Knowing the assignment due date and understanding theinstructors expectations and/or comments will help ensure that the writer gets to

focus on those aspects of their paper that they can reasonably expect to revise beforethe due date and/or that their instructor deems important. For instance, if the paperis due in a little more than two hours or if the instructor is primarily concerned withgrammar and sentence-level issues, it is likely that the writer will neither be able norinterested in making profound changes in argumentation or organization. In such aninstance, you should scale your comments to the time available for revision and/orto the instructors priorities. Also, knowing the answers to these questions will giveyou a sense of how approach the consultation in an emotionally sensitive way. Forinstance, for writers who have plenty of time to revise and have supportiveinstructors, non-directive consultation strategies can be fun and engaging.Conversely, for students who are stressed out by a quickly-approaching due date or

vague, unhelpful instructor comments, non-directive strategies can be highlyfrustrating, confusing, and even traumatic when they are not properly explained andframed.

Note: We do not work with writers whose papers are due in fewer than two hours.The front desk staff is responsible for noticing paper due dates and for turning awaywriters whose papers are due in fewer then two hours. If the front desk person hasfailed to do so, politely explain the UWC policy to the writer, tell them that youcannot work with them, and alert the front desk. If the paper is due in less than twohours, the writer will not have the time to revise it. Furthermore, consultations areintended to help writers improve their writing technique, not just the paper.

- What have you done up to this point? How much work do you anticipate doing, or are you willingto do, before you submit the assignment? What do you hope to accomplish during our meeting today?These questions will help you assess three important things: 1) how aware the writeris of their own writing process, 2) where the writer thinks they are in their process,and 3) how the writer understands the consultation as a part of their process.Discussing this information will help you and the writer set priorities and goals forthe consultation, and will give you a common ground from which to adjust those


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priorities and goals if you need to later in the consultation. A writer who has clearand straightforward answers to the first two questions will probably have a relativelysophisticated answer to the third. A writer who does not may need more help settingpriorities and goals, both for the consultation and for the rest of time they havebefore their due date. For instance, writers often say they are at the stage of final

revision, when, in fact, their work may have inventional or organizational problemsrequiring more than simple proofreading. And sometimes writers have no idea at allabout what they need to work on and will ask simply that you go over the paper.These kinds of writers may need you to explain the global-to-local spectrum ofwriting concerns and to help them decide which of their concerns are moreimportant given their instructors expectations and their due date. Finally,establishing where writers are in their writing process also helps them mature aswriters. By asking them questions about their writing process, you can help reinforcethe idea that learning to write well is a long-term process that involves many complexjudgments and many different stages.

- Do you want me to give feedback on other issues if I notice them, especially if they affect things suchas meaning, thesis, organization, or argument?After you have decided on a set of issues tofocus on during the consultation, you should ask the student if they mind hearingfeedback on other issues you notice while reading the paper. Asking this questionleaves control in the writers hands and allows them to set the terms of theconsultation according to their own priorities and their own process. For instance,on one hand, if a writer knows their instructor has a specific set of concerns, theymight ask you not to share unsolicited feedback that will distract the consultationfrom those concerns. On the other hand, if a student knows they have a significantamount of time to spend revising a paper, they might welcome unsolicited feedbackthat will help them notice issues they did not anticipate.

Set Priorities

After asking the initial questions outlined above, you and the writer should have a sense ofthe issues you want to focus on during the consultation. Chances are you wont have time totalk about all of these issues, so youll need to set priorities. Your initial discussion will helpyou begin the process of setting priorities, but a second, more explicit step may be necessaryas well. More specifically, given the information you glean in response to your initialquestions, you may need to discuss the global-to-local spectrum of writing concerns(pictured below) and to provide scaffolding the writer can use to choose which concerns aremost important to them.

GLOBALThesis

Audience, Tone, Clarity, Supporting EvidenceOrganization, TransitionsIntroduction, ConclusionGrammar, Punctuation

SpellingLOCAL


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Global and local writing issues exist on a continuum. At the most global end of thecontinuum are issues such as thesis statements, audience, and organization. Global issuesaffect the overall coherence or clarity of a paper At the most local end of the continuum areissues such as spelling, grammar, and punctuation. In the UWC, we think of local writingissues as isolated errors or mistakes at the sentence-level. Such issues cease to be local and

become global when they appear throughout a paper and/or when they impede the readersbasic comprehension of the argument.

Ultimately, the student gets to decide what priorities to set for the session. We understandthat global concerns are what writers should be focusing on, both to improve their processand their products. Often, though, writers and/or their instructors have very specificconcerns that do not necessarily jibe with our global-before-local approach. It is your job toexplain the spectrum of writing issues (though you do not need to use the terms globaland local), explain the advantages of focusing on global issues over local issues, and then letthe writer decide what is important to them given their time constraints and their instructorsexpectations.

No matter what concerns you focus on, address those concerns in a way that prioritizes thewriters process. Put another way, even if the writer wants to focus on local issues, youshould avoid slipping into editing mode. Focus on the paper as a whole and resist the urgeto stop and point out mistakes during your first read-through of the paper. Instead, read,skim, or reverse outline all the way through without stopping. Make minimal marks or notesas you go and save your comments for the discussion that follows.

Reading and thinking about the paper as a whole has several advantages. First, it sends thewriter good signals about how to set priorities in revising: it shows them that they shouldfocus on global issues and pervasive local issues before focusing on sentence-by-sentenceediting. Second, it enables you to track global and local patterns in the paper, rather than

isolated mistakes. Third, it helps you recalibrate your original priorities, if necessary. Forinstance, you and the writer might originally decide to focus on sentence-level style but thepaper may actually have a generally incoherent structure. If you work through the papersentence by sentence, you may not notice the papers structural problem until the end of thesession. If you read the paper as a whole and save your comments until the end, you willnotice the structural problem and be able to bring it to the writers attention. At this point,you should explain the relative importance of overall structure vs. sentence-level style and letthe writer decide if they want to rethink their original priorities for the session.

Focusing on the paper as a whole can be especially challenging when focusing on sentence-level issues. If a writer wants to focus on sentence-level issues, the following strategies will

help you do so while still prioritizing the writers process.

- Isolated Mistakes. If the paper is generally understandable and readable, but containsisolated mistakes, explain the mistakes and model how to correct them. You mightcreate an example sentence to correct, or model how to correct the actual mistake inthe writers paper. If you choose the second option, be careful that you dontcontinue editing the writers paper. After modeling the first correction, ask thestudent to find and correct similar mistakes in the rest of the paper.


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- Pervasive Mistakes. If the papers sentence-level mistakes are so pervasive that theyseem to be more of a global issue, try using the same process outlined above whilefocusing only on the salient mistakes.

-Minimal Marking. If the paper contains so many mistakes that you cant identifywhich are the most salient, try minimal marking. First, choose a representativeparagraph from the paper. Next, find, explain, and correct as many mistakes in thatparagraph as you can. This step in the process should model for the writer how toidentify, understand, and correct their own mistakes. Finally, ask the writer to do thesame with the next paragraph in the paper, using the paragraph you heavily edited asan example. With either strategy, you can spend much of the session helping thewriter find and correct their pervasive mistakes, modeling the process for them asyou go rather than editing the paper for them.

Finally, remember these rules of thumb: 1) When setting and recalibrating priorities,emphasize global first, local last, but ultimately respect the writers wishes. 2) Focusing onthe paper as a whole means that you might find errors in a draft that you wont mention tothe writer. Part of being a consultant is having the discipline to avoid editing.

Choose a Reading Strategy

With the writer, choose a strategy for reading the paper. First, assess how long the paper is.It takes an extra step to plan how to get through longer papers (more on this below).

If the paper is five pages or less, or if the writer wants to cover five pages or less of a longerpaper, offer the writer the three reading strategies listed below. Youll want to explain theadvantages and disadvantages of each reading strategy to the writer, explain your preference,

and then let the writer decide which strategy they like best. We all have preferences for howwe like to read writers work, but the final decision should ultimately be up to the writer.

1. The consultant reads and marks the paper or inserts comments on thelaptop/computer silently.

2. The consultant reads the paper out loud, while the writer follows along.3. The writer reads the paper out loud, while the consultant follows along.

Each strategy has pros and cons.

1. Consultant Reads SilentlyPros: Some consultants prefer this strategy because they find it difficult to think aboutthe paper while reading it out loud or listening to the student read it. Silent engagementwith the paper allows these consultants to concentrate on the paper and to read it as theprimary audiencethe graderwill read it. Some writers also prefer this strategy for thesame reason. Other writers might prefer to this strategy because they are uncomfortablehaving their work read aloud.


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Cons: Reading and marking the paper silently can create a long, awkward silence at thebeginning of a consultation when the writer is the most nervous and can put the writerin a passive, powerless position. The writer loses control of the text and has time to fearbeing judged or zone out. If you prefer this strategy, you should explain your preferenceand ask the writers permission. Also, with this strategy, you may have to work harder to

get the student engaged in conversation after the paper has been read. Ask the student toread along with you, to think about the concerns you prioritized, and to take notes onissues that come up for them as they read. Let them know that you expect them to bringup concerns or observations after youve finished reading.

2. Consultant Reads Out LoudPros: A writer gains from hearing the consultant read the paper out loud. The reader willhesitate while reading a sentence that is confusing, for example, indicating where thewriter did not clearly convey a point. If consultants read the paper out loud theymaintain control of the pace of the consultation and can stop if they need to concentratesilently, write a note, or give the writer time to write a note or make a correction. Also,

reading out loud is an effective way to get a general sense of the paper as a whole. Whenyou minimize your opportunities for frequent note-taking or silent reflection, you mayfind yourself concluding the paper with a sense only of its most pervasive or salientissues.

Cons:The consultant may not feel comfortable reading the paper out loud. Someconsultants find it too difficult to read aloud while trying to consider and prioritize allthe aspects of a paper. If you are such a consultant and the writer prefers this readingstrategy, help yourself out by pausing when you need to reread part of the paper or totake notes. Also, let yourself off the hook: it is not your job to notice and recordabsolutely everything about a paper. Focusing on the students process, rather than their

product, frees you up to read for the papers most pervasive or salient issues. If youchoose this strategy, you will want to make sure the writer is listening carefully and doinga lot of the proofreading and prioritizing.

3. Writer Reads Out LoudPros: If writers read the paper out loud, they actively control the pace of theconsultation, takes full charge of the paper, and can make corrections as they go. Writerspick up more of their own sentence-level problems when they read their prose aloud,and they get to practice a skill they will use to revise their own writing in the future.

Cons: Some writers may not feel comfortable reading their papers out loud or may notrecognize sentence-level problems as they read. For example, this strategy is generallynot useful for ESL consultations. Also, since having the writer read out loud puts thewriter in charge of setting the pace of the consultation and deciding what to discuss, it iseasier to get sidetracked and to go over 45 minutes. You may need to acknowledge thewriters concerns as they arise while also encouraging them to finish the entire paperbefore you discuss their concerns. To do this, you might encourage them to jot downtheir concerns as they arise and save them for the post-reading discussion.


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If the paper is longer than five pages and the student wants to cover the entire paper,you may still need to decide on one of the reading strategies outlined above, but willalso need to choose a strategy for getting through the paper:

1. You can heavily skim the entire paper, focusing on the introduction, topic sentences,and the conclusion. With this strategy, you will get a feel for the argument andstructure of the paper in its entirety, but will not get to focus closely on the writersprose. Accordingly, this strategy will help you offer feedback and scaffolding onglobal writing issues, such as thesis, structure, and organization. It will not enable youoffer much help in the way of local issues, such sentence-level style, transitions,grammar, editing, etc.

2. You can set a time limit, read as much of the paper as possible within that limit, andthen stop to discuss what youve read. You can also suggest that the student returnfor a follow up consultation in which they finish the paper with you or anotherconsultant. With this strategy, you can focus closely on the global and local issues inthe part of the paper you read, but not in the rest of the paper. This strategy may

only appeal to the writer if they have time to return for a second consultation.

3. You can do a reverse outline. Reverse outlining is a process in which the writerexplains their thesis statement and then tells you, in one sentence apiece, the mainpoint, claim, or sub-argument of each paragraph. Encourage the writer to use onlyone sentence per paragraph and take notes as the writer talks. At the end of thisprocess, you will have a more or less rough outline of the writers paper. With thisstrategy, you can see the basic argument and structure of the writers paper and offerfeedback and scaffolding on those issues. Writers often find it challenging tosuccinctly summarize their thesis and their supporting paragraphs in one sentenceapiece. Such writers are probably unclear about what their thesis is or should be, and

about how they should support that thesis in their body paragraphs. Accordingly, thereverse outline will help the writer identify sources of incoherence in their thinkingand in their paper without actually having to read the whole thing.

Hold the Student Responsible

Regardless of the format in which you engage with a paper, you must make sure that thewriter retains ownership and control over the writing. Make sure the writer has a writing padand a pencil. Writers who are new to the Writing Center may be shy about taking notes ormaking revisions on the fly during a consultation. If a writer suggests a productive revision,say, That might work well. Why dont you write it down? Try to use body and spacelanguage to reinforce a relationship of equality and collaboration.

Ask a writer, Do you mind if I write on your draft? before you set pencil to paper. Writerspractically never mind, but thats not the point. By asking, we keep the text in the writerscontrol. Also, be careful not to mark up the text as you would if you were grading a studentspaper. Make just enough marks to remind yourself of passages you might want to return tolater in the session. Remember, youre an expert reader giving your response, not aninstructor giving your judgment. Written comments tend to carry a kind of authority that


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makes the writer see them as admonishments or commands rather than suggestions. Yourbehavior will encourage the writer to be fully engaged in the writing process.

With a laptop or UWC computer consultation, open the document in Microsoft Word.Next, ask the student to save the document under a different name so that any

organizational changes or comments will not be preserved at the expense of the original.One recommendation is to simply add uwc to the end of the document name. While thelaptop will probably be centered between the two of you for easier viewing, it is importantthat any notes or revisions be done by the student. You can do this by inserting yourcomments in the margins of the essay electronically or taking notes on a pad of paper as youread.

If you want to insert comments electronically, first ask the student if you may type on theirlaptop. If there are points for discussion as you read, you can either use the highlighter (onthe Formatting toolbar) or turn on Track Changes under the Tools tab. Under TrackChanges, make sure the use balloons to display changes option is checked.

To add a balloon/comment, simply go to Insert on the toolbar, click on comment and starttyping. Otherwise, once the Track Changes button is on, any changes in the text itself willshow up in another color. The advantage to using the balloons is that any changes can easilybe incorporated or deleted simply by clicking the checkmark box at the top of the balloon.At all times, make sure that you are only inserting comments and not changing or correctingthe text as you type.

No matter how many times youve read essays deploring violence on television, rememberthat each writer who brings an essay to the Center has an investment in the argument.Perhaps they only want a good grade in the course, but grades are serious and legitimateconcerns for writers. As a writing consultant, you must negotiate a balance between being

critical and being supportive. In addition, while you want the student to have faith in yourexpertise as a writer and your ability to help, you shouldnt be afraid to admit that there arethings you dont know. If, for example, the student has an obscure question aboutdocumentation, consult a handbook together. By doing so, you are not only making sure thatthe advice you provide is accurate, but also setting a good example. Encourage the studentto take an active role in the consultation. Use the time to track down facts, ideas, andsolutions together.

One way to establish a good working environment is to ask questions and let the writer doas much of the talking as possible. They will not only become more independent in this kindof exchange, but also give you, the consultant, the information you need to assist in the

project at hand. Many undergraduates (like their professors) are unaccustomed to thiscollaborative approach and may need extra time and prompting to respond, but by framingquestions and exercising patience, you help clients articulate their expectations for theconsultation, the paper, and their growth as writers.

Possible Strategies for Three Common Consultation Scenarios

The following are some common situations our consultants face on a daily basis and somesuggested ways to address them:


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1. The Grammar Check:If the writer is satisfied that they have dealt appropriately withglobal issues and only needs to work on grammar, they can select a few paragraphsor a section to work on during the consultation.

2.

Big Changes at the Last Minute:If the writer needs to work on global issues and thepaper is due in three hours, you will need to work with the writer to discover howthe consultation can be of most benefit. For example, no matter how disorganizedthe paper, the writer may only have time to revise for one or two global grammarissues. In this case, you may decide to help the writer learn to identify and revisethese sentence level problems, and suggest that the writer come in more than oncefor the next paper, earlier in the writing process and well in advance of the due dateto brainstorm a topic and then to work on higher-order global issues in a roughdraft.

3. Global Concerns that Require More than One Consultation:If the writer wants or needs towork on thesis, clarity, evidence, organization, or other global concerns, and has

several days to revise, the writer might choose to make an appointment to return tothe UWC for further consultation on the same paper.

Engage with the Paper and Consult

Asking Questions. In productive consultations, the consultants main role is as quest

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