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We encourage faculty members to support students’ use of the Writing Center.  Learning to write well requires multiple audiences for reflection and advice. While peer tutors cannot and should not replace faculty guidance, peer tutors can offer guided practice that faculty members may not have the time or perspective to offer.  A trained peer audience can help students at all stages of their writing careers at the College, from their first paper in First-Year Studies to their senior thesis.  

The Center tutors and staff members are also resources for course and assignment development.  

 How the Center Works

 Types of Sessions:

Standard Appointments

For this appointment, the student schedules an hour to work with an available tutor of their choice. You should recommend regular appointments if you have concerns for a specific draft or if you want a student to develop a particular skill.

Standing Appointments

In standing appointments, students are assigned one tutor to work with every week throughout the semester. These appointments are helpful both for specific assignments and long-term writing skill development. You should recommend students for a standing appointment if they:

 - have several writing-intensive courses and are writing several papers at once,

 - need support for learning and practicing the technical skills of writing,

or

- lack positive experiences with academic writing and want support for developing ideas throughout a structured writing process.

Standing appointments can be scheduled at any time; however, appointments scheduled early in the semester yield the best results.

Professional Tutoring

In this case, the Director of Writing Programs and the Academic Writing Specialist serve as the professional tutoring staff. You should recommend students for professional tutoring when:

 - confidentiality is of major concern, such as in remediation of academic honesty or academic probation,

- close monitoring, assessment, and communication with college personnel is necessary, such as in meeting certain graduation or other academic expectations,

or

- student lacks sufficient writing experience or confidence to engage effectively with peer tutors.

 Session Reports

After all sessions, tutors write a brief report detailing key strategies and goals covered during the session. Students can choose whether or not to have the report sent; in most cases, they will have them sent to the course instructor. For required appointments, you should tell students to have the tutor send the report.

These reports will be sent directly to your e-mail, thus helping you track student progress on a written assignment. You can also read the report for trends and reflect on the clarity of the assignment itself in order to develop supplementary materials for the course.

Importance of faculty feedback for successful sessions

Student clients set the goals for sessions. The more information—written assignment expectations, comments on drafts, class notes with writing tips and information— student clients bring to their appointments, the better the session.  Vague answers to questions about what the professor expects can limit session effectiveness.  Clients may be advised to consult with professors and schedule follow-up appointments if assignment or revision expectations are unclear.

Resources for Teaching with Writing

Teaching with Writing in FIYS Courses

Why Do Good High School Students Struggle with College Writing?

An outline of the main differences between how students approach writing in high school and in college.

Developmental changes in college writers

A list of skills that high school writers will not have developed by their first year in college and how this can affect the learning process.

Quotes from First-Year Writers on Writing

Quotes that reveal misconceptions about the writing process in college.

Where to begin? Basic Considerations for Writing Assignments for FIYS courses

Advice on the content, style, frequency, and goals of writing assignments in FIYS courses.

Tips for Writing Assignment Structure for the FIYS Course

More focused advice on the theory and practice of writing assignments in FIYS courses.

Power-Point Overview of Writing Assignment Design For FIYS

The Transition from High School Writing Evaluation to College Writing Evaluation

A chart comparing different evaluative standards for high school and college writing.

Promising Instructional Practices to Support a Successful Transition from High School to College Writing 

Avoiding Writing Assignment and Grading Traps

A list and discussion of practices that might prove detrimental to student progress in FIYS courses.

How do I explain to my students the difference between argument and description?  See sample chapter from They Say/ I Say, a resource we have in the Writing Center to help.

Resources From Other Schools:

Harvard Writing Sources
Sources compiled by James Herron

Dartmouth Writing Program: Materials for Faculty
Archives of Writing Sources from Dartmouth  from Karen Gocsik

Writing in College: Short Guide from University of Chicago
“Writing in College: A Short Guide to College Writing by Joseph M. Williams and Lawrence McEnerney” 

Sample FIYS Writing Assignments, Workshops, and Grading Tools:

Sample Summer Writing Assignment:  FIYS:  Mexican Chicago:  Developed by Steve Rosswurm, History

Sample Chicago Day Writing Assignment:  FIYS 116:  Chemistry and Medicine:  Developed by Dawn Wiser and Elizabeth Fischer, Chemistry

Sample Writing Rubric for First-Year Studies Courses:  Developed by Tracy McCabe, English 

Sample Writing Assignment and Rubric:  FIYS 106:  The Ethical Brain:  Developed by Shubhik DebBurman, Biology

Sample Short Paper Assignment with Writing Workshops Built in:  FIYS 184:  Developed by Davis Schneiderman, English

Sample Library Assignment and Writing Assignment Sequence:  FIYS 134, Women in Medieval Christianity:  Developed by Anna Trumbore Jones, History

Sample Questions for Student Self-Assessment

A list of questions meant for use in student cover sheets for self-evaluated writing performance.

Sample final writing assignment that is not the traditional end-of-course research paper

FIYS Workshops (Fall 2011)

A list of writing-related workshops designed to complement FIYS courses by showing students effective writing practices. To be delivered by the Director of Writing Programs and the Writing Programs Fellow.

 

 Teaching Argument Structure

Building a Good Thesis Statement

A handout to guide students in generating and developing thesis statements containing definitions, examples, and revision strategies. Also details the difference between thesis and purpose statements.

Handout on Thesis Statements and Arguments

Developed by Assistant Professor Josh Corey, summarized from Diane Hacker’s Writing About Literature. Presents concepts and examples for theses, as well as a discussion on forms of argument.

Thesis Statement Workshop 

Developed by Assistant Professor Rachel Whidden, this is an in-class workshop exercise with thesis statement and argument samples.

Sample Peer Editing Exercise

 

Teaching Students to Read Analytically to Write Analytically

How to Read in College

A summary of reading strategies students can use, especially when trying to identify argument within an academic text from Swathmore College Writing Center.

Reading to Write

Developed by LFC Writing Center staff, this handout contains strategies and exercises for reading analytically and organizing notes.

Moving students from reading-to-write notes to topic sentences

A practical tool with tips and strategies for helping students move from analytical reading to reading-to-write notes, evidence charts, and topic sentences.

Teaching Reading 

Advice on how to prepare and demonstrate critical reading in class.

Reading and the Classroom

Strategies and tips for making guided reading an integral part of your instructional practices.

 

Teaching Students to Edit for Grammar and Style

Grammar/Editing Chart with References to Hacker Style Guide References

A chart detailing errors, examples of misuse, and relevant pages of the Diana Hacker Style Guide.

Grammar/Style Chart with References, Exercises, and Examples

An extended chart containing common errors, examples, tips and references, and links to online exercises.

10 Tips for Effective Editing

Accompanied by explanations and references to Strunk & White’s Elements of Style.

Suggestions for Developing a Grammar Grading Philosophy

A chart detailins three different approaches to grading grammar and suggestions for how to combine them.

 

Teaching Writing to ESL Students: Special Considerations

 See our International Student page.

 

Teaching the Research Paper and Process

Stages of the Research Paper

Delineates five stages of the research process, detailing goals, helpful strategies, and outcomes for each stage.

Assignment: CWR100 Research Paper

A look at the revisions of a College Writing 100 research paper assignment with comments on the pros and cons of different edits.

APA In-Text Citation Handout and Exercises

Developed for CWR100, it contains the highlights of APA in-text citation and practice exercises.

MLA citation handout for 2009 update

APA citation handout for 2009 update

 

Teaching with Response Papers

Understanding and Re-Inventing the Response Paper

Contains a discussion of the concept of the response paper, its specific use in Lake Forest College, strategies to re-focus the response paper, and tips on assigning it.

Assignment: CWR100 Response Paper on Waiting For Superman

A look at the multiple revisions of a College Writing 100 response paper assignment with comments on the pros and cons of different structures.

Assignment and Student Model:  ART 325 Response Paper on Women, Art, and Society

Assignment:  Chemistry 107

 

Assignment Design Models and Tips

Principles of Assignment Writing

General suggestions to improve the overall clarity and effectiveness of written assignments.

8 Types of College-Level Writing Assignments

Short Writing Assignment Tips

A short list of key elements short assignments should contain.

Formal Writing Assignments

Examples of different kinds of formal writing assignments and ways in which they can be practiced in class.

Informal Writing Assignments

Examples of different kinds of informal writing exercises and ways in which they can be utilized in class.

Sample Assignments from Lake Forest College Courses:

Writing Center Tutor Guide for BIO 346:  Molecular

A model WC tutor guide for assignments.  Consider designing one for your upper division courses so that clients can make the most of Writing Center appointments. 

Assignment:  COM 110:  Analysis of the Phaedrus

Assignment:  SOC and ANTH 110:  News Source/Analysis

Assignment:  CHEM 107:  Developing World Thirst for Energy Neuroscience News and Views Article

Assignment:  HIST 204:  Document Analysis

 Assignment:  HIST 110:  World Civilizations

 

Suggestions for Commenting on Student Writing

Reading and Commenting on Essay Structure

Helping Students Meet your Writing Expectations

Making Comments on Student Drafts

 

Grading and Assessing Student Writing

Rubric and Grading Advice

Derived from a conversation between Professors Dawn Abt-Perkins and Anne Houde, this document provides advice on assessment and grading.

Rubric Form

Ready-to-use sample form that can be adapted to your own requirements if necessary.

General grading criteria:  The Essay

Grading rubric:  FIYS:  Evolution

Grading rubric:  FIYS: The Ethical Brain

Grading rubric:  FIYS: Equal Education

Grading rubric:  Introduction to American Studies

Grading rubric:  Anthropology of Sports

Grading rubrics:  BIO 344:  Animal Behavior, Summary of

Journal Articles, Lab Rotation Reports, and Research

Projects

 

Recommended Texts (Available in the Writing Center)

What is College-Level Writing, by Peter Sullivan and Hal Tinberg

The Transition to College Writing, by Keith Hjortshoj

The Elements of Teaching Writing:  A Resource for

Instructors in All Disciplines, by Katherine Gottschalk and Keith Hjortshoj

They Say/ I Say:  The Moves that Matter in Academic

Writing, by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein

Writing Analytically, by David Rossenwasser and Jill Stephen

The Bedford Guide for College Writers, by X.J. Kennedy, Dorothy M. Kennedy, and Marcia F. Muth

A Pocket Style Manual, by Diana Hacker

Full list of Writing Center Print Resources

 

Helpful Research

Expressive Writing and Learning

Writing in Art and Design Courses

Informal Writing in History Survey Courses

Writing-to-Learn for Large Classes

Writing-to-Learn in Foreign Language Classes

Student Responses to Academic Writing