Prioritizationalization-ing

One, the digital portfolio.
Two, mock-tutoring sessions.
Three, the readings.

While I recognize the importance of the readings, I feel that most of my work needs to be devoted to the digital portfolio. As well, the mock-tutoring sessions tend to help me conceptualize my own method of tutoring much more so than the readings. And yet, the digital portfolio is unquestionably first.

ENGL 840 Priorities

1. Digital Portfolio--I'm still not very well-versed in the language of web design.
2. Tutoring Issues--I think it helps to discuss what has happened over the past week so that we may learn from our successes and failures (not really).
3. Readings--These are helpful supplements to actual experience in the writing center.

Prioritizationalization

One, portfolio

Two , that would be turoring

Three, that's the readings

Writing Center Readings

The most valuable information I've learned from the readings (to echo Gordy's sentiment) would have to come from the article on multiculturalism. We've all had students from different cultures come in to the writing center, and the language barrier can be difficult at times. But we persevere, and I feel that our international students leave the center as satisfied as our other students. The feminism article is important, but I don't feel we've really dealt with gender issues in the writing center this semester. We've tutored girls and boys alike, going to great lengths to avoid gender stratification. And, coming from a historical background, I enjoyed the article on Muriel Harris's founding of the Purdue Writing Center. It's amazing that such a short time ago, none of this existed. Thirty--even twenty--years ago, we wouldn't have our current jobs or assistanceships or this class. Kinda makes my head spin.

Reading the Writing Center

Three of the selections from the reading that are particularly pertinent to my success in the studio are the relationship between the tutor and a non-native English speaking student, the psychological apsects of tutoring, and the development of writing center scholarship (which inadvertantly led to the development of modes of writing center tutoring). The first indicated the need for the tutor to understand the difficulties of such a student, and to help the student recognize said difficulties in order to better tackle their writing problems. The second dealt with the psychological barriers that can hinder writing, discussing the need for a student to have a confident attitude towards writing and the fact that a pscyhological blockade can present more of an obstacle than an actual "writing" difficulty. The last conquered the development of writing center scholarship, pointing out the need for contemporary tutors to have knowledge of and accept the problems and issues encountered in such a place. All three of these bleed directly into my business as a tutor. I have dealt with international students, students whose papers are not "bad" because of a writing difficulty but because of a psychological road-block, and have recognized my own growth in accordance with the growth of writing center scholarship. It's quite funny how one develops his own tutoring mindset along the same path that all of the founding writing center scholars developed the "writing center." For me, these three articles/issues in the readings have been the most pertinent and useful to date.

Mediating technology

I am quite scared of technology. It is funny, really. Something so harmless as a plastic white frame encompassing a glass screen that neither speaks nor moves could emit such a vibe of fear. Then again, I don't know technology as one of my generation should know technology. I never really had to, and now I plummet to the depths of the Earth when faced with a technologically challenging problem. Can't teach an old dog new tricks. A blind dog often barks at the air. A rabid dog is about as friendly as gangrene. Thus, I sculpt my work to avoid technology. If I spent half the time I do avoiding technology actually trying to learn it, I might come out ahead. I've gotten by so far though and just figure I'll stay the path of least resistance (or, for a better term, least persistence). The world is shifting and has been for quite some time. Technology is becoming the "thing." We all should know it. I am, quite simply, outdated. Though, so long as I can succeed with my Microsoft Word (or even pen and paper as I prefer composing in this manner), and the occasional brush with the simpleton's technology, I will be satisfied.

E-mail, Wordprocessors, and Web Design Programs: The Story of a Man and His Technology

As a student, I rely mainly on two computer technologies: e-mail and Microsoft Word. E-mail remains an essential technology for my success in school fo' several reasons. E-mail provides an easy method for touching base with instructors in situations where a conference is unnessecary. With the aid of this new-fangled and fancy "electronic mail," I can keep my teachers informed and ask specific questions about my work while jammin in my jammies! Also, nearly every task that my professors assign can be completed through the use of a wordprocessor. 'N let me tell ya, ain't nothin' easier 'n slapin' a .doc onto a self-addressed e-mail so's I kin pull it up and print it at any computer attached to a printer and the web. Speaking of the web, I just heard about this netscape som'n or other in which one can create a web page! Have you ever heard of anything so absurd? I'm messin' around with it right now, and I feel not unlike a dog with 30 legs. Locomotion is quick and easy, but with all these legs, I've no room for eyes, ears, mouth, or nose. Senseless, I quickly create a pile of a webpage worhty only of a museum of modern art.

Necessities of Technology

Really the only piece technology I consistently rely on is the computer, or to be more specific Microsoft Word. As an English-man, I don't do much other than write papers. Thus, Microsoft Word is as far as I go into the technological realm. To be honest, though, I don't even know all the ends and out of Microsoft Word. Guess you could say I'm a bit of a one-legged dog when it comes to technology--can't really stand, or walk, or crawl, and all attempts either prove futile or I find myself limping in circles. Moreover, my own inabilities are only heightened by my reliance on computers. If they fail, I fail. If they crash, my work is lost. As much as they help, society has become so reliant on all forms of technology that we become shotgunned into ignorance, uncertainty, and incapability as soon as the slightest thing goes wrong.

Academic Success Center

My name is LaKeya Shanelle Jenkins and I'm the new English tutor in the Ac ademic Success Center. Since the ASC has not had an English tutor in recent years I have received very little direction. I'm not exactly sure what Mr. McLeod expects from me other than to help students understand their grammatical errors, acknowledge poor sentence structure, or misplaced punctuations.

Lessons from Fannie

The article providing a case study of Fannie, a Native American student who seeks help with writing, gave helpful insight on true collaboration. The tutor in this case study, although full of good intentions, was unable to establish a true sense of equal collaboration. Unknowingly, the tutor set herself up as the one with the correct answers and therefore as the one in charge. Fannie sensed the forming of this hierarchy and withdrew from adding to the collaboration and ended up simply receiving answers from the tutor.

The case study reminded me of some similar instances in my own tutoring in which I would set up questions in a way that implied that I knew the answer and wanted the student to guess at it. Since reading the article, I have tried to change the way I ask for input from the students in order to place the burden of creating and articulating ideas wholly on the student.

learning from reading

A lot from the readings has really mirrored things we've talked about in class. I'm referring to developing the writer, not the reader and working within a multicultural context. It's interesting to me that the readings don't really stand out in my mind until I'm faced with a similar situation in the writing center. I'll mention the multicultural article here because I've come into contact with two students from different cultures in the past couple of weeks. I didn't have to alter my tutoring methods very much (because the students had fairly good English skills), but I certainly recalled the article when the session began. I considered the students' backgrounds and how they might impact the session. I feel like all of that kind of melts away, though, once we meet eye to eye on the student's assignment.

Say 'No' to Assimilation

One of the most pertinent, and useful, elements I have pulled out of the articles to date is the discussion involving non-native English speaking students. Because the title of the article escapes me, and Ben (who has so rudely and overtly displayed his lack of adherence to our reading assignments) has the book, I will just discuss the idea. The article went into some detail about the need to perceive an international student's struggle with the English language, and consequently writing in that language, and the ways in which to approach that barrier. Interestingly enough, the article highlighted the notion that we, as tutors, should stray from promoting a sense of assimilation. Instead, it is our job to help the student recognize the reasons underlying their writing troubles, and to address those reasons/fears in their writing. Because having an international student simply merge, via writing, into our (the American) culture would deter their own sense of self and individuality, the article asserts that it is the tutor's job to acknowledge these cultural differences, to help the students acknowledge these cultural differences, and finally to formulate a method by which the student can write in English while still maintaining a degree of cultural diversity. It seems so very confusing I know, and that is due in part because I am telling you a version of an article I read written by someone else. The reason I bring this up is because last week I saw two Chinese nursing students back-to-back who were both still in the "learning" process of writing in the English language. Having read that essay helped me better conceptualize a method to approach my tutoring of them.

An Ode to Matthew

Matt,
Get off ma' back
Fo' y'get smacked
By a WHACK
With my hand
That stands
In the land
Of the man
Who has a plan
Because he ran
For president
As a resident
Of the US of A!
So get out'ma way,
Because today
Gordy is comin' through!

A response to Gordy?

Well, you left out a word in the first sentence of your blog. Clearly, you do not take your work seriously. Technical knowledge and patience, to be sure, are not the only things you lack. You lack foresight, creativity, ingenuity, and the ability to not smell bad. In other words, you ain't got the grit to tackle an e-portfolio. When I'm through with you, however, you're gonna eat thunder and poop lightning. You're gonna eat two dimes and a nickle and poop a quarter. You're gonna eat eggs, flour, and milk and poop a bunt cake with a cinnamon swirl. You're gonna eat a monkey and poop neanderthal man. You're gonna eat neanderthal man and poop a super-evolved race of space-time travelers.

About your portfolio, it stinks. But I'm obligated to proffer a somewhat more constructive criticism, so here goes. Your focus on organization, while obviously missplaced, does allow you the possibility of being considerate of your user and his of her navigation through your site. Advice? Well, I'd say the more basic, the better. Keep your design simple (free of "glamourized aesthetics") and give the users the content in a "no-frills" format.

In Response to Ben

See now, Ben, yours I can handle. But not handle like one who grips and grinds a hammer into an unsuspecting nail, nor handle like those of the orient who devote a degree of patience and stillness to a painted eggshell. First and foremost, I would be concrete in your presentation. What do you want the finished product to say to a reader? and How do you want that product to say it? I remember you had trouble at first conceptualizing the best way to organize and capture such a broad metaphor. Therefore, the clarification and narrowing of such a thing should invoke some sense of clarity on how to best present it. Secondly, there is no "secondly," so just stick to the "first and foremost." These are my words, and they are not to be taken lightly.

In response to Matt

Matt,
In response to your response to Professor Fishman's question regarding the status of your progress in the conceptualization of your website, I have to say that either you're not that smart or you're damned smart. A blank white page for a background? It seems too simple, mundane, a cop-out perhaps. But then, maybe you're going for minimalism, which is brilliant. You could write a single sentence on a page. Or, maybe a word. Or just a random collection of letters. Petals on a wet black bough.

To Work with A Certain Diligence

I must admit that I haven't spent an unimaginable amount of time on working through the conceptualization process for my website. The past few days have been filled with work for other classes. Also, I have discovered the same problem Matt mentioned regarding the availability of the program. I have gathered some quality JPEG and even GIF images which I will soon reveal to the unassuming public. However, I am continuously deliberating over the appropriate incorporation of these materials into the broader scheme in an attempt to avoid a schism. And I must also admit that I'm not very tech-saavy. However, my aim is to work with a certain diligence until I obtain the ability to jump these hurdles, climb these walls, scale these mountains, and build this website.

In Response to Matt

Yea, good luck with that one, Matt...

Developing my portfolio

Ideally, there are a lot of things I would like to do for my portfolio, but lack both the technical knowledge and patience to acquire said knowledge to even kid myself into thinking I'm going to accomplish them. So, from a pragmatic standpoint, I would like to create a portfolio that allows my readers to move quickly and efficiently between pages. I am less concerned with glamourized aesthetics than convenience. If my readers cannot access certain pages because I have, though inevitably, constructed an enigma, then I feel I have failed in my general purpose. Unfortunately, I am not sure how to do this. I guess my question lies in the organization of all of these elements. The visuals, I feel, will fall into place once I have conquered the organization that drives it all.

How to actualize

I really don't know how to actualize much at all in the program we are using to create our pages. I haven't been able to find the program on other computers around campus, so I haven't had opportunities to fiddle with the program outside of class. Ultimately, I'd like to use the blank pages of a book for the background of many of my pages, and I've found some images with potential for that use. I'm still not sure how best to size the image for use as a background.

"D" for Difficulty

Dishelveled. Dense. Disillusioned. But not diffusive.
Dogmatic and dour in observation,
Spouting discursive discourse about the delineation
Of depression (or expression). A dire doctrine.
Deigned, denigrated, and dictated a mere dollop of diction
By self-proclaimed deities.
"A product of degenerates."
"A deracination of art."
Did not Daedalus dare the Sun?
Did not Demeter dredge?
The Dodo shall perish.

Altering class plans

As Barbara let you know, we'll have to alter our class plans for this week. If you have questions or concerns, please either post here or email and I'll see you next week!