According to the editorial published in The Voice on October 19th, the Writing Center fails to assist students with the writing process because of several bureaucratic factors, including our “Byzantine interpretation of ‘academic integrity.’ ” The article notes that we, as writing tutors, cannot assist students with “sentence-level” problems and refuse to proofread papers, which, in effect, deters students from seeking help. It is unfortunate that the Writing Center has developed such a pejorative reputation and we admit that a majority of the misconceptions about the Writing Center are attributable to our failure to explain who we are and what we’re all about. As such, we would like to clarify a few aspects of what we do at the Center, and prevent any future comparison of the Writing Center to the Byzantine Empire.
Firstly, we are more than happy to work at the “sentence-level” if we see that a student has consistent problems in this particular area. That can mean grammar trouble, awkward syntax or wordiness. “Cosmetic problems” are a significant aspect of any paper and we are willing to point them out to the student while looking over his or her paper. We can and do assist students with such sentence-level problems, but our mission statement says that we will not work “exclusively on sentence-level skills.” To be sure, sentence-level skills are integral to good writing, but we cannot work on them exclusively because such a concentration would conflict with the rest of our mission to help students “to revise and edit their work in order to improve all the writing they do.” We’ll help, but we won’t write sentences for a student because according to our “Byzantine interpretation of academic integrity,” that’s cheating.
Moreover, we don’t proofread papers because we believe in improving the writer, not a particular piece of writing. We want to advise students on matters that will elevate their overall writing prowess. This cannot be done when a student comes to us looking for someone to simply pinpoint his or her errors with a red pen. We’re really nice, and we like to talk to people (not just read their writing) so we ask students to have at least one point in their mind that they’d like to discuss. But even if a student is unsure about his or her greatest concern, we can look at the paper and provide general feedback.
Ultimately, we feel that the “no-proofread” policy is in the interest of students. If someone else did your calculus homework, would you do well on the exam? You wouldn’t be familiar with the formulas, equations and the processes. Most importantly, you wouldn’t have exercised your mind and taken on the sometimes frustrating problems that come along with writing. Those who force themselves to take on a challenge are likely to find solutions and better understand the writing process. Besides, you’re not always going to have spell check on hand to scan your paper for those cosmetic mistakes.
Lastly, with regard to professors allowing tutors to discuss “specific talking points” with students, the Writing Center already allows for that kind of interaction and exchange. We look at a paper that has already been commented upon by the professor or even graded. We certainly try to incorporate the professor’s suggestions to enhance the piece. Only during midterms and finals do we refuse to look at a paper, for obvious reasons. Furthermore, we encourage professors to send their students seeking extra help to the writing center. Georgetown professors take the time to help their students with writing problems. Generally, they will not turn away a student who comes looking for help, even if their issues require a significant amount of time. A student who is truly dedicated to improving his or her writing should be keen on revising a paper whether or not it will count for a grade.
We do appreciate your suggestions and concerns about the Writing Center, and again, we realize that some of the misconceptions about the Writing Center are largely due to a failure on our part to articulate clearly and effectively who we are and what we do. Do come visit us.
