Blog post 7

 I think the primary challenge in giving asynchronous online tutoring, for me, is providing feedback without having established a rapport with the writer, i.e., without a full sense of how they gauge their own ability and what they want out the tutoring experience. I also feel that establishing a personal relationship also establishes trust, and makes the writer more receptive to criticism, understanding that the intent behind that criticism is to help them develop their skills rather than denigrate their ability.

While I was an undergraduate at Arizona State University I participated in a creative writing workshop for prisoners at the AZ Department of Corrections, which was done all online and asynchronously. Part of the protocol was that the tutors use pen names to preserve anonymity; this certainly added another element of distance to the tutoring relationship, but I felt that in a way writing feedback through a kind of "persona" made me more comfortable providing honest criticism. 

When I move into the research unit of my rhetoric class, I have my students do a series of activities practicing evaluating sources. Specifically, I have them look at the reputation/"prestige" of the publication they're citing from, how recently the article was published, how often has the article been cited and by how many people (I think this is especially useful in evaluating academic papers), and investigating potential conflicts of interest. I also have them do a number of activities meant to help them practice embedding quotes, placing natural breaks in their own prose to "stitch" in someone else's voice as seamlessly as possible.

Comments

  1. Jose Di PaolaOctober 14, 2020 at 1:32 PM

    Do you think pen names provide more honest criticism because they allow tutors to be more negative without the uncomfortable feeling of being judged for what we say? It's interesting how this is almost the opposite of what the article was talking about with online tutoring as a self-referential practice that puts our own work out to be judged.

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