English Subject Centre Mini Projects
Work-in-Progress:
‘exploring the potential of peer tutoring
in developing student writing’
Project Report
Third Year, 2003-2004
Authors: Jonathan Worley
Matthew Martin
St. Mary’s University College, Belfast
October 2005
English Subject Centre Departmental Projects
This report and the work it presents were funded by the English Subject Centre under a scheme which funds projects run by departments in Higher Education institutions (HEIs) in the UK. Some projects are run in collaboration between departments in different HEIs. Projects run under the scheme are concerned with developments in the teaching and learning of English Language, Literature and Creative Writing. They may involve the production of teaching materials, the piloting and evaluation of new methods or materials or the production of research into teaching and learning. Project outcomes are expected to be of benefit to the subject community as well as having a positive influence on teaching and learning in the host department(s). For this reason, project results are disseminated widely in print, electronic form and via events, or a combination of these.
Details of ongoing projects can be found on the English Subject Centre website at www.english.heacademy.ac.uk/deptprojects/index.htm . If you would like to enquire about support for a project, please contact the English Subject Centre:
The English Subject Centre
Royal Holloway, University of London
Egham, Surrey TW20 OEX
T. 01784 443221
www.english.heacademy.ac.uk
Introduction
This report covers the final, third phase of the Peer Tutor Project at St. Mary's, supported by the university and by the English Subject Centre. The project has been divided into three phases: the first phase was a 'pilot' scheme run in the spring term of 2001. The second phase was a more complete, fully functional running of peer tutoring for a full year. The final phase consolidated the lessons learned from the first and second phases and included the most comprehensive training of peer tutors and the greatest number of students tutored. Our guest speaker, Dr. Susan Dinitz, director of the writing centre from the University of Vermont, will review the project. With the completion of the third phase, we will publish teaching materials on the web and in-house. It should also be noted that due to the success of the project, St. Mary's has given us financial support for another year's operation, and we are currently in the process of applying for more substantial grants from the Department of Education and Labour.
Achievements
The final, third year of the Peer Tutoring project was marked by several achievements:
• Expansion of methods to advertise and attract students: visitation of all induction sessions at commencement of academic year, visits to particular classes with short presentations, creation of new advertising posters and a pamphlet.
• Streamlining of administration and turnaround time for tutoring, esp. using text messaging to contact peer tutors.
• Ten weeks of training for eight new tutors that included the incorporation of new ideas for the training of tutors, including preparation for written exams. This year's training solidified the final form of peer tutor training programme.
• A dependable cohort of 13 student tutors.
• Two peer tutors selected and funded by St. Mary's to attend the New England Writing Association Centre conference at Merrimack College (April 16-17), accompanied by Dr. Matthew Martin. The students represented the college well and returned with an excellent range of ideas for improving our programme.
• Contact with the Royal Literary Fund through the auspices of the English Subject Centre resulted in successful application to have Anne Rouse, poet and literary fund fellow in residence for the 2004-05 academic year. Anne will assist in the teaching of written communications.
• St. Mary's administration pleased with project and have given backing for expansion.
Remaining Challenges.
• Number of students remains disappointingly small (30). This difficulty turns out to have been experienced in American university writing centres at their inception, as we learned at NEWCA conference. We have a series of proposals to remedy this situation:
• A table manned by peer tutors outside the canteen, from time to time.
• Peer tutor presentations—rather than staff presentations—at orientation.
• Development of 'tutor fellowships' whereby tutors are made responsible for particular courses and meet with course tutor and periodically attend lectures.
• Finding additional space for privacy in peer tutoring.
• Continuation of all previous methods of promoting the centre: open door policy, advertising through poster, pamphlet, web and e-mail.
• Finding a way to negotiate our presence as a course with the BEd side of institution. Currently the BEd does not fund any written communications tuition and is dependent upon us for 'outreach' help. The solution to this problem would appear to be through increased funding and staffing.
• To become more current in recent scholarship on peer tutoring and teaching writing—especially as practised in the United States.
• To publish a book based experience of training peer tutors and administering a peer-tutoring programme.
• To implement 'peer tutor fellowships': specially trained and supervised peer tutors who tutor in a particular subject area.
• To implement 'live' web pages. Due to current work on implementing new university web pages, web pages have not yet gone 'live'.
Training
Tutoring for new tutors was conducted in a series of ten, one-hour sessions (with one additional session added on by special request).
• Introduction. Introduction to ideas behind peer tutoring (an explanation of our project) and an explanation of procedures for tutoring.
• Writing as Process. Lecture / discussion: models of the writing process. 'Writing as Process' from Write to Learn by Donald Murray (1984 edition) 'Writing Without Teachers' (57-59). Peter Elbow, 'A Two Step Writing Process' (see Appendices 2-3)
• Models of the Peer Tutoring Process: Readings: 'Conference Teaching, the Individual Response' from A Writer Teaches Writing (147-186) by Don Murray. Reading of a sample student essay.
• Reading Student Essays for 'Focus'. Reading from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and 'The Poisoned Fish' by Kenneth Macrorie.
• Reading Student Essays for 'Content'. Reading / discussion: an 'advanced' student essay. 'Writing as a Way of Knowing' by James McCrimmon from Rhetoric and Composition: A Sourcebook for Teachers and Writers (1984).
• Reading for Structure. Reading / Discussion of 'The Paragraph' from The Right Handbook by Pat Belanoff, et. al (1986). Discussion of a student essay with emphasis on problems of structuring.
• Assessing 'Grammar'. Grammar Lectures: Sixteen grammar errors. Students were required to prepare the 'top eight' grammar errors as presentations to other tutors. Reading from The Right Handbook by Pat Belanoff, et. al. Review of six common grammatical errors, plus the addition of ten new points of grammar. Reading / discussion: a 'basic writing' student essay. Exercises in spotting grammar errors from sample student paragraphs.
• Practical Tutoring: Student tutors exchange essays, take them home to read and prepare and then take turns tutoring each other. Discussion of experience follows.
• Presentation and Form: Writing and Presenting Across the Curriculum. Forms of Documentation, esp. documenting the Internet. Internet handouts. Excerpts: MLA Handbook. Oxford Manual of Style. Chicago Manual of Style. Styles of different disciplines
• Writing Theory and the Student Essay. Lecture / discussion: 'Writing Theory: Writing as Ideology' Power Point presentation and Spellmeyer, 'Could Teaching, of All Things, Prove to be our Salvation' (241-247) from Arts of Living: Reinventing the Humanities for the Twenty-First Century (2003). Reading a student essay 'theoretically'. Review discussion: 'What Kind of Tutor Will You Be?'
• Extra Session: Revising for Essay Exams. Power Point presentation on how to prepare exams, with question and answer session.
This series of training sessions will become the basis for chapters in our proposed book. Materials will also be posted on the web to assist lecturers and tutors interested in teaching a similar course.
Student Tutor Feedback —All Years of Project — Divided into Categories
(1) New Ways of Active Learning: Mutually Beneficial Learning through Peer Tutoring:
• ‘The sessions were helpful for myself and the students.’
• ‘I enjoyed putting what I had learned into practice and found that the student appreciated what I had to say.’
• ‘It was very positive (as a tutor I learnt about things I could develop, for example, forms of advice given.) I also felt the student found the session quite helpful – it alerted her to consistent errors that had been made.’
• ‘I felt confident dealing with another student and I was able to critically analyse her essay.’
• ‘I feel confident both the tutee and myself benefited from the experience. My tutees stated that they appreciated the help and I now feel more confident in tutoring again.’
• ‘I felt the tutoring session I had went very well and my student has decided to make another appointment.’
• 'I found the peer tutoring very helpful, I found that it not only prepared me for becoming a peer tutor but also helped to brush up my own skills.’
(2) Acquisition of Key Skills in Written Communications:
• ‘The peer tutor training helped me to develop my own writing skills as well as help others with their skills.’
• ‘I believe that the training provided excellent guidance on essay writing.’
• ‘I found the training excellent with regard to . . . my own written work.’
• ‘I have really enjoyed the peer tutor training and feel that my own writing has benefited from the experience.’
• ‘I felt the training was both interesting and useful.’
• ‘The training not only suggested ways in which I could help other students improve their writing, it helped me consider ways in which I could improve my own. I’ve been using some of the issues raised during training sessions to enhance my essay-writing skills and techniques.’
(3) Acquisition of Transferable Skills:
• ‘I feel that my own work has benefited greatly as a result.’
• ‘I enjoyed the experience and felt the session went well. I felt the student received some key points in improving their essay writing.’
• ‘It was very useful for my own writing development.’
• ‘It has also ‘programmed’ me to use the knowledge I have gained as second nature in all written work in and out of college.’
(4) Personal Development of the Individual Tutor:
• ‘I found all the information presented very interesting and am glad that I signed up for the project.’
• ‘It has been very helpful and informative on a personal level.’
• ‘It was very useful for my own writing development.’
• ‘I feel that I have benefited greatly from the training sessions.’
• ‘I feel confident both the tutee and myself benefited from the experience. My tutee stated that they appreciated the help and I now feel more confident in tutoring again.’
• ‘I had a second-year Business Studies student who was having a lot of problems with essay writing. I looked over some of her essays and identified what I thought were the greatest problems. We met up and discussed these points and she said she would be interested in having another meeting so I could see if she was making progress. I would be interested in tutoring again. I feel that it is a good experience for me and I would be glad to help someone if I can.’
(5) Professional Development
• ‘The advantages of the programme have proved an excellent means of my own professional development.’
• ‘I found the training excellent with regard to my own professional development.’
Feedback from Students Tutored
Comment from students indicated that a wide range of subjects had been treated during their tutorials: grammar, style, content, structure, exam techniques.
(1) Key Skill: Grammatically Correct Writing
• ‘The main focus of the session was use of the comma. I was given sound advice on using commas, semi-colons and colons. I knew I was very weak in this area. The session was very helpful indeed. The tutor was very helpful and encouraging.’
• ‘I learned a number of practical steps to take in laying out my work, focusing on my grammar and the use of a variety of words and terms. Reading aloud to myself was suggested. I now find myself being more conscious of the way I phrase sentences, when they should stop and so on. I found this very worthwhile and would definitely like to meet my tutor again.’
• ‘The feedback was very constructive. My tutor took a lot of time reading my work and the comments were quite positive. Structure, grammar and run-on sentences were discussed. The session was helpful as I felt the tutor had prepared well and was able to guide me. I would like to meet this tutor again just so I can put into practice what we discussed.’
• ‘Issues of diction, structure and style were discussed. Grammar was also mentioned and a handout was given. All advice was helpful. Very useful tips as regards structure were given. Really helpful.’
(2) Key Skills: Exam Preparation, Dissertation Research, Critical Thinking, Essay Structure
• ‘We reviewed exam technique and discussed my dissertation literature review – extremely helpful and I would like this tutor to help me again.’
• ‘I feel the session has helped me greatly regarding content.’
• ‘I learned how to plan constructively.’
• ‘The point was raised about writing a good introduction and conclusion which I found very interesting and I will certainly learn from it.’
Staff Feedback
We solicited feedback from the lecturers on the BA degree, receiving confirmation that both the Written Communications Seminars and the Individualized Tutoring were achieving results.
‘The peer tutor project is an excellent provision for the development of student writing skills. Good writing skills are essential for a successful degree; I therefore encourage all students to avail of the facilities, and I regularly refer weaker students to the Centre. Students who participated in the peer tutor project have greatly improved their writing skills and, by extension, the quality of their essays.’ (Lecturer in Politics)
‘I'd like you to know that our first batch of final year BA students in Geography have really progressed in their writing skills since they were first years. They were 'not so hot' when they started here; indeed, I started to run tutorials alongside their reading tutorials for a short while in their first year. I just don't have the expertise nor do I have the time…. This group has really improved. I am especially pleased that your tutoring has really made a difference to the work of one student whose papers are now much more structured. I've a feeling that you've been able to boost his confidence along the way! The job prospects for all of them will surely be improved, too.’ (Lecturer in Geography)