MSU Writing Center News

Writing Center tutors present at national joint conference

(Pictured from left to right: Joelle Scarrow, Lukas Kosel, Olivia Wallenmeyer, Annie Jenkins)

Inspired by the collaborative learning techniques they use as peer tutors in the MSU Writing Center, College of Letters and Science students Lukas Kosel and Joelle Scarrow traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio, this fall to lead a roundtable discussion at a national academic conference for writing center tutors and professionals. 

“I think a lot of the ways that students are taught right now doesn’t actually encourage genuine learning. Because we can see co-construction of knowledge in the Writing Center, we looked at how the Writing Center’s models of collaboration could be utilized in classrooms or if we could encourage that use in classrooms,” said Scarrow, a senior majoring in psychology, who last spring pitched the idea of a presentation on collaborative learning’s potential to contribute to educational reform.

Kosel, a senior majoring in English and history, said working with Scarrow on the presentation provided him the opportunity to research topics he values as a Writing Center tutor.

“I genuinely care about collaboration being employed more often, because people interacting with others learn and co-create knowledge,” he said. “That’s why I work at the Writing Center. It’s a place where people go to do exactly that, and I get to be a part of the process.”

Also representing the Writing Center at the conference were tutors Annie Jenkins and Olivia Wallenmeyer, both juniors studying in the Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering. They presented research on tools that tutors can use when working with technical and engineering writing, based on their experiences working with capstone teams in MSU’s chemical and electrical engineering departments.

“Our audience was very engaged, and they liked what we had to say,” said Jenkins, adding that most of the attendees were writing center administrators from STEM-focused institutions. Most of them already partnered with, or were looking to partner with, their own universities’ engineering programs and came to the presentation looking for inspiration and advice.

Every year, peer tutors from the MSU Writing Center participate in research as part of their work in the Writing Center. A handful of those tutors will commit to larger projects and take the opportunity to submit conference proposals and, if accepted, travel to a national or regional writing center conference to present. This year, the event was a joint conference of the International Writing Centers Association and the National Conference on Peer Tutoring in Writing, which drew about 700 people, according to Jess Carroll, interim director of the MSU Writing Center.

All four students said they enjoyed the opportunity to share what they find most valuable about the Writing Center’s processes and services, which include helping with academic assignments, resumes, and applications for scholarships, employment or graduate school.

“A lot of people misunderstand and think that the Writing Center is just here as a red-pen service. They are often reluctant to come in for help – especially engineers – because we aren’t content experts,” Wallenmeyer said. “But there is still a lot that we can do, like suggesting sentence-level revisions, organizing ideas and structure, and asking questions about content to make sure that what you've written is what you meant to say, all in a collaborative environment.”

At the conference, each MSU presenter also attended presentations, workshops, and discussions led by peers and administrators from around the country, returning with information and ideas that they believe could be useful here.

They agreed that working together on their respective presentations solidified their belief in the value of the collaborative writing process.

“At the Writing Center, we’re here to collaborate,” said Jenkins. “From the first session where we ask, ‘Tell me about your ideas for this paper,’ to last-minute editing, we’re helping writers learn.”

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MSU Writing Center supports students across campus

Every writer at Montana State University – from freshmen to Ph.D. candidates, artists to engineers – are encouraged to consult the MSU Writing Center for free help at any stage of a writing project.

“The worst thing for me is if a senior comes in and says, ‘I had no idea you guys were here,’” said Jess Carroll, interim director of the Writing Center, who believes any Bobcat can benefit from the numerous resources the center offers.

For more than 40 years, the MSU Writing Center has offered non-evaluative, student-centered writing assistance on campus.

“You can come in with a prompt, and we’ll help you make sense of it and come up with a plan. We’ll brainstorm. We can also offer another set of eyes to proofread an hour before an assignment is due and everything in between,” said Carroll. “We still think human readers are extremely valuable, and we’ll invest in your work.”

Support is available not only with MSU assignments but also with non-course materials, including job applications, cover letters, creative writing projects or any other type of writing. Students are also invited to come to the Writing Center simply to write, even if they don’t wish to meet with a tutor. Check the website for hours and locations.

Carroll also urges students to check out the online resources available on the Writing Center’s website.

Our staff

It isn’t only English majors who make up the Writing Center’s staff of trained peer tutors – in fact, tutors come from every college on campus. Carroll said the strong disciplinary diversity has created a huge benefit for students who use the Writing Center.

“We consider ourselves a generalist center, which means that all the tutors are prepared to work with any kind of writer, but the tutors also have their bios on the website, including their major, some of their strengths, and things they feel particularly well suited or well prepared to work with,” she said.

Students can look at the bios and book with a specific tutor and to try working with more than one person until they find the best fit.

Join our team

The Writing Center accepts applications for new tutors each spring and fall semester. Both undergraduate and graduate students from all programs and majors are encouraged to apply. Those selected will receive rigorous, on-the-job tutor education training throughout their tenure.

“Our tutors are smart, curious, and invested in their community, and they gain a rich understanding of writing through their work with peers,” Carroll said.

For more information, visit the Writing Center in person at Wilson 1-114 or Romney 207, or online at www.montana.edu/writingcenter/.

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