Writing+Center+Implementation+Research

=** Writing Center Implementation **=

Barnett, R. (2006). Collaboratively establishing high school writing centers in Flint, Michigan, to support the improvement of students' writing skills. //The Clearing House//, 80, 2.80-83. Retrieved February 27, 2009, from ProQuest Database.

The writing center at the University of Michigan--Flint received a very generous $25,000 grant to mentor high school students and encourage the development of writing skills among local area high schools (p. 80). Inspired by the increasingly low admission and placement scores of incoming freshmen, the writing center staff was determined to develop intervention strategies for the secondary level. Undergraduate tutors from the university trained high school students to become tutors at their own schools, and the UM-Flint writing center director trained teachers to manage centers at their own schools. In small groups, they explored topics such as directive and non-directive tutoring, beginning and ending a session, and question and answering techniques. The ultimate goal of the extensive 28-month project was to create a manual for starting and operating peer writing centers that could then be used at other schools in the future. Both the high school teachers and students observed college tutors, participated in workshops, and attended a reception to honor their important efforts. An excellent benefit for the high school students was the opportunity to work at the college writing center for an hourly wage should they be accepted to the University of Michigan--Flint. Barnett explains, "The advantage for the university writing center is that we can hire first-semester students--we currently hire second-term sophomores--which will reduce the turnover rate for our staff and provide a more stable work environment" (p. 82). Following the two-year pilot program, the author believed this program was very effective and plans to monitor longitudinal data about the students involved.

Kent, Richard. (2006). A Guide to Creating Student-Staffed Writing Centers: Grades 6-12. New York: Peter Lang.  Richard Kent (2006) wrote //A Guide to Creating Student-Staffed Writing Centers//, the most helpful and comprehensive resource that I have found. Kent literally gives step-by-step instructions for implementing a peer writing center, from the planning to the staffing, to the training. He acknowledges that there is no magic or easy way to create a writing center but offers sound suggestions for overcoming obstacles at the department, building, and district levels. Before starting his own high school writing center, Kent spent one full year researching, planning, and lobbying for his project (Kent, 2006, p. 7). The writing center began as small venture, with limited tutors, whom he had handpicked, and limited space, technology, and availability. After about five years of slowly building up the writing center, training and recruiting students, and finding a suitable space for the center, Kent made his vision a reality. The writing center was a full-time operation, and peer tutoring became a class for students, who completed summer homework, kept a journal of their tutoring experiences, and wrote a final paper at the end of the semester (pp. 33-34). Kent cautions of the highly political consequences of implementing a writing center, particularly in a public high school setting, where teachers with study hall and lunch duties are apt to be envious of teachers with writing center duties (p. 17, 19). He advocates making the writing center a school-wide project, since it really has the potential to affect the entire school. To get the word out, he had English teachers make announcements and in some cases even require students to see a writing center tutor before handing in their papers. He had technology classes create a writing center logo and asked the writing classes to make an informational brochure (p. 69). In addition to all of these helpful tips for getting started, Kent realizes that funding is huge issue and offers advice for keeping a writing center up and running. In his assessment section, he emphasizes the importance of record keeping and gives some templates for tutor and tutee evaluations (pp. 76-78). Longwill, A.W. & Kleinert, H.L. (1998). The unexpected benefits of high school peer tutoring. //Teaching Exceptional Children//. 30, 4. 60-65.

Longwill and Kleinert discuss the many benefits of peer tutoring for all students, but especially those with disabilities. At Danville High School in Kentucky, peer tutoring was originally started in hopes of improving the social interactions between students with disabilities and students without disabilities. What the authors found in addition, though, was improved academic performances by both groups of students. Students were able to take a writing process class to earn high school credit. The classes were typically made up of an equal number of peer tutors and students with disabilities. Students enjoyed this class because of its collaborative nature and its portfolio based assessment.

The most helpful part of this article was its inclusion of actual student evaluations and a 10-step guide for starting a writing center course. Prior to reading this article, I had only considered using the writing center as a study hall alternative or an elective opportunity. I had not considered offering it to tutors for course credit. Perhaps this incentive might encourage more students to volunteer. I think this article might also appeal to my administration because it discusses the positive impact of a writing center on the special education population, a sub-group that traditionally struggles according to our WKCE data.

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