By Amanda Currie, Grace O’Day, Tyler Clark & Erin Cournoyer

 For our presentation aimed at writing tutors, we intend to extrapolate from and expand on methods for coping with challenging tutoring situations. As senior tutors we have experienced a litany of taxing sessions with tutees; these challenges stem from both a tutor's fear of failure, and the challenges the tutees themselves present. Tutors who attend this presentation will learn strategies for dealing with these sessions, and leave with more confidence to handle delicate situations like these.

 Conduct a mock tutoring session for 5 minutes  Treat it as if this is a real one-on-one session with a tutee  Consider ways to help a student when they aren’t responding to what you’re saying

 A student comes in for tutoring and hands you a paper marked up with corrections & suggestions. When asked, they tell you that they’ve seen other tutors this week, and you wonder why no progress has been made despite these other appointments. What do you do?

 -ask about difficulty understanding previous revisions (9)  -show the tutee how to make his/her own revisions (6)  -make goals to edit/revise outside of sessions (5)  -hand-write corrections into the paper (4)  -work on the computer (4)  -talk to supervisor about frequency of appointments (3)

 -ask them how you, as a tutor, can help them learn  -see if you, as the tutor, agree with past corrections  -add your own suggestions on top of the other tutor's suggestions  - tutors are not trained to recognize and recommend help for learning disabilities  -refer them to the Center for Access and Success if they were having a lot of trouble  -ask questions about the class  -ask the tutee what they did to make changes between the last session and now  -talk to other tutees about strategies used in similar situations  -investigate the possibility of a learning disorder  -discuss “using” tutors to make corrections

 A student comes in with an argumentative paper, in which he claims prostitution should be legal for the sake of a man’s libido. He makes a number of other comments that offend you personally, on top of the fact that his argument isn’t well-structured. How do you handle this session without letting your personal opinion affect it?

 -work on making arguments stronger (13)  -identify possible objections and counter-arguments (10)  -point out degrading comments (8)  - appeal to audience (7)  - the tutor should focus on helping the student support his ideas, regardless of what they are (5)  -provide evidence for arguments (2)  -suggest topics for him to further research (i.e. sex trade) (2)  -remind him that he must remain objective and not opinionated (2)  -find out what his thesis is  -suggest he talk to his professor about his topic  -tell the tutee I, as a tutor, feel uncomfortable with his topic  -fix offensiveness, then structure, then adding detail  -make an outline and figure out how arguments fit into his paper  -introduce a resource into the session, like the Purdue OWL guide to writing argumentative papers  -make a reverse outline

 -find out what his thesis is  -suggest he talk to his professor about his topic  -tell the tutee I, as a tutor, feel uncomfortable with his topic  -fix offensiveness, then structure, then adding detail  -make an outline and figure out how arguments fit into his paper  -introduce a resource into the session, like the Purdue OWL guide to writing argumentative papers  -make a reverse outline

 A student comes to you and explains how her professor sent her to the Center to fix a paper and avoid a failing grade. She seems dejected and apathetic, and you feel the invisible presence of the professor throughout the whole session. What can you do to make the student interested and comfortable, and help her not fixate on the professor’s comments?

 -explain that if she does not do the work herself, she will not fix the problem (his work, his responsibility)(10)  -keep asking questions and try to force answers out of the student (7)  -try to get the tutee talking (5)  -try and communicate on a personal level to see why the student is having a problem (4)  -move from talking to working on the paper (3)  -focus on the professor's comments and make a reverse outline (2)  -discuss the assignment to address the requirements (2)  -remember as a tutor that not every session will be perfect (2)  -motivate the student to care (2)  -do not do the work for the student (2)  -ask the tutee to write down what needs to be corrected (2)

 -suggest to the student that they might as well work on the paper since she’s already there  -mention that at a tutor you just want to help, not grade her  -tell the student that if he/she keeps acting this way they might as well leave  -making /writing suggestions for him/her to take into account  -ask how the student feels about the class/professor  -apply extended wait times for an answer  -focus on logic and organization

 A student makes appointments to see you and only you, but you feel a sense of growing discomfort. He’s getting a bit too comfortable, bordering on inappropriate, and you discover he’s even made up assignments just to schedule appointments with you. How do you handle this odd behavior?

 -make a point that Elmwood is a place for work (9)  -let them know they are taking time away from students who really need the help (7)  - tell the student their behavior is unacceptable (5)  -ask the student to make an appointment (4)  -ask why they made up the assignment (3)  -keep the conversation on the assignment (3)  - tell a supervisor (3)  -suggest the Writing Circle, conversation partner program, or other clubs (2)  -turn them away if the behavior persists (2)  -could still work on essay clarity (2)

 -suggest that they get a different tutor  -if I like them, ask them to come around when I don't have a student to work with  -ask the tutee to bring an assignment sheet to each session

 A chatty, affable student comes in for an appointment and you’re excited with her enthusiasm. As the session progresses though, she spends more of her time talking about anything except getting tutored on her paper. How can you redirect her enthusiasm and friendliness to facilitate a productive session?

 -redirect the conversation to the paper topic (15)  -mention the limited amount of time in each session (7)  -try to make the paper topic interesting (2)  -ask questions about the paper (2)  - ask when the paper is due to see if there is time for a follow-up appointment (2)  -ask her to take notes or do something to direct her attention to the topic (2)

 -light-heartedly mention the behavior pattern and try to stay on topic  -mention that if you finish the work first you can chat with extra time at the end

 As a tutor, you cannot always rely on your training to work through a challenging appointment  Being a good tutor means that you know how to think on your feet and principally address the global concerns of the assignment and essay.  Questions or comments?