tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3790062.post4777612838857910758..comments2024-03-27T08:11:29.257-06:00Comments on PeerCentered: Saturday Morning OppositesClint Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07671508034667904543noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3790062.post-53453983058012908872008-02-20T21:59:00.000-07:002008-02-20T21:59:00.000-07:00I agree with you Greg that it's good to give stude...I agree with you Greg that it's good to give students a little extra push. I have had a lot of students essentially say "I never would have come here if my teacher didn't make me, but now I'm glad my teacher did make me." A lot of students have negative misconceptions about what we do in the WC. We're in charge, they're not; we're right, they're wrong; we're smart, they're dumb. The last one is a big one--a lot of students are worried that we are going to think they are stupid. Nobody likes to feel stupid. If we can just get students to come in, then we can show them the only things they are wrong about are the negative misconceptions.<BR/><BR/>But...<BR/><BR/>I am not convinced that forcing someone to come in by threatening failure is a good idea. Maybe coming into the WC is required as an assignment, as a percentage of one's grade, but requiring it in order to pass the entire unit may be too drastic.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3790062.post-62935452376362745232008-02-19T19:17:00.000-07:002008-02-19T19:17:00.000-07:00I'm in a curious position here. Not only am I wri...I'm in a curious position here. Not only am I writing center consultant, but I am also a teacher who requires his students to make at least one visit to the writing center at some point in the semester. And not with me unless there is no possible way to avoid it. I think that the fact that all my students love me (at least, in my mind they do) helps make the visit more bearable even if they don't want to go. <BR/><BR/>I have found that there are far more students who actually make a productive half-hour or hour out of the required session than those who do not. And many students who have become return visitors have told me they never would have gone if they hadn't been required to go the first time. I think the upside of required visits far outweighs the few uncomfortable sessions that may occur. And maybe I'm a little bit of a turd sometimes: if I get someone who really doesn't want to be there and it's obvious they don't want to be there, it motivates me to try even harder to crack the shell. Maybe a lot of this comes from my experiences teaching in a prison where there were some very hard shells to crack.Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09848849712381090061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3790062.post-70711659833420378612008-02-19T12:41:00.000-07:002008-02-19T12:41:00.000-07:00I always find it interesting HOW different every c...I always find it interesting HOW different every consultation is. You know, I think that the only ones that are "alike" are the ones that the writers DO NOT want to participate in.<BR/><BR/>I think that it was you--or maybe Nate--that I was speaking to about a consultation similar to the first one you describe here. The description of your session was very similar to the one that I had; the student was uncooperative, and she was unwilling to participate. There was no "conversation" in my session, either.<BR/><BR/>I makes me wonder how differently either session would've went if students would've come in on his/her own.Alisha Kamphhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03021863287095747457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3790062.post-5320202292746497272008-02-19T12:39:00.000-07:002008-02-19T12:39:00.000-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Alisha Kamphhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03021863287095747457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3790062.post-76210541199250727202008-02-18T12:08:00.000-07:002008-02-18T12:08:00.000-07:00I hate when teachers SEND us their students. To me...I hate when teachers SEND us their students. To me, it just feels like they're making us seem more remedial than we are, and no one wants to be <I>remedial</I>. I think extra credit is one thing, but there's a good chance that forcing a student to attent a WC session is just going to waste everyone's time. You can lead a horse to water...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com