Our Philosophy
The UT-Tyler Writing Center supports and encourages writing instruction in all disciplines. We provide writing tutoring for all UT-Tyler students, and will offer writing programs tailored to meet faculty members’ specific instructional objectives. The UT-Tyler Writing Center grounds its service to the campus community on the following assumptions: that individual writers work in unique, non-formulaic ways; that each student writer requires individualized writing instruction; and that writing-intensive coursework can and should be an integral part of a comprehensive liberal arts education.
Our Mission
The UT-Tyler Writing Center contributes to the UT-Tyler campus community in three ways: teaching, scholarship and service.
Teaching: We seek to educate writing students through writing tutorials. Because no two writers are the same, and no two writers work in the same way, we tailor the writing instruction we provide to the specific needs of individual writers. We do this in the form of peer consultations or tutorials, in which a student works one-on-one with a Writing Center tutor.
Our tutors receive extensive and ongoing training so that they may carefully and accurately assess their clients’ needs and suggest specific strategies for planning, drafting, revising, and editing documents. However, Writing Center tutors will not write students’ papers for them, nor will they make any guarantees with regard to the grade any writing will receive.
Scholarship: We are party to a rich variety of writing students, each of whom possesses a different level of writing proficiency. We know that we incorporate a rich variety of teaching strategies as we tutor. Therefore we are positioned to closely observe and carefully reflect upon writing process and pedagogy, both formally and informally.
We seek to contribute to ongoing research and scholarship on writing center practice and theory, and keep abreast of latest developments in the field through reading professional publications, maintaining membership in the International Writing Centers Association, attending relevant conferences, and pursuing national certification.
Service: As the de facto writing across the curriculum entity on the UT-Tyler campus, we encourage and support the efforts of faculty from all disciplines to incorporate writing instruction into their teaching. We offer short workshops for writing students on a variety of writing-related issues; hold periodic faculty "brown-bag lunches" to share teaching strategies; and provide consultation time with the Writing Center Director to help faculty plan writing assignments.
As resources allow, we will work to implement and grow programs like the following: satellite tutoring sites; online tutoring services; collaborating with area high schools in areas such as college applications and the National Writing Project; and community literacy outreach.
Our Goals
1. Provide professional writing tutoring to all UTT students, regardless of academic discipline.
2. Promote the use of Writing Center facilities and the development of writing-intensive coursework through regular workshops and presentations.
3. Provide relevant coursework and ongoing professional development opportunities for Writing Center Tutors.
4. Support the efforts of faculty to develop writing-intensive coursework.
5. Contribute to ongoing research on the work of writing centers through publication, presentations, and other related professional activities.
6. Develop concrete strategies for writing center outreach to both the UTT campus and Tyler-area communities.
Your Role
Writing Centers work best when students, faculty and writing center staff share a common vision and set of expectations concerning outcomes. To this end:
* Ask our staff to visit your class for a brief promotional presentation when or before you give a writing assignment. This reinforces the idea that the tutors are here to help during the writing process, and counters the popular student notion that Writing Centers are a form of ‘punishment’ for ‘bad’ writing.
* Encourage your students to come regularly, and come often. Writing tutoring works best once a meaningful dialogue between student and tutor is established.
* Keep us abreast of any special needs you have, of anything our staff can do to underline, emphasize and support your work as a teacher of writing.
The University of Texas at Tyler Writing Center
BUS 202
3900 University Blvd
Tyler, TX 75799
Office Phone: (903) 565-5995
E-mail: utwritingcenter@gmail.com
