I was only 10 when the 2008 recession hit, so I don’t remember exactly what happened. I do remember the confusion and strife around the stock market’s crash. Once I got older, I became interested in the causes of one of the worst economic periods of my generation’s lifetime, eventually compelling me to study economics as a minor.
One of The UCWbL’s core practices is also one of the main job components of an economist: plan next steps. Planning ahead, or planning next steps, is central to what economists do. In extreme circumstances, like the 2008 housing market crash, careful and attentive economists can use their abilities to foresee what’s to come to their advantage. I observed this when watching The Big Short, a movie about the few vigilant investors who predicted the economic turmoil.
One of these investors was Michael J. Burry. The first source I used for my Writing Center Theory and Pedagogy final project was an article Burry wrote in which he explains how he analyzed data to predict and prepare for the future. Similarly, tutors analyze assignments that writers bring in, and from there, we prepare the writers for their next steps in the writing process.
Sometimes the tutor suggests next steps that writers don’t agree with. When this happens, we have to think about the pros and cons of the strategy we suggested and try to generate a new plan, one that fits the needs of both the writer and the assignment. This is similar to how René Stulz, another expert in economics, weighs the pros and cons of credit default swaps. These credit default swaps were the reason some individuals were able to benefit from the crash. While the public thinks that these swaps should be eliminated, Stulz thinks otherwise. But, much as a tutor tries to understand their writers, she used further research to understand the viewpoint of the public.
The American public was an important factor during the 2008 housing market crash. The Fed and Barack Obama came together to create a plan that would help the American public. However, they needed to take agency themselves to help fix the economy. Like the FED and the United States government, peer tutors provide feedback and next steps, but only the writer can make actual progress.
To prevent another recession, the government implemented the Dodd-Frank Act, which ultimately saved big banks but protected borrowers from abuses of power by big institutions. However, the act does have loopholes that allow institutions to act harmfully. In this case, the government’s next steps weren’t as successful as we might have hoped. Similarly, peer tutors can’t always provide the perfect way to move forward with an assignment. We can always recommend a strategy, but the student is ultimately left with the decision to do what they think is best.
Planning next steps is an important component of a successful appointment. An essay can seem overwhelming, but planning next steps helps writers envision their future writing in concrete and “doable” phases. It’s a great way to stay organized and be successful in completing your assignment!