Something that flies a little under the radar here at the Writing Center is reception as a tool for learning about tutoring.
As peer tutors at DePaul, we often get the opportunity to work as receptionists alongside other leadership roles. This involves fielding writer requests in person, over the phone, and online, as well as light-managing the schedule and reviewing written feedbacks before they get sent out.
In all three years that I’ve worked at the UCWbL, I’ve remained a receptionist both in-person and online during the COVID lockdown. In those years, I feel like I’ve learned so much about tutoring from simply getting to observe what other colleagues implemented in their summary letters and marginal comments—and it’s something that doesn’t get discussed enough.
We talk a lot about collaboration simply by virtue of working in a collaborative space—with students, writers, teachers, and alumni. It’s also a core value of the UCWbL. However, sometimes it’s easy to forget that, as tutors, we benefit from collaborating on our work with writers as well.
Tutoring may feel personal, which in a lot of ways it is. This could be because we’ve formed relationships with repeat writers or simply because the writer is attached to their work and our critiques can feel pointed. That said, being able to see the other ways that tutors address feedback is important in order to keep growing in your own craft and to navigate tricky interactions with writers.
So, I’d like to touch on a few main things that I think I’ve learned as a receptionist!
I remember the first time I ever learned a technique from another tutor that I took into my own work. While receptioning and looking at tutor feedback, I noticed that they had changed the color on their appointment letter. Later, I learned from another tutor that did the same thing that this was because changing your color and font on your letters makes it easier for writers to distinguish where your writing ends and theirs begins.
Now in appointments I always make my letters in Arial font and some shade of blue.
Another time, a tutor working on an advanced draft of a paper had an agenda point simply dedicated to polishing more sentence-level concerns. They titled it: Mechanics.
Even though that might seem like a small difference from a title like Sentence Structure, I loved the precision of their language and the way they structured their feedback. I started using this title in my own feedback when I was addressing agenda points like punctuation and spelling.
Mechanics is a much more specific label, and it helps me better communicate with the writer about what that agenda point will include. I’ve even gotten compliments from other tutors on the use of Mechanics as a label (and of course, I always give credit to the tutor I learned it from!).
I’ve also learned things about higher level concerns.
For instance, I was reading a written feedback the other day, and a tutor was addressing some questions they had about clarity and the narrative the writer was building. The way they approached their feedback was to ask questions and address how answering them would benefit their understanding of the story.
I thought this tutor had an incredibly personal way of addressing the writer, and it was something I learned from and was able to improve in my own writing. Centering the writer as a real person when working on written feedback is a powerful tool and one I need to remember more often.
Moving forward from the tutor’s feedback that I reviewed, I try to remind myself to show active interest in their work, include praise, and even throw in some jokes or conversational comments. Using those techniques makes me feel like I’m not only better connecting with the writer, but also allows me to have more understanding and gentleness when addressing their work.
Let’s be honest, we get caught up in our own tutoring tools often. We all have our go-tos for different appointment modalities. For instance, I like to try and make the time about the writer by checking in and collaboratively structuring the appointment when possible. In written feedback, I find that leaving resources and asking questions are ways to help me leave more agency to the writer.
While those tools are great, I think that it’s easy to get in a rut of using the same techniques over and over. Events like Professional Development Workshops are great for check-ins and brushing up, but I’ve found that being a receptionist allows me to constantly learn new ideas and tools from my coworkers.
Something else I’ve had the opportunity to learn as a receptionist is how to be more empathetic in my role as a tutor.
As the quarter goes on and intensifies, us tutors start to see appointments (particularly written feedbacks) as work we need to approach and get through efficiently. On reception I often get to interact with writers one-on-one, helping them set up appointments or even receiving the sweet responses some writers send to than them.
Having these humanizing moments helps remind me that there’s a real person on the side of the screen and makes me a more understanding and empathetic tutor in the long run.
One example of this is when I get a lot of written feedback appointments. It’s easy to start getting frustrated, especially when I’m commenting on the same things. However, having those personal interactions on reception makes it easier to remind myself that there’s a person on the other end of the paper, which helps me be gentler and more empathetic.
Those are just a couple of the many things that I’ve taken away from reception. It can be valuable to recognize the importance of getting a break from tutoring on a long shift to recharge and to understand our schedule and operations from other lenses.
Overall, most tutors can benefit and learn from having a reception shift, and I’ve found the role an invaluable part of my experience here at the UCWbL.