Experience Summary
I am a recent graduate of Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pennsylvania (May 2011). I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a concentration in creative writing. I also have a minor in photography. During my time at Mercyhurst College, I worked as a writing tutor in the school’s writing center. When students entered the center, it was my job to immediately make them feel comfortable by greeting them with a friendly smile and asking what I could help them with. After this, the students’ explained their assignment and expressed any concerns they had or anything their professors wanted them to work on. I then proceeded to read their paper and used my knowledge and experience to work with them to help revise and edit the essay. As a writing tutor, I have experienced all types of work, anywhere from the beginning and helping a struggling student come up with ideas to write about, all the way to the final draft that is about to be turned in for credit.
Although I posses the skills needed to write formal papers, my true passions are for reading and creative writing. For my senior thesis, I was able to combine all three of these talents. Using a common theme from the Victorian age, I was able to link the twentieth century novels of The Secret Garden, James and the Giant Peach, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone with their predecessors and explored in my essay how the orphan novel developed from its Victorian roots into what it is today in the twenty-first century.
This project, though taking a total of three months to complete, required extreme dedication, including spending hours in the library skimming through possible sources with even more time spent using that research and typing the essay itself. This same effort and dedication will be given to my students. I am devoted to helping anyone succeed that asks for help. I have had enough experience as both an English major and a writing tutor to know if and when a paper needs help with content, organization, or word choice. I also own my own thesaurus, which may be the best and most useful Christmas present I’ve ever received.
Teaching Style
For most students, essays are their number one issue. After they have told me their concerns, I like to read over the paper myself and any correct grammar mistakes I find along the way. I also sometimes write in comments in the margin to refer back to. If I have an issue or am confused about a certain session, I stop and ask the student. I also often read the sentence(s) aloud so the student can hear the what is wrong. If he or she still does not see an issue, I explain my concerns and we work together until we are both happy. After I’m done reading, I express any more concerns I have and once again work with the student until we are both happy.
I also help with work cited pages. Most of my experience is with MLA style, but I have also worked with APA and Chicago. I also reference any websites that I think may be helpful.
Overall, I believe that listening to the student is the most important for any successful tutoring session. If I do not know what the students think they need help with, how can I boost their confidence and help them to become a better writer? Successful two-way communication is the key and I do not believe in only telling the students what I think without listening to them all.
My Hobbies
reading, writing, running, sports, yoga, downhill skiing