SVC Writing Center
Faculty Resources
WE VALUE OUR FACULTY RELATIONSHIPS. We work hard to align our writing center practice with current research and with the expectations of SVC faculty. Conversations about your assignments, your help promoting our services, and your participation in our activities make our work stronger.
This page is for you!
Help us out!
FACULTY PROMOTION is the #1 way students learn about our services.
The SVC Writing Center is available in-person (L- 321–MV Campus) and ONLINE to all SVC students.
Get one-to-one assistance with your writing from trained peer writing Consultants (tutors). We can help at any step in the writing process–understanding an assignment, planning/pre-writing, drafting, revision, or editing–on any aspect of your writing–focus, structure, organization, style, grammar, or documentation.
IN THE CENTER (L-321): Drop in for one-to-one writing consultations, writing tools and resources, workshops, and quiet writing space.
For current hours, see our Canvas Site for Students or check our website.
ONLINE: Make an appointment for an online session at skagit.mywconline.com.
- Meet with a Consultant in our online space for a “Real-time” (synchronous) session.
- Submit a draft for focused written feedback in a “Feedback” (asynchronous) session.
We are a peer center.
Our Consultants are current or recently graduated SVC students; they know what it's like to take classes at SVC!
Our services are free!
Join our CANVAS Site for Students
for resources and up-to-date information: https://skagit.instructure.com/enroll/6439NL
Visit our website: www.skagit.edu/writing-center
Questions? Contact us at svc.writingcenter@skagit.edu
- Bring your class to the Center for a brief (10-minute) orientation and to see our welcoming space, OR a Consultant can visit your class to do a quick orientation.
- If your class is online, a Consultant could pop into a session for an orientation.
Please consider offering students extra credit for Writing Center sessions. This can be a great “push” to get students in.
- Our system provides a place for students to indicate that they want their instructor notified. (Otherwise, our lips are sealed.)
- Instructor notifications are sent out via email weekly.
(Reminder: We ask that students NOT be required to attend the Writing Center–thanks!)
Have your students join our Canvas Site for Students for immediate, ongoing access to all our resources, announcements, and updated information.
- Post this link and/or QR code in your class Canvas site:
https://skagit.instructure.com/enroll/6439NL
Print, post, or post in your Canvas site our promo flyer.
Import our materials into your Canvas site.
In the Canvas Commons, search for “SVC Writing Center” to find us.
- “SVC Writing Center Introduction & orientation” module includes a description of our services, two orientation videos, our full list of FAQ’s, and quick links to our website. Two 3-question“True/False” quizzes are also included to incentivize students to pay close attention to the material.
- SVC Writing Center Introduction & orientation page is one page of basic information about the Writing Center (including orientation videos), perfect for any class that requires writing.
SVC Writing Center Writing Guides is the complete (but always growing!) collection of Writing Guides, which cover topics
from understanding assignments to using documentation
Do you have a student you think would be a good fit for our team? Faculty recommendations have consistently been our best source for finding excellent Writing Center Consultants.
We are interested in applicants from all disciplines who represent the rich variety of the SVC student body.
Please send the names of any student you believe would be a good fit. (The qualifications are below.) We can double-check their basic qualifications (age, completion of ENGL& 101, and GPA). If we are hiring, we will contact any that meet the criteria to invite them to apply. (Feel free to check with us first to see if we are actively recruiting.)
You can also direct students to the "Apply to be a Consultant" page of our website for the full position description.
Criteria:
Above all, Consultants must demonstrate
- academic achievement and good writing skills
- intellectual curiosity
- respect for and interest in the ideas of others, and
- an ability to establish rapport and communicate clearly and easily with fellow students.
(If you are teaching online, we know it’s not as easy to gauge student interaction in online courses, but your recommendations are still our strongest starting place.)
Other helpful resources
For many reasons, the peer tutor model is not only the most viable, but has distinct benefits for those seeking writing assistance.
An important component the one-to-one model central to writing centers is the tutor-student structure, and writing centers in institutions of all levels use peer tutors. Gillespie and Kail (2006) declared that “Peer tutoring in writing instruction has earned a well-respected place in higher education…The systematic and now widespread employment of students to help each other become better writers has achieved the status of conventional practice.”
The peer-tutor model is good for students; it’s good for tutors; and it’s affordable.
For the full discussion (with references), click here.
Check out this video from Bedford/St. Martin's, "Beyond the Red Ink: Teachers' comments through students' eyes
University of Michigan's Sweetland Center for Writing provides many support resources for teaching writing or using writing assignments in your classes. Here is a selection:
Cultivating relfection and metacognition
Integrating low-stakes writing into large classes
Motivating students to read and write in all disciplines
