Along with accessibility, another theme of the GSOLE course that resonated with me was the interplay of online literacy instruction (OLI) scholarship and practical applications in local contexts. When I began the course, my focus was on making exciting online writing center resources and tutor training materials. By the end of the course, I had grown in my understanding of OLI theory so that I understood the importance of basing those exciting activities in sound pedagogy. The tutor training module and interactive activity showcased here highlights how I put that knew understanding into practice.
Training Module for Online Tutoring
Developing this module for online tutoring pedagogy as part of Module 2.1 was exhilarating because it allowed me to combine accessibility, OLI theory, and the affordances of technology to create something I could immediately put to use in the Writing Center. It took several revisions to find the right balance of design, content, and appropriate presentation, but in the end I was able to create an interactive audiovisual module that took into account everything I had been learning as well as tutor feedback.
Interactive Activity for Tutor Training
Module 2.3 specified, “By the end of this module, participants will be able to understand how to manage the interpersonal relationships between…students and tutors….” One of the aspects of writing center work that I most enjoy is the community aspect, and therefore identifying creative ways to help tutors think about how to foster a sense of community intrigued me.
My idea was to create a drag-and-drop activity where there were two columns and then a variety of actions as draggable elements that tutors would need to sort into each column – one column for actions that would build community and one column for actions that would not build community. This activity would follow a discussion on the importance of building rapport during an online tutoring session.
I am excited for the potential, as I think providing tutors this neutral chance to think about the little things that contribute positively or negatively to building community would be a safe and fun way to explore the idea without them worrying about what they do or would do.