Re: Tutor Qualifications

[egbgr@sunset.backbone.olemiss.edu (Brenda Robertson)]

Clinton Gardner and D'Ann George's discussion of tutor qualifications and
the issue of "expert" vs. respondent interests me greatly as a new Writing
Center director.  I am formulating a new hiring policy and job description
for tutors and would appreciate some feedback from either "experts" or
respondents.  The previous hiring policy was to require a writing sample
and letters of recommendation from teachers.  Tutors were hired from all
levels and from across the curriculum.

My concerns as I revise the policies are as follows:

1) I hope to continue hiring students from across the curriculum, but in
doing so will I build a staff of highly specialized, upper-level, "expert"
tutors whose availability might be greatly limited by scheduling?  Do I
risk finding that we will be able to assist students by appointment only?
Or that we will not be able to meet the needs of the smaller departments
because we can hire only a limited number of tutors?

2) If I hire only these "expert" readers will I contradict the philosophies
of our writing program?  Will I somehow devalue the classroom reader
response in favor of the "expert" response?  One goal in our Freshman
English program is to persuade students that each reader's response in her
classroom audience should have value and that revision choices should be
based upon these considerations.  I taught Freshman English here for
several years and used the term "experienced" rather than "expert" writers
as I referred students to the Writing Center or to upperclassmen for
further assistance.  I have never identified myself as an "expert" writer
to students but I do consider myself an "expert" writing teacher.  (Gosh,
it took a lot of nerve for me to put that in writing!)

3) Along with writing consultations, our tutors must also provide
assistance in our computer lab.  How can I best evaluate an applicant's
computer skills?  A couple of our tutors are Computer Science majors but
seem to lack the communication skills to assist student users so I am not
sure hiring those "experts" is the best idea.

5) Our beginning rate of pay for tutors is $5.00 per hour and caps out at
$6.00 per hour for those who have worked for two to three years.  (We have
a couple of grad students working as tutors.)  How does this rate of pay
compare with that of similar institutions (state Universities with an
enrollment of 10,000 or more)?  We have 10 tutors and operate 63 hours per
week.  Two tutors are on duty at all times except at then end of the
semester when Freshman portfolios are due.  At those times, we all work
like crazy.

6) D'Ann George articulated one of my major concerns about revision of our
hiring practices:  "And what about a tutor's communication skills, or her
ability to empathize with others?  How does one screen for something
intangible like that?"  I agree with Clinton Gardner that those who have
participated in writing classes which involve peer response would certainly
seem more at ease with the sort of conferencing we do in the Writing
Center.  I have considered requiring that applicants for tutoring positions
provide me with a brief response to a student paper in an interview but if
I am examining their portfolios, their recommendations, their computer
skills, and their grades, do I risk making the whole hiring process just
slightly less complicated than that for FBI Special Agents?


Brenda Robertson
Director, University Writing Center
University of Mississippi
University, MS 38677
Voice: (601)232-7686
Fax: (601)232-5493
e-mail: egbgr@olemiss.edu