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Tutor / Student Ethics As a tutor, you should consider your relationships with all students who enter the Writing Center. As a general rule, it is best to avoid, if possible, tutoring those with whom you have close personal relationships: friends, roommates, boyfriends, girlfriends, or classmates with the same assignment that you yourself will be working on. |
Always respect the confidentiality of the tutor/student relationship. While this is a professional relationship, at times students may reveal personal details that are best held in confidence. If you as a tutor are disturbed by information given to you in confidence, talk immediately with the Writing Center Director. (Safety issues in relation to breaking personal confidences should be addressed in a campus policy at your college; check with your student services or the counseling office for advice on these issues.) Unless it would endanger the student, yourself, or another individual, do not reveal information given to you in confidence by students visiting the Writing Center. The tutorial is not a
counseling session, and neither tutors nor their supervisors are trained
(in most cases) as therapists. This does not mean, however, that you
shouldn’t be interested, kind, and attentive. Try to be aware of
boundaries and appropriate interactions therein. Also,
avoid judgmental, critical responses to student work. Instead, indicate to
a student sections of writing that leave questions unanswered; ask
questions in order to provoke the student to participate in her own
critical thinking and writing process; or share your own genuine confusion
or questions about the piece of writing. Writing is a personal process,
and it may not take much to offend a writer; sensitivity is key. You may
choose to address writing that is emotionally charged so that the writer,
with you as a sounding board, can have a clear sense of the impact of her
writing on her audience. At the same time, take care not to assert your
own biases regarding the content
of the student’s paper. Focus, instead, on the logic and development of
ideas as well as on the structure of the piece of writing. Sometimes students making use of the Writing Center
might speak or act inappropriately, forcing you to adopt an authoritative
role. You should, at these times, remember your professional
responsibilities and try to work out conflicts in a harmonious but firm
way; as a tutor, you are a professional employee who is representing your
institution. If your dual roles of peer and tutor cause uncomfortable
situations, bring this to the attention of your supervisor.
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