English Language and Literature Commons^™

Let Me Write That Down: Tutoring Session Notes, Emma Lundgreen

Tutor's Column

This essay reviews the importance of tutor session notes. It examines different note-taking styles, the purpose behind each, and how those factors are correlated. It also investigates session notes as organizational narratives, wherein the appointment is recorded for the benefit of students, tutors, and administrators.

Soft Skills: The Importance Of Empathy In An Online Writing Center Appointment, Halli Bleak

Tutor's Column

Writing center tutors must practice being empathetic with the students they work with. Students tend to feel their writing is a representation of their worth. As tutors, especially in the online setting, we must find ways to connect with students as collaborators, learners, and fellow writers. This requires that we remember that the student and their wellbeing are more important than the writing. This also means that we should focus on the writer and their development over the expectations we or their professors may hold. Empathy is an important soft skill that we must practice, develop, and put to use …

Scaffolding In Online Tutoring: Addressing The Issue Of Productivity, Nathan Franson

Tutor's Column

The expanding online tutoring format poses unique challenges when attempting to maximize communication and productivity in a 20–25-minute writing center session. Relatively recent literature has revealed that discontented students have reported in feedback surveys that their sessions felt unhelpful or fruitless. This situation has been termed: "non-productive non-directivity,” and it may be attributed to an over-reliance on open-ended questions. It is of interest to determine whether this is truly helping students in online settings. While tutoring roles have not changed, the impersonal nature of an online session requires a more perceptive approach to tutoring: recognizing that a student may need …

Pick Your Poison: Fall Down A Flight Of Stairs Or Have Your Qualifications Questioned, Aubrey Hampton

Tutor's Column

In the writing center, self-confidence is essential. Students respect and trust the advice of a tutor who can exhibit confidence in themselves. Self-confidence in tutoring can be derived from personal experience as well as from observations of the methods of other fellow tutors. Peer observations provide an opportunity for tutors to learn additional skills, and to gain confidence in themselves.

Independence And Interdependence In The Writing Center, Candace Heki

Tutor's Column

The writing center should be a space where we, as tutors, promote both independence and interdependence. We should strive to help students improve their skills, so they have the confidence to move forward with their paper and future papers on their own. We should also encourage interdependence through collaboration with the writing center. Students can benefit from their tutor offering unique perspectives and a place where the writer can talk through their ideas. Tutors need to be available to meet students’ individual needs by offering a balance between our focuses on self-sufficiency and collaboration.

The Empathetic Tutor, Kristina Carter

Tutor's Column

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, writing center tutoring moved online, and fewer social interactions occurred. This issue led to researching how to empathize with people, and specifically students in a virtual setting. Many people have emphasized the importance of focusing on the student and their individual needs. There has also been a shift in the focus of being a compassionate listener and ally to students. This essay compiles research from various academic journals, websites that list essential job skills, and news articles on empathy. This paper also researches standard methods used to implement empathy and how this looks in the …

Praise As A Learned Behaviour, Rebekah Jensen

Tutor's Column

Writing Centers should teach tutors how to praise to create a better experience for students and tutors alike. Tutors are often encouraged to give praise in their comments and conversations with students, but are rarely instructed on how to do so effectively. This article examines the purpose of praise in tutoring, why it is important for tutors to learn how to praise, and what strategies may be used to teach praise to tutors.

Revision: Overcoming A Paralyzing Fear, Kennan Thompson

Tutor's Column

Revision is a difficult task to undertake. In many cases, it is a fear that paralyzes students. There are many benefits to revision that students may not understand. This may be one reason why it is so intimidating for students to revise a paper. Tutors should help students recognize that revision allows them to see where they can improve content organization, notice grammatical errors, and be more confident in their writing. Tutors should also give students specific tips to make the revision process easier.

Constructive Criticism: Analyzing And Implementing Student Feedback As A Tutor, Gracie Jo Averett

Tutor's Column

Writing centers are subject to student feedback as they operate, collecting both negative and positive comments through exit surveys after appointments. This essay analyzes these types of feedback and how tutors and writing centers can use both types of feedback to their advantage when serving their students. Being able to analyze the feedback that they receive can allow a tutor to make adjustments, when needed, to their tutoring process.

May Swenson's Exploration Of Existence And Purpose Through Poetry, Lauren Cunningham

Student Research Symposium

May Swenson explores the idea of belonging, purpose and life by exemplifying that these topics are affected by nature, upbringing, and the environment surrounding an individual, as well as exploring if we experience life or if we are life. Through her writing, Swenson argues that all life is equally valuable, and a being’s purpose is dependent upon belief and circumstance. Presentation Time: Wednesday, 9-10 a.m. Zoom link: https://usu-edu.zoom.us/j/81298203941?pwd=WXZkRjhqdlZNTVlidXk3UnB1K2VtUT09

Mindfulness: Solution For Stumbling Students, Kylee Zimmerman

Tutor's Column

Students who come to the Writing Center are often stressed, anxious, and very concerned about their essay’s health, even those who procrastinate. Learning to understand procrastination as a sign of stress rather than laziness betters us as tutors; this is done through developing mindfulness. Mindfulness can be applied to those struggling with procrastination by accepting the student’s stress and setting small goals. Mindfulness is defined as being aware of emotions without judgment. Procrastination is defined as submitting work inconsistently, ignoring homework, and denying feelings of stress.

Improving Global Flow With The Known-New Contract, Ben Ladner

Tutor's Column

Large-scale flow of ideas is the key to effective scientific and argumentative writing. This tutor’s column discusses the Known-New Contract as a teaching tool for global flow. It also discusses the outlining and discussion techniques that can be practically used in appointments with students who struggle with the structure of their papers.

Voices Of Usu: An Anthology Of Student Writing, Vol. 14, Utah State University Department Of English

Voices of USU

This collection of student writing represents the voices of over 2,000 students who enroll each academic year in Utah State University’s second-year composition course, Intermediate Writing: Research Writing in a Persuasive Mode. Voices of USU celebrates excellence in writing by providing undergraduate students of diverse backgrounds and disciplines the opportunity to have their work published.

Sink Hollow Volume 10

Sink Hollow

This year felt like a thunderstorm. Rain pelting down on us so hard it burns. Lightning strikes so stark we have to close our eyes. Thunder rumbling so ominously we feel it deep in our bones. So many things we hold dear have been lost in this storm.

But something we have found is the human ability to feel a raw and powerful pain. We are intrinsically bound to each other, to nature, and to this world by the pain we feel. A pain so powerful and deep you feel it is sucking you under and drowning you.

The pieces …

Something To Believe In, Carter Macdonald, Amma Christiansen, Robin Curry, Sabrina Owens

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

When interpreted as a whole, Emily Dickinson's manuscript booklets of writing, or fascicles, offer insight into individual poems. As many scholars have speculated, Dickinson expresses religious ideas with experimental instability. The collection of poems on fascicle five, sheet three, demonstrate an anticipation of life exalted after death. For example, "As Watchers hang upon the East -" changes from a hopeful poem about the afterlife, to a questioning one that encourages the reader to remain critical of religion. In this poem, there is mention of a beggar who, while pondering death, looks forward to the prospect of a heavenly 'feast' promised …

How Do The Mental Health Services Offered By Usu Pre-Covid19 Compare To The Present?, Casey Mack

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

How do the mental health services offered by USU pre-COVID19 compare to the present? COVID19 has essentially taken the world and changed it. People are required to stay inside more, there is a decrease in social interaction and there is a political aspect most weren't expecting. This question is important because in such tumultuous time, mental health and mental health services are of utmost importance. Isolation and a change in most every aspect of life can take a toll on someone's mental health. The approach to this project is done with mixed methods. Students majoring in English at Utah State …

Teaching Through A Screen: How Usu English Instructors Approached Online Course Accessibility During Covid-19, Sabrina Satterthwaite

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

Although academia has been transitioning to more virtual instructional methods for some time, the COVID-19 pandemic has made switching to remote classrooms a necessity. As a result, many instructors have been required to convert their traditionally face-to-face courses into online courses for the Fall 2020 semester. This online instructional mode presents opportunities and challenges alike for creating class content that is accessible both to students with disabilities and students with situational barriers, such as stress, money, or technology resources. This study explores how Utah State University English instructors implemented accessibility strategies in the transition to more remote learning during the …

No Nearer Neighbor Have They: How Emily Dickinson's Fascicle 37 Explores Nature As A Link Between Man And God, Evan Rasmussen, Mckay Brezenski, Xiomara Castro

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

It is typically the practice to examine poems individually to grasp their meaning, but examining Emily Dickinson's poems in the context of their fascicle sheets, and the fascicles, themselves, can be an illuminating and worthwhile endeavor. When Emily Dickinson's poem "Four Trees - upon a solitary Acre - " is interpreted in isolation from the other poems Dickinson placed on the same manuscript sheet, it emerges as a beautiful commentary on the natural world and its relationship with humanity. The poem separates its speaker from nature, concluding that nature is something mankind may never fully comprehend. However, when this poem's …

A Profile On The Effects Of A Worldwide Pandemic On Writing In The Workplace, Maigan Sorensen

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

In the midst of a worldwide pandemic, many social norms in society have changed. Social norms have changed as well as how businesses function. Many people spend more time at home than outside, and infection is still on the rise. Workers and their employers have turned to remote or tele-commuting solutions to avoid spread of COVID-19. Businesses and other establishments that employ considerable numbers of people had to develop communication plans or draw on existing emergency procedures to ensure that processes continued as normally as possible. This research project was designed to examine the changes that have been implemented in …

From The Mouth Of The Tunnel: How The Shape Of Place Molds The Shape Of Art, Jordan Forest

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

Creative Nonfiction writer Philip Gerard, in researching for an essay on the Gettysburg Address, decided to personally walk the path of Pickett's charge. He said that only in feeling the route for himself, in losing his breath and trudging through mud, did he realize the trek was uphill. Gerard said, "You have to see the thing itself, not merely a representation of the thing." For the creative nonfiction writer, site visit serves to imbue art with nuance and complexities of meaning. While writing a research-based creative nonfiction essay focused on Nancy Holt, I visited her land art installation Sun Tunnels …

How English Teachers Use Instagram And Other Social Media Platforms As Professional Development And Emotional Encouragement, Katharine Jenkins

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

How are high school English teachers using Instagram and other social media platforms as professional development and encouragement? This question is essential because the amount of information about education and teaching is constantly expanding, and through the use of social media platforms, teachers are now more readily able to communicate with each other. The widespread nature of social media has also created a new type of professional development through the past decade. Social media platforms such as Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, Teachers Pay Teachers, Twitter, and personal blogs offer professional development through the sharing of classroom materials, advice, and the collaboration …

College Students And Screen Time On Digital Devices During Covid-19, Bailee Kent

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

During this time of a global pandemic, people are most likely spending much more time on digital devices. That includes college students. It's natural when isolating or in quarantine to turn to digital devices for information and relationships. How much screen time is a good idea? Is there such a thing as too much screen time? Have college students thought of ways to reduce screen time? If so, has a digital detox been an option they have thought about? This project looks at college students and their screen time using a mixed methods approach. Two groups of students were surveyed: …

Is There A Doctor In The Book? A Study Of Female Physicians In Literature, Addy Kirkham

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

Young children often look to characters in books, movies, and television to inspire their future career choices. This research project was designed to examine what female physicians in literature inspired young women to choose to become physicians. It is important to investigate the influences young women may or may not have had so that those inspiring characters if they exist, can be highlighted for future generations. To obtain data, I sent a survey to the Utah State University Pre-Med Club to gauge what literary influences inspired them to become doctors. I also interviewed three female doctors and recorded their influences …

"God Would Certainly Scold!": Understanding Religion, Sex, And Nonconformity Through An Analysis Of Dickinson's "Over The Fence–" And Surrounding Poems, Hala Louviere, Jordan Forest, Talia Roundy

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

While a single poem of Dickinson's is full of meaning, analyzing the pieces that she placed before it thickens an initial understanding with additional perspective and nuance. To receive a fuller sense of Dickinson's interpretations of her final poem of one of her handbound collections, Fascicle 11, "Over the fence—" we analyze select poems of the eight sheets that proceed it. In nine lines, "Over the fence—" encapsulates the scope of Fascicle 11, depicting the ways in which women are both judged and limited within the social climate of 19th century America and within Christian religious communities. In this fascicle, …

How Communication Between Secondary English Teachers And Their Students During A Pandemic Has Changed, Allison Mcmurry

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

How has online learning affected teachers' communication with students, particularly regarding feedback for writing assignments? The increase in technology as well as current unexpected events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic have led to an increase in online learning at all education levels. This being said, online learning comes with many challenges that aren't present in a face-to-face setting. Through a case study of teachers' experiences with communicating online as well as surveys of current English teaching majors that have experienced the student side of online learning, these challenges and opportunities are described. The results may suggest best practices drawn from …

Motivations To Choose English Teaching At Utah State University, Aaron Piscione

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

One of the most important careers is that of teaching—but why do students at Utah State choose the English Teaching major? Understanding the answer to this question will help prospective English teaching majors to know if the major is right for them, advising and advising services at USU to direct students to the major if it is correct for them, and the English department at USU to understand why it is that those students have chosen to be there. The methods used to obtain the results of this study are simple—a combination of surveys and interviews given to current students …

Power And Pain: Dickinson's Approach To The Sublime, Isabelle Quigley, Westin Smith, Sariah Dutkiewicz

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

Dickinson's poetry remains an enigma for contemporary readers and scholars because she maintained such a reclusive life as a poet. The ambiguity of her personal and professional life reflects the uncertainty in her poetry, and her refusal to publish much of her work in her lifetime further obscures concrete readings of her poems. However, she did prepare her poetry in the form of manuscript books for future readers. Unlike other authors, Dickinson offered no guidelines on how to approach her work. This lack of guidance has created a constant struggle of interpreting Dickinson's poetry, and to try a resolve this …

War And Death In The Works Of Emily Dickinson, Alexis Roberts, Kenley Kofford, Lexi Melmoth

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

In analyzing Emily Dickinson's work within Fascicle 23, her relationship with death and dying is highlighted through her ways of writing about it in peaceful, hopeful, and solemn ways. Death, through Dickinson, is not a macabre subject, or one of disturbing lonely fascination. Though one of Dickinson's most renown reputations is for being a gothic and dark writer, her poems about death represent emotions that were not usually felt when writing about death. These poems were not meant to scare her readers, but to provide hope, and mystery around the ambiguity of death. "Because I could not stop for Death …

There All Along: Emily Dickinson's Nimble Belief In The Face Of Religious And Societal Convention, Anne Schill, Addy Kirkham, Miranda Cundick, Callie Griffeth

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

At a time when religious fervor seemingly provided all answers for human life, Emily Dickinson entertains "nimble belief": the idea that never settling for one answer makes life more compelling. Our central question is the following: How does Dickinson's religious and societal nimble belief manifest in specific hand-bound manuscript booklets (fascicles) of her poetry? This research is important because its answer gives insight into societal norms during the Second Great Awakening by both establishing boundaries of acceptability and illuminating what an affected individual thinks of such boundaries. Dickinson's position as a woman brings significance to her work because women of …

Emily Dickinson As A Spiritual Guide, Gabbi Shumway, Emma Carlsen, Connor Coles

Fall Student Research Symposium 2020

Emily Dickinson is known for her willingness to speak out about her beliefs even when they went against the social norm. In this presentation we will look at the poem "This World Is Not Conclusion" and the collection of poems surrounding it. The question that we will address with these poems is how does Emily Dickinson invite her audience to follow a religious journey? Dickinson's faith continually evolves undulating back and forth between faith and skepticism. In This World Is Not Conclusion, Dickinson shows what the religious pathway looks like, as the poem speaks of a desire for faith and …