Hellenic American Union – Hellenic American UniversityThe Writing Center

Methodology and Application in a Technologically Enhanced Environment

Vassiliki KourbaniYiannis Petropoulos

Center for Applied Linguistics and Language StudiesHellenic American Union

The Writing Center

Collaborative Design

Teaching Writing Principles

Collaborative Software

The Writing Center at the Hellenic American Union and the Hellenic American University

• Established 2004• Extension of a traditional Writing Center regarding audience and nature

– Hellenic American Union/Hellenic American University students– General public

• Improvement of academic, professional and writing skills• English and Modern Greek• Experienced personal tutoring on site/on-line• Innovative design• Hi-tech software • Continuous updated database of material on site/on-line

Design and Rationale

• The Isles of Collaborative Learning– Sharing– Accessing– Participating– Motivating– Visualizing

• The Environment [Physical and Virtual]– Patented furniture

• Embedded screens• Octagonal shaped• Ample work surface

– Cutting-edge technology• Interactive electronic whiteboard• Collaborative software

– Conducive to learning• Group work• Individual work

Resources

• 19 work stations– Windows XP

• Fast Internet Connection– 100 Mbps

• LAN [Local Network]– Independence

• Criterion– Web-based automated scoring application

• NetOp School– Virtual classroom application

• Mimio– Interactive whiteboard

• NetMeeting– Communication tool

Learning at the Writing Center

WRC

General PublicServices

Tutoring Environment

Classroom Environment

WebCTPlatform

DistanceTutoring

OnsiteTutoring

Distance tutoring

• Instructors– complete a Referral Form and upload it to the WebCT online WRC

home page– log back in to review feedback sent by the WRC tutors

• Students– submit their work through WebCT

• Tutors – re-submit the reviewed document to students– re-submit the Referral Form to instructors confirming the virtual visit– collect data concerning frequency of visits and overall writing

performance

Onsite tutoring

• Instructors– upload the Referral Form through the WebCT platform– provide a copy to the students to be brought to the WRC– receive feedback after the completion of the onsite session through

WebCT• Students

– make an appointment through an e-mail to the WRC mailbox• Tutors

– send an e-mail to confirm the appointment

The Writing Center and WAC

• All students registered for Gen Ed courses are required to make a set number of visits/on line submissions to the WRC

• Methodology:– Instructors complete an Instructor Notification Form and upload it to the

WebCT Online WRC Home Page– Students submit work through WebCT and make an appointment in

case of an onsite visit– The WRC notifies instructors on students’ visits on assignment due date– The WRC provides feedback to instructors in connection to all student

visits at the end of the semester

The Writing Center as a classroom environment

• Monitoring– Tutor can demonstrate – monitor – interact – Individual attention– Group Collaboration

• Interaction– Multiple active communication– Text and media transfer– Immediate feedback

• Collaboration – Visualization– Sharing tutor notes and suggestions real-time– Subgroups of cooperation– Independent student cooperation

• Transfer– Knowledge effectively and quickly streamlined– Multiple inputs– Difference learning styles are met– Multiple transferring of data

Monitoring

• NetOp School© software helps instructors monitor students real-time– Instructor selects computer screen to monitor without interrupting student’s flow

of work– Instructor sends note messages with advice and tips

• Monitoring can be done– on a whole-class-basis– to selected groups– to individual students

• Note messages– are usually brief– include a tip– pinpoint errors– provide web links to external sources

Interaction

• NetOp and NetMeeting© software allow interaction between instructor and students in various forms

– Written text– Sound files– images

• Each student is able– to access immediate feedback on the progress of his work– to share his/her work with other students– to form active subgroups within the same class

• Instructors may use the Chat Feature of NetOp– to communicate with one or more students– to provide the option to students to initiate a real-time discussion with their

classmates

Collaboration-Visualization

• Mimio© software– Remains active from the beginning of each session– Allows instructor to have the complete attention of the class

• All teacher notes are projected to the central screen• All teacher notes are saved and transmitted electronically onto the students’ computers

• NetOp© software– Facilitates immediate visualization and sharing of work

• Instructor selects members in work groups and have them share texts or assignments• Instructor and students work on a document at the same time

Transfer

• Quick and effective transfer of knowledge within the environment– Instructor to students

• Texts or media files– Students to students

• Shared assignments and feedback

• Transfer of knowledge is achieved trough the combined use of– Interactive board– Power point presentation– Screen monitoring– Real-time communication– Selected dispatching of information– Publicizing students’ work as example or sample for the rest of the class

For more information

http://www.hau.edu.gr/pages/facilities_03.htm

For this presentation

http://www.hau.gr/hau/en/edu_research_publ0.html