Tutor/Instructor Symbiosis: Professionalization and Growth Through Extended Collaboration

1. Tutor/Instructor Symbiosis: Professionalization and Growth Through Extended Collaboration Amy England, University of Cincinnati Kyle Doan, University of Cincinnati

2. Overview • Summary of Comp 101B • Planning • Implementation • Reflections

3. Summary of Comp 101B • Extended class time • Guaranteed computer lab time • Tutors in the classroom two hours a week • Course cap at 15 students • Nearly 100% full-time faculty instructors

4. Pre-Project Expectations • Enhancement of active learning environment for at-risk students • More individualized attention from two experts with different styles, experience, and expertise

5. Planning • Project approval process • Authorization from Writing Center Coordinator • Authorization of additional funding • Reflection on previous classes • Finding and selecting articles • Designing activities

6. Planning (cont.) • Scheduling • In-class tutor participation • Out-of-class tutor involvement • Tutor introduction to the role of “instructor” • New terminology • New roles and responsibilities • Tutor acclimation to pedagogies and theories • Journal prompts and readings

7. Implementation • Weekly lesson plans • Pre-class communication • Shared instructional duties and authority • Guided, collaborative design of class activities • Allocated time for tutor reflection and observation • Post-class reflection and discussion

8. Team-Teaching Assessment • Team assessment of student essays and revisions • Team assessment of process work • Daily team assessment of class activities and student progress

9. Essays and Revisions • Kyle’s assessment curve • Essay 1 – Amy reads and discusses her assessment with Kyle. • Essay 2 – Kyle adopts Amy’s assessment system. • Essay 3 – Kyle uses student essays to develop his own assessment system.

10. Process Work • Reading responses • Periodically shared reading responses • Class discussions • Reflective assessment and revision based on conversational content • Workshops • Reflective assessment and revision based on student progress

11. Daily Assessment • Assessment of class activities and student progress • “Observer” critiques “instructor” pedagogy • Closer monitoring of individual students’ progress • Troubleshooting potential problems

12. Surprises for Amy • Compensation for extracurricular tutor activities was more complicated than we thought. • Instructor’s diffusion of authority was more difficult for her than anticipated. • Temporary disruption of established patterns in the classroom • Timing was off; first few classes went too short or too long • Conscious effort to include Kyle early on • Lesson plans and reflections written for a second person – required more effort and time than anticipated.

13. Surprises for Kyle • Amount of time required for proper class design and pre-class preparation • How well one-on-one tutoring translates into the instructor’s role • The necessity of a backup plan • Diverging pedagogies and theories

14. Unexpected Bonuses • Constant collaboration revitalized Amy’s teaching and made Kyle want to continue and expand his professional development. • Collaboration enhanced reflection. • Improved response to individual students’ needs and learning styles.

15. What We Would Do Differently • Arrange for more meeting time • Arrange for funding before the project started • Ask for more release time • Develop more lesson plans in advance