Consultation shadowing #4 (but really #2)

So last night was my 4th time going to the writing center to shadow but only my 2nd time actually shadowing a real consultation.

The student that came in was seeking help for a thesis paper she was to write for an International Studies class. Unlike the last consultation I shadowed, this student didn't have a written paper--she came in with a very organized outline and a proposed thesis. She really had a lot of strong ideas but she wanted help to formulate her ideas into a cohesive argument. Pulling a Cazort, I think I'll mention in every consulting post that the consultant started the session by having fill out the pre-consultation worksheet since that seems to be heavily emphasized by the Writing Center. Following this, the consultant asked the other student a lot of questions and the two engaged in conversation about the paper in order for the student to organize her thoughts and clarify what she wanted to write about. One thing I particularly noted was that neither the student nor the consultant had a paper copy of the outline--it was pulled up on the student's laptop. Except for the occasion notes jotted down on the worksheet by the consultant or things added to the document by the student, this session was almost all conversion. I think perhaps the fact that they had the outline on the computer allowed them to have a more natural conversation without a paper, concrete distraction to look down at and pinpoint. Mid-consultation, I also took note to how the writing consultant suggested the student take the time and actually write out some of her ideas (like more detailed explanations) before finalizing a thesis. This particular student had too large of a range of ideas to work from so she really needed to decided which to implement and which to throw out. At the end of the session, the student expressed how helpful the the session was for her to just talk about her ideas before writing.

This student also repetitively referred back to what her "professor wanted". I think that of course, meeting a professors expectations influences the outcome of a paper. But this made me think further about if the presence of my "shadow" sitting there and blatantly observing their session would in some way take away from the consultation. I think there a certain intimacy between the student and the consultant and by having a 3rd party sitting there and taking notes, maybe the student might feel a bit of the spotlight effect and become less hesitant to open up in discussion about her paper. Just a thought.