8/31 Response

       The atmosphere of the community is directly related to the atmosphere of the writing center.  Because the writing center is based upon peer tutoring, a student should already know what to expect from a tutor before he/she even steps foot into the writing center.  This student should expect a tutor of the same quality as his/her community.  Luckily for students of the RWC, the Florida State community is pretty outstanding.  Despite FSU's negative media portrayal, I would not pick any other university in the state at which to study.  FSU's community is lively, creative, and constantly evolving.  Whatever your thing is, there is a place for you in Tallahassee.  This is reflected even within the writing center.  Last class, we were asked why we chose to sign up for a tutoring class.  Everyone had different reasons and inspirations.  Yet, even with all our differences we could all still agree on this class.  The variance within this class reflects the variances within the FSU community as a whole.  Because of this, there really should be a tutor for everyone at the writing center.  Furthermore, FSU excels...and not just at football.  We have one of the top music programs in the country along with a film school that produces some of the most successful undergraduate student films.  Each of these examples personifies the positive atmosphere within the FSU community.  This positive communal atmosphere is then transferred to each peer tutor in the writing center.
     Undoubtedly, there are similarities between the audience, community, and the peer tutor.  As I mentioned before, there should be a peer tutor for everyone at the writing center.  Because the tutor is a peer of the student, there are obvious similarities between the two.  They are both around the same age, they both chose the same university, maybe the tutor has even taken the same class in which the student needs assistance.  Yet, the differences between the peer tutor and the student cannot be ignored.  To pretend everyone is the same is offensive and is usually harmful to the student's education.  However similar the peer tutor and the student may seem, both have different backgrounds, different beliefs, and different problems.  The peer tutor cannot treat the student exactly how he/she has always been treated.  Maybe this student responds to learning in a different way than does the peer tutor.  The peer tutor must notice these differences and adapt his/her tutoring around them.  This way, both the tutor and the student can grow.