(Re)Wiring Ourselves: The Electrical and Pedagogical Evolution of a Writing Center
 

Working with electricity is not hazardous as long as you obey strict safety rules. Always shut off or disconnect power before handling wires. If you are working on the electrical service entrance, do not stand on a damp floor. Protect yourself by wearing rubber gloves and rubber [shoes], and stand on a rubber mat or a piece of dry wood. Above all, if you are in any doubt about how to do any particular job, call in a licensed electrician.

-Reader’s Digest Complete Do-it-yourself Manual

Introduction

In 1995, the same year that Computers and Composition published a special issue on writing centers, Boise State University’s Writing Center went online. The Center established a web presence, called simply Writing Center Online, which was highlighted by an e-mail consultation service: writers were encouraged to send in drafts by e-mail, and consultants would respond in kind. Many other centers and their staffs were also riding the technology wave, discovering the possibilities offered by computers: Michigan State University (Thomas, Hara, DeVoss 2000), Utah State (Kinkead 1988), and Texas Tech (Brown 2000). Like their counterparts, Boise State’s Writing Center and consultants were primed to step into a new phase of existence, one that would expand the number of visitors to the Center and create exciting new identities for consultants.

Yet the response to the new service was underwhelming, as evidenced by the Writing Center’s 1994-1995 annual report: “Business has been slow—only 12 drafts came in during spring semester.” Nor was the service itself without problems: “We would have received another half-dozen but technical problems (computer coding that we couldn’t decode, mostly) interfered.” And the few essays that did arrive required an inordinate amount of time from the Center’s staff, an inequity that threatened the continuation of e-mail consultation:

The next year, though, did not bring a great increase in the number of drafts.

Instead of eliminating Writing Center Online, Boise State kept it going, but looked to focus more on other aspects of its web site: “We will continue to experiment with Writing Center Online, which has had very light use so far and we haven’t worked out all the bugs. We also plan to keep developing our World Wide Web site to make it more user-friendly and to expand our online services.” Those services included links to other online writing centers and writing resources, as well as uploaded issues of Word Works, Boise State’s in-house newsletter dedicated to issues in the teaching of writing.

For the next few years, the annual reports kept a common theme: the online tutoring service is little used by writers, and even that limited use causes difficulties in the scheduling and training of tutors. In the 2000-2001 report, Writing Center Online is not mentioned. The Writing Center’s web site was still active, but the attempt to offer e-mail consultations had been halted.

This history predates Andrea’s and Mike’s time in the Boise State Writing Center. Andrea enrolled in the undergraduate peer-tutoring course in the fall of 2003, the same year that Mike arrived as director of the Center, and teacher of that course. The following year, Andrea enrolled in Boise State’s Master’s program and became the Center’s graduate assistant. When the two of us sat down together in the spring of 2004 to talk about what we wanted the Center to achieve in the future, one of the projects that held the most interest for us was online tutoring. Ours was not a blind goal, as we were aware of the history of online tutoring for the Center, but we did not want that history to constrain us. Caution us, yes, but not constrain.