Regarding our text reading this week, (Online writing centers, OWLs), I agree with the writer, we need both online and the physical ‘go to’ centers as options. We are all unique learners, and even as the new technologies are becoming essential, preferences should still be recognized as important in the experience of being a student. We want to do our best work and some communicators work best on a typewriter, some use pens, pencils, crayons, paints, music, etc. For myself, I often work best sitting alone in my classroom, as my home is too distracting for me. I get much more accomplished in this environment even though it is a 20-minute drive each way. It is my preference. Having shared that, I do make use of the phone and online resource services my school district and St. Joseph offer, (blackboard, etc.). These help-lines/communication are convenient and allow me to work when I wish. However, I often prefer a face-to-face experience. When working with others, I prefer to meet in person at times, not exclusively by phone or email. The text suggests the online users of the writing centers began to make use of the on campus center. Perhaps that is the most important purpose of the online center is to promote itself as offering a choice of a resource both online and as on campus . The online site exposed the center to a population that would not have found the on campus site otherwise. As the text states, “…role to facilitate student participation in increasingly broad literate networks.”
As the text goes on, it describes the site as moving from the ‘deconstructing of a text’ to a ‘latch on- to connect to a text’ function. The article was originally published in 2000, and seems to be describing what we are now doing in our class with blogging and the current popularity of ‘rooms’ to communicate with others.