As I haven’t yet worked with a student, the thing that stands out to me the most about this experience so far is the school building. It is a huge school, and it looks like an old castle. The writing center itself is located in the alumni room, which is full of old artifacts and pictures. I really enjoyed being able to look at all of the history in that room, and I was able to do so on my first day because there weren’t any appointments. 

Originally, I hadn’t thought I would learn that much by volunteering at the highschool, but that assumption has already been disproven and I haven’t even helped a student yet. Reading chapters from The Bedford Guide has provided me with a lot of knowledge about how to help others with their writing. It has taught me many strategies to use when faced with writer’s block, how to help people at different stages in the writing process, and how to best help students with different writing styles. All of the things I’ve learned so far have influenced the way I think about teaching, as I am now more aware of how many different skills you need to have in order to be an effective and helpful teacher. As I begin helping students with their assignments, I hope to help them improve their overall skill as writers, and not just correct a few mistakes on one paper. I also hope to become more versatile in the type of people and writing styles I can help, as right now I don’t have much experience in tutoring others. 

Even though this service-learning class just began, I have already learned more about the community of Asheville. The highschool we are tutoring at is beautiful, and if I had just seen it in passing I would have assumed it was a very prestigious school. However, it is simply a public highschool in a nice building, and it faces challenges that any other school might face. Specifically, this school has a very large performance gap, which is something I would not have assumed if I hadn’t been told. Throughout the semester, I wish to learn more about what can be done to narrow such a gap, as well as more ways to help people in general.