Tammy, I'm fairly new to learning centers, but writing center researchers from the Univ. of Wisconsin, Univ. of Maine, and Marquette Univ. are looking into the effects of tutoring on the tutor, I've heard Harvey Kail (from Maine) talk about the results, and they've been impressive -- tutoring experiences are vivid and useful as these graduates navigate through "real" life. Here's the link: http://www.marquette.edu/writingcenter/PeerTutorAlumniPage.htm The survey attempts to gather data and narratives on the long- and short-term effects of training and work as a peer tutor and to answer this question: What do peer tutors take with them after graduation? Our IT people are looking into Smarthinking as well -- I'd much prefer rather putting money into developing our online Writing Center (which is small) and other online initiatives. Mary Tammy Pratt <[log in to unmask]> Sent by: Open Forum for Learning Assistance Professionals <[log in to unmask]> 11/13/2006 02:50 PM Please respond to Open Forum for Learning Assistance Professionals <[log in to unmask]> To [log in to unmask] cc Subject Re: Smarthinking at four-year flagship institutions I have a more general question related to the rationale of outsourcing on- line tutoring such as Smarthinking. I was just discussing this with colleague and am interested in other's thoughts on the matter. When we consider outsourcing, are we doing our students a disservice by overlooking the current student staff resource available on larger institutional campuses? Many of the learning assistance programs use peer learning assistants which provide exceptional personal and professional development opportunities outside the classroom (leadership development). If we can provide peer to peer assistance on campus, what are the limiting factors of providing on-line synchronous or asynchronous academic assistance applying the same principles of training and development we do for our students who are trained as face to face tutors? Thanks for your feedback and discussion on this issue. Tammy Pratt, Director Assessment and Learning Center 650 Parrington Oval Norman, OK 73019 Ph: 405-325-4336 Fax: 405-325-1870 [log in to unmask] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web browser to http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web browser to http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask]