Bridge Over Barrier: Bringing the Writing Center to Online Classrooms

For the 33% of undergraduate and graduate students attracted to taking courses or earning a degree online, motivation is varied, spanning convenience (2015-16 National Online Learners Satisfaction and Priorities Report 2016), access, ability, and financial considerations (Bertucci Hamper 2017). These students, historically labeled as nontraditional, have arguably become much more common in higher education (Hewett 2010). They include but are not limited to those learners who work full time, care for one or more dependents, navigate physical or psychological disabilities, are non-native English speakers, and/or have limited financial resources, any one of which might make coming to an on-site campus difficult or even impossible. By providing an alternative to students unable to study on a physical campus, distance-based access to programs makes higher education an option for students who might not otherwise have it. As a result, the corresponding academic support services to these online programs, like an online writing center, can become important equalizers in higher education, helping a larger, more diverse student population earn college and university degrees.

However, these academic supports, almost always offered to students on campus, are frequently not extended, or not extended equitably to students online. This disconnect in academic support, especially writing support, is troubling, as distance-based education typically requires an increased literacy load for learners (Hewett 2015; Prince et al. 2018), and students attracted to online degrees are often most at risk for not completing college. As Beth L. Hewett (2015) notes, online learning requires students to critically read and write in all instructional and interpersonal interactions. In other words, in the absence of face-to-face engagement and lecture, assessment of learners is limited to their ability to read critically and write academically.

The reality of an increased literacy load online, without adequate corresponding online student support, only serves to increase academic barriers for many—an unnecessary compounding of barriers for many nontraditional students already struggling to persist. For example, the majority of low-income students enter college roughly five years behind academically when compared to their high-income peers (Reardon et al. 2013) and only 18- 24% of low-income students earn their college degree by the six-year mark (“National College Progression Rates for High Schools Participating in the National Student Clearinghouse Student Tracker Service” 2016). Further, students working full time or caring for one or more children while enrolled in college are also at a higher risk for attrition (Engle and Tinto 2008). Also struggling to persist are students navigating disabilities, of which only 12% go on to graduate from college (National Organization on Disability & Harris Interactive 2000). Despite such dismal statistics, on-site student support services (Bertucci Hamper 2018) have cultivated inroads to inclusion for these students, have been shown to boost enrollment (Maximizing the College Choice Process to Increase Fit & Match for Underserved Students 2012), and can positively impact retention (Lau, 2003). The same rationale should be applied, then, to ensure students pursuing degrees online have equitable access to online student writing support services—especially considering the above motivations for taking courses online and the added barrier of a text-heavy virtual learning environment.

Because writing is paramount in  text-heavy online post-secondary education, and because many students attracted to this education format are disproportionately underprepared to write in an academic setting, our “Present and Reflect Session” first details how Walden University’s Writing Center has worked to bridge this writing skills gap by bringing Writing Center services to students in the virtual classroom space. Instead of waiting for students to locate our online resources and services, our aim is to provide a bridge between the virtual classroom environment and the online writing center by offering live class presentations, Synchronous Course Visits, in which we not only introduce students to academic writing topics but also detail how to use the Writing Center as a supplement in future courses. We also detail how this effort has created joint student-instructor-writing tutor dialogue about writing, providing a real-world foundation for academic engagement in the writing process.  Finally, we demonstrate how each Synchronous Course Visit is tailored to students' unique writing needs in that class or program as faculty request the topics on which the Writing Center presents.

After providing a detailed case study of our own bridge building, we broaden our scope, encouraging audience members to reflect on current effective and possible future online course-based interventions that do or could bring their own institution’s support services—writing and otherwise—to students within the virtual classroom. To this end, we will provide the audience with a worksheet that invites written reflection on their institutions’ current writing and academic support offerings and how well they are integrated into students’ classroom environments. The worksheet will also include a series of questions to help attendees brainstorm possible new institution-specific interventions based on their student population, faculty make-up, and support staff time. Upon completing this worksheet, we will facilitate a large-group discussion around possible types of supporting classroom interventions, including likely challenges, benefits to students, and strategies for bridge-building dialogue.

Session Participation:

This session will function be in alignment with the guidelines for a “Present and Reflect” session, as audience members will listen to a 20-30-minute presentation and then be asked to engage via reflection and discussion for the remaining 10-20 minutes.

Session Goals:

By presenting one institution-specific case study highlighting a particular barrier—students’ writing skill deficits and lack of awareness of institutional writing support—and functional solution—live, course-based writing center interventions—our hope is that individuals will have:

• A clear understanding of the negative effects on student retention when online students do not access writing and other academic support services;
•  An increased awareness of the potential barriers to online students accessing already available support services; and
• Initial ideas about partnerships attendees can bring back to their institutions to increase writing and academic support services to students in the virtual classroom.