Dr. Neal Lerner's Inaugural Lecture
"Science Labs, Writing Centers: Provocative Parallels"
Rebekah Shultz Colby

Neal Lerner, a highly published writing center scholar at MIT, gave a fascinating inaugural lecture entitled Science Labs, Writing Centers: Provocative Parallels on Thursday, Nov. 4 at 4:00 in Mary Reed in honor of the Marisco Writing Programs grand opening. In the talk, he discussed how the educational philosophies of progressive educators such as John Dewey, Helen Parkhurst, and John Kenedy actually foreshadow much current writing center theory and practice, even though much of this educational philosophy was rejected or banished to relative anonymity in its time. These practices included treating the writing center as a sort of laboratory or studio in which students drafted and experimented with language, learning about language and writing from the firsthand experience of writing, in much the same way that laboratories give students firsthand experience with science and scientific phenomena. Often, students were encouraged to actively collaborate and teach each other, while the teacher took the more sideline role of guide or mentor. These practices mirror the peer tutoring structure of the writing center since, even though tutors usually have more experience and education in writing than the peers they tutor, they too are often students. Also, in tutoring sessions, tutors encourage writers to experiment with and learn from their own writing, often giving them helpful suggestions, but also giving writers enough time and space to come up with their own ideas for revision and further drafting. Lerners talk inspired the audience to think about these points further, especially as writing program continues to grow and develop in the future.

Refreshments, which included an open bar, vegetable and chicken kabobs, and various cookies, and lively conversation followed, as well as some interesting historical tidbits about DUs own writing center past.
 

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