UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Learning is piloting a proactive outreach program to ENGL 15 students who receive a flag from their instructor in Starfish. 

 In fall 2023, undergraduate students at the University Park campus enrolled in ENGL 15: Rhetoric and Composition will get a special Starfish notification from the Writing Center @ Penn State Learning if they received an “instructor's recommendation: seek tutoring” from a “to-do” during the Starfish early progress reporting period (Sept. 5-13) or the mid-semester progress reporting (Oct. 2-Oct. 25).  Students are encouraged to follow up on the “to-do” notification and use Penn State’s writing tutoring services.  

“Our aim with this notification is to give students an opportunity to opt-in to our services and take personal agency over their progress this semester,” said Beth Parfitt, associate teaching professor in English and scholar in residence for writing and communication with Penn State Learning. “We want students to know there are peer tutors available and we want instructors to know that when they click that recommendation flag, the Writing Center is reaching out to those students.” 

Proactive outreach from academic advisers, instructors and others in a student’s support network can help make a difference before they get too far behind in a course. Penn State Learning’s services are covered by tuition and bear no extra cost to undergraduate students. A student does not need to have received a flag or a to-do during early progress reporting to use tutoring services. 

“Writing tutors collaborate with students to create a path forward on their writing projects,” Parfitt said. “All students can benefit from a writing consultation.” 

Students can schedule in-person or online (Zoom) appointments with peer tutors. Asynchronous tutoring is also available, where students can submit a writing project for review and receive virtual feedback. More details are available at the Writing Center webpage. Penn State Learning tutors and staff don’t have access to a student’s individual grades or assignments, but are trained to help students improve their writing through conversation, strategic questions and feedback. 

Tabitha Fisher, Writing Center coordinator at Penn State Learning and a lecturer in the English Department, said peer tutors have gone through a 3-credit, semester-long training in English 250: Peer Tutoring in Writing and can help students with assignments in specific courses or out-of-classroom writing. 

“These students are trained to approach writing with their peers from a rhetorically informed perspective,” Fisher said. “They’re not providing grades or judging the work in an assessment focused way, but trying to support writers as they’re thinking about and approaching writing processes.” 

During exit surveys, students who used the Writing Center’s services said they had positive experiences and were able to improve their writing from constructive criticism.  

“I thought that [my tutor] did a really good job with making sure I was clear with what she was instructing me to do,” wrote one student. “She also asked me what I wanted to have in the paper, rather than what she thought should be in the paper. She really knew what she was doing and was awesome!” 

“It was helpful to hear affirmative comments about my paper and all the comments were very helpful,” another student wrote. “I was required to use the writing center for my assignment, but I wish I had started to use it earlier in college.” 

“[My tutor] was very helpful and gave me lots of insights into her own writing process and thoughts. She definitely helped me grow as a writer and reviewer,” wrote another student. 

“This initiative is a way for Penn State Learning to connect with the existing support network available to students,” said Neill Johnson, director of Penn State Learning. “We’re here to help students be successful in their courses and support instructors as much as we can.” 

Information on tutoring and guided study groups for other subjects is available at pennstatelearning.psu.edu. 

Penn State Learning is part of Penn State Undergraduate Education.