Knowledge Bank

Despite the breadth of research available on online writing instruction (OWI) in writing centers, there is very little exploration regarding the technology operated in online writing tutoring due to the fast-changing evolution of online platforms and the Internet. Though the dynamic nature of technologies can be intimidating, this gap in writing center research invites the opportunity to research the practical improvement of the components of online writing instruction. This study uses an online survey method to collect data on writing tutor perceptions of online platforms, gaining an understanding of how current writing center technologies are operating in online synchronous tutorials. Qualitative analysis through thematic coding of survey responses shows that many of the current platforms and features used by writing centers to conduct online synchronous sessions possess a variety of deficits, particularly in the pedagogical affordances they offer for tutors and the accessibility of their interfaces for writers. Results also demonstrate how tutors interact with the writer and their texts through implementing both external and internal feedback, fostering collaboration, and incorporating writer preference into their usage of features and platforms. These findings contribute to an empirical body of data to inform tutor training for online writing instruction, and indicate that writing centers must consider evaluating their online platform choices to strike a balance between what works for administrators, tutors, and writers. This study also illustrates how, as we begin to understand how tutors are using the parts and features of online platforms, the whole of online writing instruction can begin to be recognized as a separate tutoring practice with its own unique affordances, as opposed to an approximation of face-to-face writing tutoring.