The Invisible Interface: MS Word in the Writing Center

Writing centers have developed best practices in order to help student writers, most popularly, non-directive tutoring pedagogies, based on the use of paper drafts. These same tutoring protocols have been extended to computer-based face-to-face sessions under the assumption that they will have similar outcomes, which subscribes to the myth of technology as a transparent tool that does not affect the writing that emerges from it. A lack of attention to computers in the writing center extends to the use of word processing programs like MS Word. This article discusses these issues in the context of a case study of one tutor in computer-based tutoring sessions in a writing center. Throughout these sessions, situations arose involving the use of the MS Word interface that affected the nature of the session itself. This case study suggests that computers, and particularly the MS Word program, need to be examined critically to consider how their use corresponds with the mission of the writing center itself. There are a number of strategies that can also help tutors use MS Word in ways that will best serve students’ individual needs.