Exploring the Workplace Culture of an Eastern Ontario University's Writing Center: A Quasi-Ethnographic Study

Abstract

Purpose: The tutors or consultants working in university writing centers help students with their general assignments and academic writing. Very little attention has been paid to ethnographic-based research in this domain. This quasi-ethnographic paper aimed to fill this research gap by exploring: (a) the culture within which the writing consultants working for the writing services of an Eastern Ontario university provided their services to students, and (b) the discourse produced within that culture. Method: An ethnographic research design was adopted for this study. The sample comprised a diverse group of 11 consultants (four females and seven males). The data were collected through participant observations and semi-structured interviews. Findings: Employing social constructionism, activity, and social theory of genre, this research found that (a) collaboration, commitment, friendship, respect, and patience characterized the culture within which the writing consultants working for the university examined provided their services to students, and (b) academic and non-academic discourses were produced within that culture. Implications: The study is expected to benefit those who teach academic writing as it (a) illustrates the knowledge, ideas, customs, patterns of behavior, and beliefs that distinguish the group examined, and (b) identifies the nature of the discourse produced by that group.