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What it's like to be a writing specialist at Studiosity
Sam's currently studying a Master's of Education, majoring in TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages). When she started, she wanted a job related to tutoring or language acquisition.
"I was looking on the careers hub at Adelaide University, and saw Studiosity was advertising for people to help with its Writing Feedback Service," explains Sam.
As part of the Writing Feedback Service, Sam's tasks include working with students on their assignments and essays, checking their spelling, grammar and other writing conventions, and helping to improve their writing skills more generally."One of my favourite things about Studiosity is that I get to take all the educational theories I'm learning as part of my degree and put them into practice," says Sam. "Things like formative feedback, personalised marking and e-learning are coming to the fore as key modern teaching methods, and they're all core principles of Studiosity."
Helping students get their light bulb moment
Sam also enjoys how varied the work is. "I could be helping anyone of any age or subject, so it means I get to read about all sorts of different topics."
"Students' abilities vary, but there's something really rewarding about knowing you're able to help people. It could be any element of grammar or spelling, but you can help someone get to that light bulb momentwhere everything just clicks into place for them," says Sam.
"Often the idea of writing is more nerve-wracking than the actual practice of it, but if you help a student break it down into its simplest form and build up from there, they'll find it much easier to digest and understand," she says. "That's why it's so great seeing the feedback comments from students who've had issues with particular elements of writing and now completely understand it."
Working with international students
A lot of the work Sam does with Studiosity involves helping international students with their English. Even when someone can speak very good English, writing in a western academic style can be very difficult. Things like referencing conventions can also be hard to get your head around, and Studiosity is able to check all of these as well as help with grammar and spelling.
The high number of international students that Sam teaches has helped her discover a potential new research opportunity for when she finishes her Master's. "I'd love to do further study into the barriers in place for international students, particularly in teaching styles and academic education," she explains.
Even with a job that's so closely related to her degree, it was still important Sam had enough flexibility to be able to complete her university studies as well. Fortunately, Studiosity provides great communication and support between Studiosity staff and mentors to ensure training and workload is well balanced.
Just like Sam, Studiosity knows how rewarding it is to help students get that light bulb moment. To find out more about our online, on-demand study help platform, contact us today.
