Mission

The Thomas University Academic Resource Center’s mission is two-fold. First, focusing on the belief that students who are good writers and thinkers will be successful and prepared for the future, the Center provides individual assistance in writing and math skills development beyond the classroom. The trained writing and math tutors, by encouraging active rather than passive learning and thinking, create guidance which allows students to take responsibility for their own development as effective writers and thinkers and for their academic success.

The objective of the writing tutor is to help students develop the language skills and strategies necessary to become confident, active, and independent learners. Proficiency in writing enables students to analyze and critique complex ideas, enhances their ability to think critically, and ensures their success both academically and in the workplace. The writing staff is committed to providing feedback on each point in the writing process, from getting started and finding a focus, to helping students find and correct their own grammar and usage problems.

The objective of the math tutor is to help students develop the skills required to be successful in all their math courses — basic, beginning, intermediate, and college algebra, calculus, and trigonometry. The tutors provide refresher instructions to help students get started through both one-to-one discussion and on-line tutorials and sample exercises. The math tutor is the student resource for guiding you through assignments, assisting with specific math problems, and preparing you to become a more efficient thinker and math problem solver. Proficiency in mathematics enables students to think logically, develop strategies for complex problems, and employ established methodology in analyzing situations in both the academic and workplace environments.

About Us

The Academic Resource Center is located in Room 2 of the classroom building. The Center’s mission is to provide individualized instruction in writing and math to all students who are not eligible for Student Support Services. The writing tutors will provide help not only with essays and research papers for composition courses but also with writing assignments in other classes. The math tutors will assist with any basic math, algebra, calculus, or trigonometry assignments on which you need extra, individual discussion to keep you on the right learning and developmental path in the classroom.

Hours/Appointments

SPRING SEMESTER, 2008

WRITING

Trained writing tutors are available during these hours of operation (excluding holidays):

What to Bring

To get the most from your conference, you might want to prepare a list of questions or problems to discuss. For example, you might ask questions of the following kinds:

Be sure to have your conference early enough to allow time for revision or for solving the problem.

Please note that the Center is NOT an editing service or a quick-fix shop. You, not the instructor, own your work, and as the student, you are responsible for improving it. The Center's tutors are trained to give feedback and to help you do your own work.

Other Services

Along with helping students with their writing and math assignments, the Center's tutors also offer the following services:

• Online and/or text-based grammar review and math exercises
• Help with on-line research techniques and various documentation styles, including the MLA and APA systems of documentation
• CWRTE Exam review
• Advanced writing skills enhancement

Online Resources

WRITING

• APA Style.org — the official home of APA style
• Columbia Guide to Online Style — a comprehensive guide to MLA, APA, and CBE documentation styles
• Dr. Paper — a software package that assists with APA and MLA formatting of papers. Free to TU students.
• MLA Style Guide
• Online Library Learning Center — tips on using online resources, evaluating sources, properly citing sources, and more...

GRAMMAR REVIEW

If you come to the Center to brush up on grammar, you may work online using the interactive exercises available at the following web sites:

• Online Writing Lab — Purdue University
• Guide to Grammar and Writing

Alternatively, you may work through written exercises in Steps in Composition (Troyka and Nudelman), Mastering Written English (Epes and Southwell), The New Century Handbook (Hult and Huckin), or The Longman Writer's Companion (Anson, Schwegler, and Muth).

MATH REVIEW

If you come to the Center to work on math, you may work online using the interactive exercises available at the following web sites:

• Virtual Math Lab — West Texas A&M University
• Virtual Math Lab — Tidewater Community College

The Center also has math texts and study guides with written exercises for your use.