From Esther Namubiru, Lead Editor of Connecting Writing Centers Across Borders:

In this month’s Rewind and Reset, I want to share with you Assistant Editor, Dr. Weijia Li’s article on accountability and the writer. Currently writing a dissertation, I have found the writing center a useful place to meet and write together with other dissertating students. However, Dr. Li also asks a key question about the relationship between accountability and “the pressure to produce noticeable progress.” I would add: does accountability through writing groups bridge ‘writing as process’ and ‘writing as product’?

I wonder if the issue with accountability is related to the pressure to produce writing with noticeable progress (i.e., how much is written) and result (i.e., “get that done,” in Bill’s words). In the literature, while some studies suggested that utilizing writing consultations helps writers to move forward with their writing (e.g., Natalie DeCheck), what writing consultations can do for writers in terms of accountability has not been much explored.

Dr. Li’s article is published in the WLN: A Journal of Writing Center Scholarship. I hope you enjoy reading it!