Information for Students
Contents
An overview
UNE Mentor uses the university's online learning management system to set up an electronic discussion forum, where HSC students working on their Extension 2 English Major Work can write in with queries, problems, or issues, related to their creative work. Mentors, who are postgraduate students and professional writers affiliated with the School, then respond with advice, tips, and suggestions.
UNE Mentor also functions as an online supportive community, where students can give each other feedback on their projects, encouragement, and constructive criticism.
About Moodle
Moodle is UNE's online learning management system. The UNE Mentor Moodle site offers a discussion forum, with links to useful information about the HSC, and also about a range of writing issues related to the Major Work.
About the discussion forum
You use the discussion forum to post messages with questions about aspects of your Major Work, and the mentors, and your fellow students will respond with advice or suggestions.
For example, you might be writing a short story set at the beach. You've spent a great amount of time writing description of the atmosphere and location, but you haven't developed any characters. You're worried about this - have you spent too long on description, and no time on the plot? How do you balance out setting and action? How do you develop characters in a short space?
You write in to the discussion forum outlining your problem.
Student 1: Hi guys, I'm stuck! I'm seven pages into my short story, and I haven't mentioned any of the characters yet! I've described everything about the setting, which is the beach, about the time of year, the heat, the waves, etc, etc, but there are no people in this story. What do I do?
Mentor1: Hi, Student 1. Don't worry. It's good that you've got so much to say about the setting. How about you start thinking about what kind of person would fit well in this background, or would stand out well against it. You could describe a range of characters, as if they're scenery, then decide which ones you want to explore more.
Mentor 2: 'Student 1,' I'd like to know what you think you want to happen in this story, i.e. what the plot might be. That might get you started with describing character. Additionally, why don't you revise the description of the beach through the eyes of your main character? Tell me what he/she thought about it as he/she walked along the beach.
Student 2: 'Student 1,' it's great to hear you talk about this problem. I think I have the opposite problem. I have too much information about character, and not enough about setting. I suppose it's all a matter of what you want out of the story. Perhaps you're more interested in the place than the people.
And so on.
What generally happens is that students post queries, mentors and other students post responses. From time to time the mentors will arrange messages in topics, e.g. 'getting started,' or 'writing a proposal,' for easy reference.
About the workshop
The English discipline in the School of Arts hosts an on-campus one-day workshop for UNE-Mentor participants. At this workshop, students will meet each other and the mentors. In small groups, participants will workshop their projects.
The on-campus workshop day also offers an opportunity for students to learn what we do in English, Communication Studies, Theatre Studies and Women's and Gender Studies, and to have a tour of the University.
Students particularly enjoy the on-campus workshop as it allows them to meet each other, to put faces to online identities. We have scheduled the workshop for late April/early May, as students generally find that after their visit, their projects gather momentum.
What are the benefits?
The obvious benefit of UNE Mentor is the support it provides for you as you work on your Extension-2 English. Other important benefits include:
- You can include your postings from the discussion forum in your Journal/ Reflection Statement for the Major Work.
- You gain the expertise of postgraduate students and professional writers, outside school hours.
- You gain the support and friendship of other students in similar positions, throughout the New England region.
- The discussion forum operates as a secure environment in which you can test your work for a public response.
How to get involved
If you want to be part of the UNE Mentor program, let your high school English teacher know, and direct their attention to the Information for Principals and Teachers. There is a downloadable enquiry form that they can complete and submit to us.
The UNE Mentor program was developed in 2001 by the School of English, Communication and Theatre, now part of the School of Arts at UNE.