Online Writing Center Assistance

	MyLATTC Portal
	Where Students Connect!

Online Writing Center Assistance Directions

Purpose: This tutorial will show you how to

Create a Google Docs document to begin your writing assignment
Share that document with the Writing Center
Create an event whereby you request assistance and schedule an appointment for help
Request the Writing Center review your document and just make comments (Drop box feature of getting assistance)
Meet the Writing Center Tutor online and use a phone to communicate.
Meet the Writing Center Tutor online in real time and use Google Talk to text message each other.

1. Log Into Your Account using the http://start.student.lattc.edu link. Remember you must always use your full student ID number to log into MyLATTC Portal at any of the entrance points. You can not log in using your nickname.

2. Select Docs and Spreadsheets link -

3. Either Upload a document you already prepared OR create a new document by clicking on one of the options available: New or Upload:

If you selected the option to create a new Google Docs, the document option is most likely the one you want for a writing project. You will see this menu: Image of Create New Options Menu

4. Once you have your writing assignment saved in Google Docs, you need to SHARE it with the Writing Center. To do this you select the Share tab and then complete the form by enterng the address of the writing center in the box to invite them as a collaborator. That email address is writing@student.lattc.edu

Since there might be a need to multiple Writing Center Tutors to be working from that account, be sure to select the options that they can invite others. You will have a great chance of getting your preferred writing center appointment.

5. Then click on the button: "Invite collaborators" and this will cause a box to appear which will send an email message to the Writing Center to let them know you have invited them to collaborate with your document.

6. You need to type in a message before that email in sent. In that message you need to indicate any or all of the following:

You are requesting assistance with a writing assignment.
You will be creating an "event" asking for an appointment at a specific day and time.
If you want that assistance to be live while talking on the phone OR live while text messaging OR just a drop box feature when you ask them to review and make comments while you are at work. You then retrieve the comments at the end of the time specified in the event.
A phone number where you can be reached and/or an alternative email.

Notice there is a CC that is checked by default so you will get a copy of the message you sent to the Writing Center.

There is an option to paste the document into the email message so the Writing Center does not need to take the extra step to click on the link to go to the document. This might be a valuable option to use if you are requesting assistance via the Drop Box option instead of live assistance.

Example of that message:

Image of sending email message to Writing Center

Note: there is a limit to how big your document can be in the Google Docs area. You might need to break it into smaller documents and then get assistance on each one.

Image of Create Event in Share Tab window

7. Create an Event - with the Writing Center by clicking on the Create Event With Collaborators link within the Share Tab window. The red arrow is pointing to this link in the illustration to the right.

This will take you to your personal Calendar. If you have not already selected the correct time zone you will need to do it before you can request your appointment.

Image of Setting Calendar time zone

8. You complete the form requesting day and time.

When you click on the box to insert a date, it will pull up a calendar. You just click on the date you want. Be sure to give the Writing Center time to respond to you. This does not work with last-minute appointments.

Once you have the day and time of the event set, you use the WHERE form to indicate HOW you want the Writing Center Assistance. You can select from

Drop Box - just pick it up after they review and comment on it.
Talk on the phone
Text messaging to review it live.

The Options that you can use on your calendar event include getting a reminder prior to the event. This reminder is default to a Pop-Up but can also be an email. You can then set your reminders to send a text message to your cell phone if you would like to use that feature of the calendar.

Your email or pop-up reminder can be set for a variety of time periods prior to the event.

Your personal calendar can then be set to show you are busy durng the time that even is taking place.

When you review our Calendar for that day, your event will be listed. It will also be automatically listed on the Writing Center's calendar AFTER they accept the event. You will get email confirmation after they accept the event. You can check the Writing Center Calendar which is available online to be sure your event is on their calendar.

9. Meet your Appointment in your Google Docs assignment! You should log into your account within MyLATTC Portal and go to your documents home page and select your writing assignment for this appointment. If you enter another writing assignment document, you will be in the wrong place and the Writing Center can not find you.

You can go to the Learning Skills Center lab in C-102 and request to attend a workshop that will show you even more about how to use the Google docs features.