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Faculty Development Cluster: What should constitute TA training?

Faculty Development Cluster: What should constitute TA training?. Rebekka Darner Marcia Shofner Ruth Buskirk. Summary of TA Programs. University of Florida ( Rebekka Darner) Graduate seminar Students/TAs read primary literature and discuss Students/TAs write their teaching philosophy

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Faculty Development Cluster: What should constitute TA training?

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  1. Faculty Development Cluster: What should constitute TA training? Rebekka Darner Marcia Shofner Ruth Buskirk

  2. Summary of TA Programs • University of Florida (Rebekka Darner) • Graduate seminar • Students/TAs read primary literature and discuss • Students/TAs write their teaching philosophy • Students/TAs get video-recorded and debrief with instructor of seminar

  3. Summary of TA Programs • University of Texas at Austin (Ruth Buskirk) • Graduate seminar • Assignments include writing exam questions, observing lecture and lab classes, designing active learning exercise, writing case studies & syllabi • Discussions of learning styles, problem students, university regulations and resources, FERPA • “micro-teach” video-taped lesson, others critique

  4. Summary of TA Programs • University of Maryland (Marcia Shofner) • Graduate seminar for all new TAs • Team-taught by 3 experienced faculty each representing a different graduate program • TAs write their teaching philosophy • TAs are observed in their lab/discussion by experienced TA or faculty who provide feedback • Mid-semester and final TA evaluations given • UTA Teaching Fellows in lower level classes • UTAs attend 1 credit seminar on pedagogy • Mid-semester and final UTA evaluations • Must observe experienced GTA before teaching 1st lab/ discussion

  5. Challenges & Successes • Encouraging TAs to take their teaching seriously when their mentors don’t • Engaging TAs in active learning exercises when their instructors don’t use them in class • Increased confidence in teaching and curricular design • Sharing experiences with other TAs and discussing how they would handle problems

  6. Survey Results from BLCers • Your biggest challenges: • Research mentor apathy (58.8%) • Lack of TA competence/confidence in subject (82.4%) • TA apathy (70.6%)

  7. Survey Results from BLCers • What you think should be included in TA prep: • Teaching ethics, dealing with academic dishonesty (72.2%) • How to lead a discussion (77.8%) • Grading policies, criteria, rubrics (83.3%) • Giving a Powerpoint presentation (64.7%) • How to deal with difficult teaching situations (70.6%)

  8. Resources on TA Training • Our new wiki http://training-biology-tas.wikispaces.com • Come check out our poster!

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