Grad TAs

The Graduate School has a TA policy which outlines departmental responsibilities regarding TA instruction. This page is written specifically for UW Astronomy graduate students, and includes descriptions of duties, expectations, logistics information, best practices, and general advice.


Guide

Center for Teaching and Learning Resources

General Duties

TAs are paid for 20 hours/week of devoted time to their assigned course, which includes:

  • attending face-to-face lectures: either 2x1.5 OR 3x1 hour/week [3 hrs]
  • attending TA meetings with instructor [1 hr]
  • holding weekly office hours [2 hrs]
  • covering sections: 2 sections 2x/week OR 4 sections 1x/week [4 hrs]
  • preparing for sections [10 hrs]

For example, a TA may spend 2 hrs/week  — a low estimate for new TAs — preparing material for sections, 1 hr doing administration tasks such as answering emails, entering grades, and 7 hrs grading completed assignments — with 64 students that amounts to about 6.5 minutes per student per week.

Expectations

What to expect to get out of TAing

  • Strong comprehension of basic astronomy.
  • Opportunity to work with different levels of students in classroom setting and in office hours.
  • Ability to respond to any teaching situation – being able to read the class and understand when you can move on to another topic.
  • Organizational skills and preparedness
  • Ability to think and discuss topics in different ways, not just as they are written in a textbook.
  • Practice explaining topics in multiple ways.
  • Exposure to a cross section of UW campus and the larger community.
  • Joy of teaching others a topic you're interested in and recognizing that they may hate it.
  • Good presentation skills.

What TAs expect of their instructor

  • Setting expectations in a timely manner – at least two business day advance notice on lesson plans.
  • A limit of 20 hours a week of work.
  • Communicating any changes to material covered in sections.
  • Awareness that they are teaching TAs how to teach by good leadership and teaching.
  • Respect and professionalism in all interactions.
  • Preparation of lab material and curriculum, but TAs may consult in the writing of exams. 
  • Responsibility for the generation of material,
  • Strong guidance and a lot of advance warning if TA is expected to generate material.

What instructors and other TAs expect in a TA

  • Attend lecture (and tell your instructor when you must miss).
  • Make accessible office hours.
  • Update grade book in timely manner.
  • Do exam/quiz reviews.
  • Be on time and prepared to section.
  • Find replacement TAs if you can't make a section.
  • Tell your instructor if you have to miss a section.
  • Grade in a timely manner (no later than 2 weeks return, strive for 1 week).
  • Respond to emails in timely manner.
  • Forward messages to instructors if there is a grading issue or excessive questions.
  • Attempt labs and homework in advance of teaching.
  • TAs should be free to present the material how they wish, though graded material throughout the course should be uniform. 

Logistics

First Day

  • Establish a grading and late assignment policy explicitly in syllabus
  • Be clear about your email policy (e.g. how late you'll respond)
  • Review UW Emergency procedures
  • Show students where to find your office

Accessing your Student List

  • log into your MyUW account, navigate to the current Quarter
  • your sections should appear under "My Class Resources"
    • from here you can print student photo lists, request email lists, or add a link to the course site

Accessing the Grade Book

  • in MyUW, navigate to Canvas LMS under "Quick Links"
  • click on the course from the list of courses where you have been added as a TA
  • select the "Grades" tab on the left
    • TAs are not allowed to submit grades, and should enter only their section grades.

Accessing the Equipment Room

  • located on the 2nd floor of PAA, next to the Planetarium
    • contains calculators, pencils, pens, white board markers, balloons, rulers, balls, scissors, and more.
  • your office key should open the door (check that this is true before classes start)
  • do not use the supplies in the Astronomy mail room — expect for copy paper — as they are on separate budgets
  • make requests for items that have run out or that you think may be useful via the Undergraduate Assistants in the main

Using Classrooms

  • projectors in the section classrooms (typically A210 and A216) should work when plugged into your laptop
    • you may need an HDMI adapter depending on your laptop ports
  • make sure to cleanup before the next TA (erase the white board, unplug projector, return equipment to storage, etc.)
  • lock the door and turn off the lights if you are the last section in the afternoon

Making Photocopies

  • use the correct copy code for the class your are TAing

TA Meetings

  • instructor gives instructions on coming week's lecture and section activities
  • at first meeting, this includes a schedule of lectures and sections exercises for the quarter 
  • instructors may provide typed lecture notes and explicit TA instructions
    • this usually includes rubrics, answer keys, guidance on grading certain assignments

Best Practices

Class Prep

  • Make a lesson plan. What are your goals for the lesson? What should students be able to do? How will you assess their learning? How does this lesson fit into the rest of the course? Always have a plan.
  • Plan your section time down to 10 minute increments. Write out this lesson plan for yourself. After section is over, go back to this lesson plan and write down what worked, what didn't work, and what needed an adjustment of time. Keep the lesson plan (with the date) to refer back to in subsequent quarters of TAing.
  • Keep all lesson plans organized with clean copies of handouts, assignments, and grading keys. 
  • Get reimbursed if you buy equipment for section activities.
  • If you feel like you are taking on too much work, or being asked too much, talk to your fellow TAs.

Teaching

  • Students are more likely to trust your answers to their questions and ask further questions if you begin responses with "that's a good question" or "good thinking what I mean is..." or something along those lines.
  • Don't be afraid to make a mistake, goof up an explanation, or make fun of yourself. Students may find TAs more approachable if they can see first hand that they are not perfect and all-knowing.
  • When you can't answer a student's question in the detail you'd like to, write it down and answer it in the next class, or over email. This is a way of rewarding students for actively thinking.
  • Give time for students to think about the question you asked. It's better to have open ended questions and have them discuss the questions before reporting back.
  • Work on the assignments before the students have to do them. If there are issues with the assignment, notify the instructor.
  • If using the white board, write large and legibly, and check that you have good markers and eraser cloths.
  • Ask for feedback early and often from both students and instructor. This can be done via mid-term evaluations.
  • If there are online discussion groups, get involved early. Make positive comments on student posts and follow-up with thought-provoking questions.
  • Privately reach out to struggling students to find out what is affecting them, and how they can pass the class. Notify the instructor.

Advice

Coming Soon.

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