How to be a great first time TA?
August 4, 2010 7:25 AM Subscribe
How to be a great first time TA?
I am teaching Intro to Psychology for the first time this Fall. I am a second year clinical psychology doctoral student, and I have never really taught before. So I'm understandably a bit nervous! Anyway, I was looking for advice/anecdotes about teaching undergraduates for the first time, as well as people's experiences being taught as undergraduates. I went to a non-traditional college (St. John's College in Santa Fe) so I myself never even held a textbook until taking physiology in graduate school. I am using the textbook David Myers' Psychology in Modules, and I am including supplemental primary source readings. Any suggestions for activities your students really enjoyed? Great moments in the classroom as a teacher or student? Horrible experiences? Things your wish you had been told before your first day as TA?
I suppose this is all a bit vague, I can write back if people have more questions. Thanks in advance!
I am teaching Intro to Psychology for the first time this Fall. I am a second year clinical psychology doctoral student, and I have never really taught before. So I'm understandably a bit nervous! Anyway, I was looking for advice/anecdotes about teaching undergraduates for the first time, as well as people's experiences being taught as undergraduates. I went to a non-traditional college (St. John's College in Santa Fe) so I myself never even held a textbook until taking physiology in graduate school. I am using the textbook David Myers' Psychology in Modules, and I am including supplemental primary source readings. Any suggestions for activities your students really enjoyed? Great moments in the classroom as a teacher or student? Horrible experiences? Things your wish you had been told before your first day as TA?
I suppose this is all a bit vague, I can write back if people have more questions. Thanks in advance!
Response by poster: Yeah, TA is a pretty ambiguous term. Basically I am in charge of planning and implementing the whole course. I don't have my final class count yet, but it should be around 40 students.
posted by amileighs at 7:34 AM on August 4, 2010
posted by amileighs at 7:34 AM on August 4, 2010
One thing that helped me when I first started teaching (I taught children, but this would hold true for undergrads as well) and the biggest thing that helped me calm my nerves when I started was to keep in mind that no matter what, I knew more than them.
posted by fso at 7:44 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by fso at 7:44 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
I was a TA for law students, so probably not the same creature exactly but I found it more helpful to have appointments with students than "wander in" office hours. (I had both, but the appointments were always more productive.) Appointments allowed me to review the material in question before meeting with the student so that the conversation was more helpful for the student.
posted by greekphilosophy at 7:49 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by greekphilosophy at 7:49 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I found that undergrads (especially at an intro level course) really enjoyed readings beyond text books. For example, your students may not understand the implications or why something is important - so I assigned human/science intertest stories from the NY Times, NPR, Sci Am. I also used those news stories as a "hook" to explain a topic - so an article about genetic engineering and laws would be read first, followed by a talk about DNA and genetics. You probably have a lot of interesting material from the news that you could use (eg. updates to the DSM; things that were categorized as disorders in the past and are not now; psychiatric diseases; psychopharmacology [stimulants are abused for attention, even at the uni level]; differences in the brain between some mass murderers [eg MAO] and other people; etc.) To make sure they read it before class, I had them write a brief paragraph response to a question that I posted online
Also, I did use primary references to teach students, but as a heads up this is very challenging for your average undergrad. Most may never encounter a primary article until the junior or senior year. So I would hold their hands and walk them through the first one at least. Believe me, things like methodology and stats may be over their heads. To be honest ,for intro level students I woudl show them one article but don't go beyond that or they may really hate it or not get much out of it (although this is a great actifvity for seniors in uni). I would give this as "optional" readings, but YMMV.
Can you have access to a web page for your course? Putting handouts online, practice quizzes, etc., may make it easier for you to at least make material available for your students.
I just thought of a few things that you could do with your undergrads that students enjoyed -- give them the option of seeing a sheep brain and sheep brain dissection. If you have cadavers at your school, human brains are interesting to students, too. Not all students, but there will be some that really like this activity (make it an optional discussion section).
Another activity that most students (intro to advanced level) seemed to enjoy was understanding how diagnosis are made and what the DSM is really used for. If you can get a few copies, I would show them a case (maybe a classic bipolar patient presentation, this will be new to most of them) and then walk them through a diagnosis - then give another case and have small groups make a diagnosis.
To be honest, I had my own way of thinking about an ideal class and how I taught, so this either this speaks to you, or I'm blabbing on and on. If this is useful, feel free to use it If not, ignore.
posted by Wolfster at 7:51 AM on August 4, 2010
Also, I did use primary references to teach students, but as a heads up this is very challenging for your average undergrad. Most may never encounter a primary article until the junior or senior year. So I would hold their hands and walk them through the first one at least. Believe me, things like methodology and stats may be over their heads. To be honest ,for intro level students I woudl show them one article but don't go beyond that or they may really hate it or not get much out of it (although this is a great actifvity for seniors in uni). I would give this as "optional" readings, but YMMV.
Can you have access to a web page for your course? Putting handouts online, practice quizzes, etc., may make it easier for you to at least make material available for your students.
I just thought of a few things that you could do with your undergrads that students enjoyed -- give them the option of seeing a sheep brain and sheep brain dissection. If you have cadavers at your school, human brains are interesting to students, too. Not all students, but there will be some that really like this activity (make it an optional discussion section).
Another activity that most students (intro to advanced level) seemed to enjoy was understanding how diagnosis are made and what the DSM is really used for. If you can get a few copies, I would show them a case (maybe a classic bipolar patient presentation, this will be new to most of them) and then walk them through a diagnosis - then give another case and have small groups make a diagnosis.
To be honest, I had my own way of thinking about an ideal class and how I taught, so this either this speaks to you, or I'm blabbing on and on. If this is useful, feel free to use it If not, ignore.
posted by Wolfster at 7:51 AM on August 4, 2010
I went to a tiny liberal arts college, and the first time I ever stepped into a rhetoric and composition class was at the massive state school where I was a master's student. So I can completely relate to what you are going through right now.
First off, the odds are against you becoming teacher of the year this year, and that is just fine. Right now, you are learning the basics of your job. Give yourself permission to learn how to do this, and aspire to adequacy.
Second, do your best to become familiar with the text and the concepts of the course, but always give yourself permission to say "I don't know, let's make sure to ask the professor." You are just learning some of this stuff, and students will appreciate it when you encourage them to explore rather than shut down conversation at the limits of what you can say with certainty. Consider yourself a partner in their exploration, and you won't have to defend your position as authority figure.
Third, always be on time, and be where you say you are going to be. There will be students who are struggling, and who will depend on your presence to get through this class. Furthermore, there will be students who blame their failures on the fact that you were once 15 minutes late for office hours.
Finally, have boundaries. Never give out your personal phone number. Announce in class that you do not check your work email after a certain time of day, say, 8:00 at night. And then DO NOT CHECK IT. If you are going to get through your graduate program, you need to protect your study time jealously. And if you announce this on the first day of class, everyone should be on the same page.
Good luck!
posted by pickypicky at 7:57 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
First off, the odds are against you becoming teacher of the year this year, and that is just fine. Right now, you are learning the basics of your job. Give yourself permission to learn how to do this, and aspire to adequacy.
Second, do your best to become familiar with the text and the concepts of the course, but always give yourself permission to say "I don't know, let's make sure to ask the professor." You are just learning some of this stuff, and students will appreciate it when you encourage them to explore rather than shut down conversation at the limits of what you can say with certainty. Consider yourself a partner in their exploration, and you won't have to defend your position as authority figure.
Third, always be on time, and be where you say you are going to be. There will be students who are struggling, and who will depend on your presence to get through this class. Furthermore, there will be students who blame their failures on the fact that you were once 15 minutes late for office hours.
Finally, have boundaries. Never give out your personal phone number. Announce in class that you do not check your work email after a certain time of day, say, 8:00 at night. And then DO NOT CHECK IT. If you are going to get through your graduate program, you need to protect your study time jealously. And if you announce this on the first day of class, everyone should be on the same page.
Good luck!
posted by pickypicky at 7:57 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
Things your wish you had been told before your first day as TA?
Being the world's best TA will not help you graduate. Not one whit. Do not devote all your time to your first course. Set limits for how much time you will spend of course prep. versus your own research. Stick to those limits.
posted by .kobayashi. at 8:10 AM on August 4, 2010 [7 favorites]
Being the world's best TA will not help you graduate. Not one whit. Do not devote all your time to your first course. Set limits for how much time you will spend of course prep. versus your own research. Stick to those limits.
posted by .kobayashi. at 8:10 AM on August 4, 2010 [7 favorites]
Create a complete syllabus that clearly states your expectations for the course, details on assignments, deadlines, any relevant policies (your institution may have boilerplate that you have to include), and penalties for failing to comply. Then stick with it. A major part of your job is to be fair to all your students, and it is really hard to do that unless you all know what is expected and how it will be handled. Working out your first syllabus is also a great time to find out information on useful services (e.g. the writing center) and institution-wide polices (e.g. plagiarism and academic dishonesty). This way, when something comes up, it will be easier to address.
Also, if you get all the administrative stuff in the syllabus, you can spend more time thinking about what do do in class.
If you want to memail me an email address, I would be happy to share a sample syllabus with you.
posted by GenjiandProust at 8:14 AM on August 4, 2010 [4 favorites]
Also, if you get all the administrative stuff in the syllabus, you can spend more time thinking about what do do in class.
If you want to memail me an email address, I would be happy to share a sample syllabus with you.
posted by GenjiandProust at 8:14 AM on August 4, 2010 [4 favorites]
Be like March; in like a lion and out like a lamb. Dress professionally to set the tone and so that your students don’t mistake you for a student. Begin this class with a syllabus that sets clear and strict boundaries and limitations (yes that sounds like dog training…) for things such as attendance, late work, etc. Revise and customize any initial class materials you’re given by your department. Do not accept late work (at least initially) or make exceptions to your syllabus policies. Over time you can soften your approach, but you need to begin fully in control.
Respect your hard-working students by giving them most of your class-time and attention. I find that the students who don’t do the work take up 80% of my time and are the first to complain about how much work they have to do. Even if they don’t drop themselves eventually they will fail the course and also give you a blistering evaluation. If you can, cull the herd. I drop students after they miss two weeks of work. Spend your time and effort on motivated students who are willing to learn (they aren’t always the ‘A’ students).
Let the passion for your subject out in your class; talk about your research and what led you to your area of inquiry.
posted by answergrape at 8:26 AM on August 4, 2010 [8 favorites]
Respect your hard-working students by giving them most of your class-time and attention. I find that the students who don’t do the work take up 80% of my time and are the first to complain about how much work they have to do. Even if they don’t drop themselves eventually they will fail the course and also give you a blistering evaluation. If you can, cull the herd. I drop students after they miss two weeks of work. Spend your time and effort on motivated students who are willing to learn (they aren’t always the ‘A’ students).
Let the passion for your subject out in your class; talk about your research and what led you to your area of inquiry.
posted by answergrape at 8:26 AM on August 4, 2010 [8 favorites]
Learn your students' names quickly, especially since you will have a small enough number where they'll expect it. Don't try to reinvent the wheel -- ask others before you who have taught the course if they have any materials you could have. You'll want to make your own adjustments, but it helps to not have to do the whole thing. Treat everyone as fairly as possible, as this is something students really pick up on. Return exams and papers in a timely manner. It's more important to dress professionally as the start of the semester when you're trying to establish authority than at the end when they're already used to you. I'd also caution about trying to add in major assignments beyond the standard ones in your first version of the class. Think experimentally -- if you add 5 new things and the class doesn't work, which one was the cause? My rule of thumb is one major change or assignment difference each time I teach a class again. Make sure that you check out the Instructor's guide that comes with the Myers book because it has so many suggestions for great activities and videos to show. Generally you want to break up lectures every 15 minutes or so with some other format like a video clip, podcast, question set, etc.
You already have things going for you that not all classes or topics do: 1) Students generally love this book and react well to it, 2) Psych in general comes with a wealth of ancillary information that is great for class, and 3) You've got more autonomy in your class than a lot of TAs will, 4) You don't often have to pull nails to get students interested in psych.
Finally, know what you want to do when you graduate, and put time into it accordingly. I knew I wanted to be a prof at a teaching-focused college. In my case, putting the extra time and effort into my classes (becoming head TA, teaching a variety of courses, presenting at teaching conferences) did help me in attaining that position.
posted by bizzyb at 8:27 AM on August 4, 2010
You already have things going for you that not all classes or topics do: 1) Students generally love this book and react well to it, 2) Psych in general comes with a wealth of ancillary information that is great for class, and 3) You've got more autonomy in your class than a lot of TAs will, 4) You don't often have to pull nails to get students interested in psych.
Finally, know what you want to do when you graduate, and put time into it accordingly. I knew I wanted to be a prof at a teaching-focused college. In my case, putting the extra time and effort into my classes (becoming head TA, teaching a variety of courses, presenting at teaching conferences) did help me in attaining that position.
posted by bizzyb at 8:27 AM on August 4, 2010
Again kobayashi is a genius.
TAing is something that you have to do in order to get your degree paid for.
It is also the biggest time suck if you let it be.
You can be a 85% great instructor by putting in X time. You can be a 100% fantastic instructor by putting in X time + Y time. Is Y time worth it if it takes away from your own research? No way.
(The exception to this rule? If this is your ONLY time that you'll be instructor of record. In that case, give it your all for the good evaluations.)
Things you can do to reduce the time suck:
- Only answer student emails up to 8pm.
- Realize that many of the students do not care in the least. (Therefore is it worth your time to make that cool handout if 3 students appreciate it?)
- Don't make outside-of-office-hours appointments regularly. Many students will bail anyway.
- Design assignments that are easier to grade (fill in the blank tests with answers that you can skim with your eyes.)
- Don't spend a lot of time grading written assignments. Most students don't care.
- Don't get emotionally hung up on things.
Other pro-tips:
- Have an awesomely complete syllabus. Map out your course on a calendar, sprinkling assignments throughout (but have a big enough assignment before the drop deadline that will help students decide to drop or not.)
- Make your office hours easy for you. Assume students won't come.
- Don't assign a bunch of extra reading. They won't do it a lot of the time.
- If you want them to do the reading, have response papers due.
- Have a mid-term evaluation and then tell the students 2-4 things from it and change mid-way. They'll love it.
- Read ProfHacker.com for good classroom management tips.
posted by k8t at 8:31 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
TAing is something that you have to do in order to get your degree paid for.
It is also the biggest time suck if you let it be.
You can be a 85% great instructor by putting in X time. You can be a 100% fantastic instructor by putting in X time + Y time. Is Y time worth it if it takes away from your own research? No way.
(The exception to this rule? If this is your ONLY time that you'll be instructor of record. In that case, give it your all for the good evaluations.)
Things you can do to reduce the time suck:
- Only answer student emails up to 8pm.
- Realize that many of the students do not care in the least. (Therefore is it worth your time to make that cool handout if 3 students appreciate it?)
- Don't make outside-of-office-hours appointments regularly. Many students will bail anyway.
- Design assignments that are easier to grade (fill in the blank tests with answers that you can skim with your eyes.)
- Don't spend a lot of time grading written assignments. Most students don't care.
- Don't get emotionally hung up on things.
Other pro-tips:
- Have an awesomely complete syllabus. Map out your course on a calendar, sprinkling assignments throughout (but have a big enough assignment before the drop deadline that will help students decide to drop or not.)
- Make your office hours easy for you. Assume students won't come.
- Don't assign a bunch of extra reading. They won't do it a lot of the time.
- If you want them to do the reading, have response papers due.
- Have a mid-term evaluation and then tell the students 2-4 things from it and change mid-way. They'll love it.
- Read ProfHacker.com for good classroom management tips.
posted by k8t at 8:31 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
Ooh - and to prep for lectures, outline the textbook chapter, annotate your outline with additional material, then make your PowerPoint from there.
I give my students a bare-bones version of my PowerPoint slides (this is a big debate nowadays.)
Try to not put too much text on the slides.
posted by k8t at 8:34 AM on August 4, 2010
I give my students a bare-bones version of my PowerPoint slides (this is a big debate nowadays.)
Try to not put too much text on the slides.
posted by k8t at 8:34 AM on August 4, 2010
Unless you really need to, don't do PowerPoint. Most people can't present with it well and end up reading slides aloud which is just as lame as reading the book aloud. As college students they need to read and apply the concepts actively in class.
I make them read the book and do reading quizzes for the canned stuff outside of class. Our class-time is mostly taken up with activities and discussions.
posted by answergrape at 8:51 AM on August 4, 2010
I make them read the book and do reading quizzes for the canned stuff outside of class. Our class-time is mostly taken up with activities and discussions.
posted by answergrape at 8:51 AM on August 4, 2010
As a student in an Intro to Psych class, I enjoyed the unit my teacher did on color vision. The history of psychology involves a struggle to define the "science" and the details of color vision were a great way to see how the "hard" science of biology fundamentally overlaps the "social" science of psychology. In particular I remember being mind-boggled by The Stroop Effect.
posted by abc123xyzinfinity at 9:24 AM on August 4, 2010
posted by abc123xyzinfinity at 9:24 AM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: Here are a list of things that work for me and/or random thoughts.
You have had classes yourself. Incorporate the best things from the classes you have taken into your class.
Intro is your chance to teach a group of students about all of the great things in your field. I approach every Intro Psych class with that in mind. Don't be afraid to let the excitement you have for your material show.
Design a good syllabus. Your syllabus is a tool for you just like it is a tool for your students. It sets your agenda, describes your assignments, and explains your policies. Cover everything from cell phone use to grading policies. I spell everything out as clear as I can so there is no ambiguity at the end of the semester. Cell phone use, attendance, class participation, class preparedness, missed tests, number of tests, test makeup, grading, due dates, late assignment policies, assignment format, preferred method of contact, how are you going to contact them for class announcements if necessary, and anything else you can think of. Dealing with problem students is much easier when you have conveyed clear expectations up front. Clear expectations also help those who are there to try. Plus when something comes up, you have already decided on how you are going to deal with it.
Have some sort of icebreaker on the first day. I frequently have students pair off and introduce each other. After everyone is finished I point out nobody died from speaking in front of the class.
If you use PowerPoint, use it effectively. I bet you can remember that one instructor who read the slides verbatim. That isn't very interesting. Despite the fact I love technology, I use the whiteboard.
When you explain concepts, use interesting studies to explain your material. Talking about obedience is one thing, showing a guy laughing hysterically as he shocks someone during the Milgram study is something else. Talking about the bystander effect is one thing, telling Kitty Genovese's story is another. Depending on where you are teaching you might not be able to, but Robot Chicken explains the 5 stages of grief as well anyone. There was another thread about teaching psych on AskMeta that suggested classically conditioning people with lemonade and a dog clicker (or at least I use a dog clicker). I use that every semester and students enjoy it. You could also do CC by shooting a student with a squirt gun.
You won't have time to cover everything you want to. Don't stress about it. Cover the major points.
Don't create extra work for yourself. If you can give scantron exams, do so. You can make multiple choice questions as easy or as difficult as you want.
Not everyone is going to care about your class. You can't do anything about that. But some of them will. Remember that.
You will get many off the wall questions. "I don't know but we can sure find out" is a completely acceptable answer.
K8t's link is fantastic.
Good luck! I am always happy to chat about teaching. Drop me a metamail if you have anything else.
posted by Silvertree at 9:57 AM on August 4, 2010
You have had classes yourself. Incorporate the best things from the classes you have taken into your class.
Intro is your chance to teach a group of students about all of the great things in your field. I approach every Intro Psych class with that in mind. Don't be afraid to let the excitement you have for your material show.
Design a good syllabus. Your syllabus is a tool for you just like it is a tool for your students. It sets your agenda, describes your assignments, and explains your policies. Cover everything from cell phone use to grading policies. I spell everything out as clear as I can so there is no ambiguity at the end of the semester. Cell phone use, attendance, class participation, class preparedness, missed tests, number of tests, test makeup, grading, due dates, late assignment policies, assignment format, preferred method of contact, how are you going to contact them for class announcements if necessary, and anything else you can think of. Dealing with problem students is much easier when you have conveyed clear expectations up front. Clear expectations also help those who are there to try. Plus when something comes up, you have already decided on how you are going to deal with it.
Have some sort of icebreaker on the first day. I frequently have students pair off and introduce each other. After everyone is finished I point out nobody died from speaking in front of the class.
If you use PowerPoint, use it effectively. I bet you can remember that one instructor who read the slides verbatim. That isn't very interesting. Despite the fact I love technology, I use the whiteboard.
When you explain concepts, use interesting studies to explain your material. Talking about obedience is one thing, showing a guy laughing hysterically as he shocks someone during the Milgram study is something else. Talking about the bystander effect is one thing, telling Kitty Genovese's story is another. Depending on where you are teaching you might not be able to, but Robot Chicken explains the 5 stages of grief as well anyone. There was another thread about teaching psych on AskMeta that suggested classically conditioning people with lemonade and a dog clicker (or at least I use a dog clicker). I use that every semester and students enjoy it. You could also do CC by shooting a student with a squirt gun.
You won't have time to cover everything you want to. Don't stress about it. Cover the major points.
Don't create extra work for yourself. If you can give scantron exams, do so. You can make multiple choice questions as easy or as difficult as you want.
Not everyone is going to care about your class. You can't do anything about that. But some of them will. Remember that.
You will get many off the wall questions. "I don't know but we can sure find out" is a completely acceptable answer.
K8t's link is fantastic.
Good luck! I am always happy to chat about teaching. Drop me a metamail if you have anything else.
posted by Silvertree at 9:57 AM on August 4, 2010
Oh yeah, the Stroop test and "gorilla and the basketball" video dealing with inattentional blindness are also fun to use.
posted by Silvertree at 9:58 AM on August 4, 2010
posted by Silvertree at 9:58 AM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: Many good suggestions above. I agree with the "don't spend too much time", but spend enough time to figure out if you like it. If you do, time spent teaching, and improving your teaching (whether through teaching other courses, presenting at teaching conferences, etc) won't necessarily be a waste of time. If you want a job at a teaching centered place, they want to see that you have done teaching, and are good at it.
I teach intro psych, and have tons and tons of materials. I would recommend checking out a few of the textbooks, even if you are using the Myers (which is a good one). You can probably get an examination copy or two, especially if you are the instructor of record. The Gray is good, and the Dans (Schacter, Wegner, Gilbert) has some good parts too. They often come with plenty of videos, instructor resources, etc.
If you memail me, I would be more than happy to share my materials (syllabi, assignments, videos, etc). I have also worked at a teaching resource center at a large R1 university, so I have a bunch of general TA advice stuff if you are interested.
Finally, you could check out various fun links, and youtubes on my delicious tags:
Psychology: http://delicious.com/criener/psych
General Psych (Psych 200 at our college) : http://delicious.com/criener/200
Teaching: http://delicious.com/criener/teaching
posted by cogpsychprof at 10:49 AM on August 4, 2010
I teach intro psych, and have tons and tons of materials. I would recommend checking out a few of the textbooks, even if you are using the Myers (which is a good one). You can probably get an examination copy or two, especially if you are the instructor of record. The Gray is good, and the Dans (Schacter, Wegner, Gilbert) has some good parts too. They often come with plenty of videos, instructor resources, etc.
If you memail me, I would be more than happy to share my materials (syllabi, assignments, videos, etc). I have also worked at a teaching resource center at a large R1 university, so I have a bunch of general TA advice stuff if you are interested.
Finally, you could check out various fun links, and youtubes on my delicious tags:
Psychology: http://delicious.com/criener/psych
General Psych (Psych 200 at our college) : http://delicious.com/criener/200
Teaching: http://delicious.com/criener/teaching
posted by cogpsychprof at 10:49 AM on August 4, 2010
Before I started TA'ing, I received answergrape's "be like March" advice, though in slightly different terms. ("Be a hardass up front, because you can always ease off later. If you start out easy, you can't become a hardass later.") I tried to follow it, but I had a hard time insisting on the course rules when put on the spot by a student who had a sob story or a seemingly good reason why I should make an exception for them. After one semester of horrible classroom discipline, I spent a few semesters relying on a deferral technique: any time I was asked to bend the rules, excuse late work, etc., I would tell the student that I needed to "consider it" or "ask the professor" or "look into the possibility," and I would promise to email them about it. That would buy me a few hours to collect my wits and weigh the issue. It also prevented other students from overhearing the resolution and claiming later "You let so-and-so turn in their paper late, so you should let me, too." After a few semesters I gained the experience needed to be able to answer on the spot more regularly, and the self-confidence to refuse student requests gracefully.
Setting clear expectations is very, very important. Tell students not only what you expect them NOT to do (whether in matters of discipline or academic work--don't come to class late, don't use X logical fallacy in your essay), but what you expect them to do WELL (listen when other students are speaking; support your claims with reasoning and evidence). Let them know what they can expect from you, too--for instance, "I will generally answer your emails within 24 hours. I'll answer faster if I can, but you should never rely on getting a response in less than 24 hours."
Praise is good. I think a lot of starting TAs (myself included) fall into the mistake of only telling students what they've done wrong, and assuming that no comment = you're doing it right. After a few semesters I figured out that it helps a lot if you let students know when they're on the right track, preferably with specific information about what they're doing right. ("You've chosen very relevant examples for your evidence" or "You did a good job of acknowledging Fellow Student's point and turning it into a new question.")
Small-group work/discussion is great. Gets more people talking/thinking than whole-group discussion. Just be sure to assign a specific question or task and demand a well-defined output. Not just "get together and discuss the chapter we read for today," but "get together and make a list of five ways that the X model of human psychology differs from the Y model that we read about last week." (Or whatever . . . I'm making this up since I never took a psych class.)
posted by Orinda at 11:52 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
Setting clear expectations is very, very important. Tell students not only what you expect them NOT to do (whether in matters of discipline or academic work--don't come to class late, don't use X logical fallacy in your essay), but what you expect them to do WELL (listen when other students are speaking; support your claims with reasoning and evidence). Let them know what they can expect from you, too--for instance, "I will generally answer your emails within 24 hours. I'll answer faster if I can, but you should never rely on getting a response in less than 24 hours."
Praise is good. I think a lot of starting TAs (myself included) fall into the mistake of only telling students what they've done wrong, and assuming that no comment = you're doing it right. After a few semesters I figured out that it helps a lot if you let students know when they're on the right track, preferably with specific information about what they're doing right. ("You've chosen very relevant examples for your evidence" or "You did a good job of acknowledging Fellow Student's point and turning it into a new question.")
Small-group work/discussion is great. Gets more people talking/thinking than whole-group discussion. Just be sure to assign a specific question or task and demand a well-defined output. Not just "get together and discuss the chapter we read for today," but "get together and make a list of five ways that the X model of human psychology differs from the Y model that we read about last week." (Or whatever . . . I'm making this up since I never took a psych class.)
posted by Orinda at 11:52 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
i'm awful at names, but really valued when my teachers learned mine. at the start of every class, for just september, they had to say their name and one thing about their week. i get that this is 100% cheese, but because they were being forced to do it by me, they could kind of get into it ;) and shared more and more intimate/funny things as the weeks went on. also, i dubbed it talk-in-3rd-person month, so if they wanted to make a comment, they had to do it in the 3rd person, so i could hear their name again. it was pretty funny.
cheesy, yes. did it get them to loosen up with each other? totally. did a bunch of them make friends with each other? yeah! it was nice. but there was another reason for all of this, which they were aware of...
at the end of september, i got put through the name test. they were allowed to leave one minute early for every name i guessed correctly, and double that if i got every single one right. so i was motivated, and so were they ;) it sounds really corny, and, well, it is -- but it ended up being really fun. it was cute having them cheer me on so emphatically, and that they all knew each other's names as well. it made the whole space really comfortable and fun. i never let them out early other than that or ever cancelled classes, so it was a nice treat for them (and me!).
posted by crawfo at 12:18 PM on August 4, 2010 [3 favorites]
cheesy, yes. did it get them to loosen up with each other? totally. did a bunch of them make friends with each other? yeah! it was nice. but there was another reason for all of this, which they were aware of...
at the end of september, i got put through the name test. they were allowed to leave one minute early for every name i guessed correctly, and double that if i got every single one right. so i was motivated, and so were they ;) it sounds really corny, and, well, it is -- but it ended up being really fun. it was cute having them cheer me on so emphatically, and that they all knew each other's names as well. it made the whole space really comfortable and fun. i never let them out early other than that or ever cancelled classes, so it was a nice treat for them (and me!).
posted by crawfo at 12:18 PM on August 4, 2010 [3 favorites]
There is a lot of great advice here. I have been teaching intro courses for 4 years now.
Clear expectations are great, letting limits for yourself are great (You are in graduate school to learn and do research, not to teach.)
One thing that I haven't seen, and that I promise you will encounter, is plagiarism. It turns out that many students have no idea what plagiarism actually is in this world of copy and paste. You should go over what you consider plagiarism, what your policies are, etc BEFORE you encounter it. Again, here is the clear expectations thing. Front loading your class is expectations and a plan makes life easier for everyone involved.
I would write more, except for one thing. I have to finish grading for the class i am teaching. Grading may be the most miserable academic task ever. Be sure that you have clear rubrics that your students have access to. That makes your life easy, because then you can clearly point out what they did wrong, and they know exactly what is expected of them. Also, don't get behind. I am behind right now, and the stack does nothing but keep growing...
Finally, in a classroom management vein, check out an article called "building a better teacher" in the NY times magazine, a few months ago. They explore "Lemov's Taxonomy" a compendium of 49 extremely effective teaching techniques.
Really finally, have fun.
posted by rockindata at 12:31 PM on August 4, 2010
Clear expectations are great, letting limits for yourself are great (You are in graduate school to learn and do research, not to teach.)
One thing that I haven't seen, and that I promise you will encounter, is plagiarism. It turns out that many students have no idea what plagiarism actually is in this world of copy and paste. You should go over what you consider plagiarism, what your policies are, etc BEFORE you encounter it. Again, here is the clear expectations thing. Front loading your class is expectations and a plan makes life easier for everyone involved.
I would write more, except for one thing. I have to finish grading for the class i am teaching. Grading may be the most miserable academic task ever. Be sure that you have clear rubrics that your students have access to. That makes your life easy, because then you can clearly point out what they did wrong, and they know exactly what is expected of them. Also, don't get behind. I am behind right now, and the stack does nothing but keep growing...
Finally, in a classroom management vein, check out an article called "building a better teacher" in the NY times magazine, a few months ago. They explore "Lemov's Taxonomy" a compendium of 49 extremely effective teaching techniques.
Really finally, have fun.
posted by rockindata at 12:31 PM on August 4, 2010
Decide your goals. It may appear obvious, but the goals of a class can be variable, and can include one or more of:
* knowledge transfer. If so, make sure they learn whatever it is you want them to know
* finding good researchers (to work in your lab, or to destroy, because they're rivals)
* weeding out for other courses
* abstract vs. practical
* fostering critical thinking skills
Each of these has different techniques. For me personally, as a introductory biostats TA, I had only a few BIG GOALS:
* they aren't biostatisticians
* they should be able to see through obvious BS using numbers
* reducing their math phobia
* data has CENTRALITY and VARIATION, the rest is details
* formulas belong in books (for them!)
* simpler is better, in stats. clouding numbers in complex analysis is probably a Bad Sign
Those goals implied things:
* tests were open book, and relied on thinking and intuition rather than formula details
* homework answers were available throughout the course. If they wanted to cheat, and copied the answers verbatim, I would know, and I was vicious about it. Having them be open allowed people to work ahead who wanted to, and the jerks were still jerks :)
I also tend to like big projects that build throughout the semester, connected data sets, etc. Physiology provides ready examples of this. Bring in model feet of different animals (or real ones!), and let them do science, and make them explain why they're different!
Nthing the advice about not letting it be a time sink!
Also, a beer[1] with grading does wonders!
[1] sub Drambouie, Bailey's, Wine for beer as appropriate.
posted by gregglind at 1:10 PM on August 4, 2010
* knowledge transfer. If so, make sure they learn whatever it is you want them to know
* finding good researchers (to work in your lab, or to destroy, because they're rivals)
* weeding out for other courses
* abstract vs. practical
* fostering critical thinking skills
Each of these has different techniques. For me personally, as a introductory biostats TA, I had only a few BIG GOALS:
* they aren't biostatisticians
* they should be able to see through obvious BS using numbers
* reducing their math phobia
* data has CENTRALITY and VARIATION, the rest is details
* formulas belong in books (for them!)
* simpler is better, in stats. clouding numbers in complex analysis is probably a Bad Sign
Those goals implied things:
* tests were open book, and relied on thinking and intuition rather than formula details
* homework answers were available throughout the course. If they wanted to cheat, and copied the answers verbatim, I would know, and I was vicious about it. Having them be open allowed people to work ahead who wanted to, and the jerks were still jerks :)
I also tend to like big projects that build throughout the semester, connected data sets, etc. Physiology provides ready examples of this. Bring in model feet of different animals (or real ones!), and let them do science, and make them explain why they're different!
Nthing the advice about not letting it be a time sink!
Also, a beer[1] with grading does wonders!
[1] sub Drambouie, Bailey's, Wine for beer as appropriate.
posted by gregglind at 1:10 PM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: FWIW, in a few weeks I'll be teaching my department's TA training course, so let me welcome you to the field of college pedagogy. As far as I'm concerned, it's some of the most important and fulfilling work you'll probably ever do, if you approach it in a planful manner and with a constructive attitude (both of which your question already suggests you have).
Some basic sources you'll want to become familiar with:
- Robert Boice's Advice for New Faculty Members holds equally true for new TAs, since he deals with processes of scholarly writing and professional development as well as teaching, important challenges new grad students also face. Plus, Boice is a behaviorist psychologist who approaches these issues empirically, with a ton of data about the practices and attitudes that distinguish success teachers and scholars. Bottom line: common strategies and attitudes carry across all three areas, and this stuff can be learned, if you make the commitment.
- John Bean's Engaging Ideas: The Professor's Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom pretty much lives up to its name. As a psych student, you'll appreciate Bean's attention to how students think about academic work as a basis for how instructors can adapt to the needs of this audience.
- Barbara Walvoord's Effective Grading: A Tool for Learning and Assessment is worth knowing about, even if your responsibilities won't include actual assessment of student work at first. Academics tend to be afraid of what they don't understand, and most haven't a clue about grading, despite being responsible for it all the time. Once you grasp some of the basics, assessing students' work becomes a lot less scary as well as an opportunity to promote genuine learning.
- Beyond the important technical matters above, read Parker Palmer's The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life. As a psych student, you'll probably notice quickly, if you haven't already, that, generally speaking, academics don't do emotion very well at all - in fact they tend to suck at it. There are a bunch of reasons why, including issues of basic temperament, the power dynamics of modern higher education, as well as some profound misunderstandings about the nature of the work faculty actually do with students. In contrast, suffice to say, Parker really gets it, and his book captures the profound stakes at play whenever we take on the role of a teacher, which is why this kind of work brings risks and opportunities like almost no other, despite how some academics choose to talk about the experience...
... which brings me to a final point: Since you're just starting out, play constant attention to the sorts of attitudes and mindsets you encounter in grad school, especially when it comes to talk about teaching and learning. That is, more concretely, when people start talking like this:
TAing is something that you have to do in order to get your degree paid for.
It is also the biggest time suck if you let it be.
stay the fuck away from them, for at least two reasons: 1) they're simply mistaken, as the sources above document, and 2) folks with these kinds of attitudes pretty much don't make as faculty over the long term. The system has ways of scoping out such attitudes and, despite how brilliant or sophisticated they might seem, grad students/junior faculty who talk/think like this mysteriously don't end up making the cut over the long haul, although as American higher education enters an era in which student learning increasingly affects the bottom line for campuses of all types, there's really not much mystery about it at all.
Anyway, here's to the students you'll soon meet and the future you'll make for yourself going forward - there's a lot worse jobs to have in this world!
posted by 5Q7 at 1:14 PM on August 4, 2010 [5 favorites]
Some basic sources you'll want to become familiar with:
- Robert Boice's Advice for New Faculty Members holds equally true for new TAs, since he deals with processes of scholarly writing and professional development as well as teaching, important challenges new grad students also face. Plus, Boice is a behaviorist psychologist who approaches these issues empirically, with a ton of data about the practices and attitudes that distinguish success teachers and scholars. Bottom line: common strategies and attitudes carry across all three areas, and this stuff can be learned, if you make the commitment.
- John Bean's Engaging Ideas: The Professor's Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom pretty much lives up to its name. As a psych student, you'll appreciate Bean's attention to how students think about academic work as a basis for how instructors can adapt to the needs of this audience.
- Barbara Walvoord's Effective Grading: A Tool for Learning and Assessment is worth knowing about, even if your responsibilities won't include actual assessment of student work at first. Academics tend to be afraid of what they don't understand, and most haven't a clue about grading, despite being responsible for it all the time. Once you grasp some of the basics, assessing students' work becomes a lot less scary as well as an opportunity to promote genuine learning.
- Beyond the important technical matters above, read Parker Palmer's The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life. As a psych student, you'll probably notice quickly, if you haven't already, that, generally speaking, academics don't do emotion very well at all - in fact they tend to suck at it. There are a bunch of reasons why, including issues of basic temperament, the power dynamics of modern higher education, as well as some profound misunderstandings about the nature of the work faculty actually do with students. In contrast, suffice to say, Parker really gets it, and his book captures the profound stakes at play whenever we take on the role of a teacher, which is why this kind of work brings risks and opportunities like almost no other, despite how some academics choose to talk about the experience...
... which brings me to a final point: Since you're just starting out, play constant attention to the sorts of attitudes and mindsets you encounter in grad school, especially when it comes to talk about teaching and learning. That is, more concretely, when people start talking like this:
TAing is something that you have to do in order to get your degree paid for.
It is also the biggest time suck if you let it be.
stay the fuck away from them, for at least two reasons: 1) they're simply mistaken, as the sources above document, and 2) folks with these kinds of attitudes pretty much don't make as faculty over the long term. The system has ways of scoping out such attitudes and, despite how brilliant or sophisticated they might seem, grad students/junior faculty who talk/think like this mysteriously don't end up making the cut over the long haul, although as American higher education enters an era in which student learning increasingly affects the bottom line for campuses of all types, there's really not much mystery about it at all.
Anyway, here's to the students you'll soon meet and the future you'll make for yourself going forward - there's a lot worse jobs to have in this world!
posted by 5Q7 at 1:14 PM on August 4, 2010 [5 favorites]
One more for the power of a really comprehensive and well-thought-out syllabus.
I have worked as a TA; I also acted as a student representative on an academic panel that reviewed grievances filed by students against professors.
In virtually every case my panel reviewed, the problem was the result of a misunderstanding between an instructor and a student about the ground rules of the class (grading criteria, late work, excused absences, collaboration on projects, etc.).
A long, detailed, comprehensive syllabus insulates an instructor from "you never told us" complaints.
posted by monkey.pie.baker at 1:41 PM on August 4, 2010
I have worked as a TA; I also acted as a student representative on an academic panel that reviewed grievances filed by students against professors.
In virtually every case my panel reviewed, the problem was the result of a misunderstanding between an instructor and a student about the ground rules of the class (grading criteria, late work, excused absences, collaboration on projects, etc.).
A long, detailed, comprehensive syllabus insulates an instructor from "you never told us" complaints.
posted by monkey.pie.baker at 1:41 PM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: This is how I started my college teaching career too (as a grad student responsible for teaching a first-year class). I learned a lot, very quickly, often the hard way, but I found I enjoyed teaching and I learned a lot about teaching and classroom management skills (two different things). 12 years later, I am coming up to my 8th year as a full-time faculty member, and I am excited to be preparing for the fall semester and finding ways to improve my teaching.
If I think about my very first semester of teaching, here are a few things I wish I had been told:
-Since you have a reasonably small number of students, don't skip the getting-to-know-you stuff on the first day of class. The times I have skipped it due to perceived time pressures or fear that it was babyish, I regretted it. Introductions and icebreakers help students feel more comfortable with each other and with you, and also help them make connections so they can find a note-sharing buddy or a study partner.
-Like others, I have found it works best to start off firm and ease up a little later in the semester (if you want). It definitely does not work the other way around.
-Be fair, be competent, be reasonably compassionate. You can be friendly, but you're not their friend. Try to become OK with having students not liking you. Obviously it's nice if your students all like you, but it doesn't always work that way.
-I am willing to spend a lot of time with students who need help, but I also insist that they take responsibility for their own learning. I tell each set of students upfront, "You will get out of this class what you put into it. The more effort you put in, the more you will gain from this course."
-You'll find you need to spell out a lot more than you think you will. Things that are obvious to you, as a grad student, will NOT be obvious to them. This goes for both course content and academic behaviour/standards/expectations. Be as clear as you can about your expectations right away (like, in your course outline/syllabus).
-I teach English lit and composition, but I would imagine this applies across disciplines: I find students "get it" better when I link the material to things that are immediately accessible and meaningful to them. I don't consider it pandering to use analogies with popular culture or current events--it helps them put vague or abstract concepts things in context.
-I find I am most relaxed about the start of the semester when I have mapped out a schedule of lecture topics, assignments, and tests for each course I'm teaching. (For me, this is a separate document from the course outline/syllabus in which I put the course description, requirements, grading and evaluation criteria, course expectations, etc.). I give the students a copy of the schedule as well so they always know what readings they need to do for class and when assignments are due. My schedules have three columns: the first is the date of the class meeting, the second is the topic we'll be covering, and the third contains required readings, assignments that are due, and tests. I then tell them they need to be responsible for keeping track of this schedule so they know when things are due.
Good luck. Teaching can be very rewarding!
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 2:30 PM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
If I think about my very first semester of teaching, here are a few things I wish I had been told:
-Since you have a reasonably small number of students, don't skip the getting-to-know-you stuff on the first day of class. The times I have skipped it due to perceived time pressures or fear that it was babyish, I regretted it. Introductions and icebreakers help students feel more comfortable with each other and with you, and also help them make connections so they can find a note-sharing buddy or a study partner.
-Like others, I have found it works best to start off firm and ease up a little later in the semester (if you want). It definitely does not work the other way around.
-Be fair, be competent, be reasonably compassionate. You can be friendly, but you're not their friend. Try to become OK with having students not liking you. Obviously it's nice if your students all like you, but it doesn't always work that way.
-I am willing to spend a lot of time with students who need help, but I also insist that they take responsibility for their own learning. I tell each set of students upfront, "You will get out of this class what you put into it. The more effort you put in, the more you will gain from this course."
-You'll find you need to spell out a lot more than you think you will. Things that are obvious to you, as a grad student, will NOT be obvious to them. This goes for both course content and academic behaviour/standards/expectations. Be as clear as you can about your expectations right away (like, in your course outline/syllabus).
-I teach English lit and composition, but I would imagine this applies across disciplines: I find students "get it" better when I link the material to things that are immediately accessible and meaningful to them. I don't consider it pandering to use analogies with popular culture or current events--it helps them put vague or abstract concepts things in context.
-I find I am most relaxed about the start of the semester when I have mapped out a schedule of lecture topics, assignments, and tests for each course I'm teaching. (For me, this is a separate document from the course outline/syllabus in which I put the course description, requirements, grading and evaluation criteria, course expectations, etc.). I give the students a copy of the schedule as well so they always know what readings they need to do for class and when assignments are due. My schedules have three columns: the first is the date of the class meeting, the second is the topic we'll be covering, and the third contains required readings, assignments that are due, and tests. I then tell them they need to be responsible for keeping track of this schedule so they know when things are due.
Good luck. Teaching can be very rewarding!
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 2:30 PM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
I've seen arguments for and against the kind of super-comprehensive syllabus or course contract that monkey.pie.baker describes; I think there was an article in the Chronicle a while ago about experienced profs throwing out the course contracts and starting over in minimalist mode. But I think as a first-time TA, you're much safer spelling out all your expectations and the consequences if students fail to meet them.
A long, detailed list of course expectations can be difficult to go over in detail on the first day (students will be bored and you'll waste a lot of time), but if you just tell students to read the document on their own, some won't and will try to use "I didn't know" as an excuse for bad behavior later. One compromise is to hit the highlights on the first day of class and ask students to read the rest on their own, then quiz them on it, formally or informally. (I don't recommend a pop quiz, though.)
posted by Orinda at 3:52 PM on August 4, 2010
A long, detailed list of course expectations can be difficult to go over in detail on the first day (students will be bored and you'll waste a lot of time), but if you just tell students to read the document on their own, some won't and will try to use "I didn't know" as an excuse for bad behavior later. One compromise is to hit the highlights on the first day of class and ask students to read the rest on their own, then quiz them on it, formally or informally. (I don't recommend a pop quiz, though.)
posted by Orinda at 3:52 PM on August 4, 2010
Orinda raises good points about the course expectations problem. My compromise is a shortish (2-page) document of course expectations, with a large section devoted to "What is plagiarism?" with a definition, examples, and the college policies regarding academic dishonesty. I briefly go over the expectations document on the first day, ask the students to read it before next class and think of things they want me to clarify. The next class, I answer any questions they bring and then ask them to sign a document that saying they have read and understood the course outline and policies on late penalties, plagiarism, etc.
(I have mixed feelings about making students sign an expectations contract, but decided to do it after one particularly ulcer-inducing semester. It has definitely cut down on plagiarism and complaints about "I didn't know you took 10% off per day late!" If students have issues now I just pull out the contract and ask nicely why they signed it if they hadn't actually read/retained the course outline.)
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 4:30 PM on August 4, 2010
(I have mixed feelings about making students sign an expectations contract, but decided to do it after one particularly ulcer-inducing semester. It has definitely cut down on plagiarism and complaints about "I didn't know you took 10% off per day late!" If students have issues now I just pull out the contract and ask nicely why they signed it if they hadn't actually read/retained the course outline.)
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 4:30 PM on August 4, 2010
Best answer: There's some good advice here, especially 5Q7's. It's my opinion that one of the greatest failures of the US university system is that TAs and professors* with no pedagogical training and little interest in teaching as a vocation are put in charge of course planning, teaching, and assessment. Structuring a course, explaining concepts, assessing learning, and so on are all entirely different skills and absolutely do not come along, magically, hand-in-hand with the subject knowledge that grad students and professors accumulate. Yet our system is founded on the idea that they'll pick up these skills along the way. This backfires pretty badly, I think--sure, I basically sailed through college, but I'm academically inclined, and could have passed most of my classes with just books and no teachers. It was fine for me to learn from people who were like me, regardless of whether some of them had managed to figure out what they were doing in a classroom. (Even then, I struggled with a couple of classes and now realize, after courses in language pedagogy, that it wasn't entirely my fault.) Lots of other students aren't so fortunate and don't make it in their ideal major or through college at all.
I don't mean to make you feel bad about being in the position that you're in. If you read 5Q7's suggested books and links, you'll be ahead of most TAs, who either haven't given it a second thought or proceed on a mix of common sense and punitive zeal that I fear does more harm than good. (Actually, you're ahead just by asking the question!) People also get very stuck on the "Well, I never had to..." and "You shouldn't have to..." and forget that a) The students that need help and accommodations are probably not the same as you, the person who made it to grad school, for pete's sake, so don't structure your class according to what you remember of your needs! and 2) it's not about the ideal student, it's about the student in your classroom.
Anyway, a book on adult learning/pedagogical theory would also be a good choice--I don't have any recommendations because the ones I'm familiar with are specific to my field, but you can undoubtedly find some from an interesting psychological perspective that would be rewarding and useful reading.
I also recommend the blog Tomorrow's Professor (it's worth subscribing--although if you plan to go into clinical practice some of it won't apply--and reading through the archives for relevant posts).
Good luck!
*A handful of professors do have a background in pedagogy, but not many, and it tends to be restricted to certain fields (and of course a few are just naturals, but you can't count on that). Some TAs at some schools get a course in how to teach, as well. This seems to be the exception. I think this verges on criminal, and the equivalent of a master's in education ought to be required before people are let loose in classrooms. I know, dream on.
posted by wintersweet at 11:38 PM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
I don't mean to make you feel bad about being in the position that you're in. If you read 5Q7's suggested books and links, you'll be ahead of most TAs, who either haven't given it a second thought or proceed on a mix of common sense and punitive zeal that I fear does more harm than good. (Actually, you're ahead just by asking the question!) People also get very stuck on the "Well, I never had to..." and "You shouldn't have to..." and forget that a) The students that need help and accommodations are probably not the same as you, the person who made it to grad school, for pete's sake, so don't structure your class according to what you remember of your needs! and 2) it's not about the ideal student, it's about the student in your classroom.
Anyway, a book on adult learning/pedagogical theory would also be a good choice--I don't have any recommendations because the ones I'm familiar with are specific to my field, but you can undoubtedly find some from an interesting psychological perspective that would be rewarding and useful reading.
I also recommend the blog Tomorrow's Professor (it's worth subscribing--although if you plan to go into clinical practice some of it won't apply--and reading through the archives for relevant posts).
Good luck!
*A handful of professors do have a background in pedagogy, but not many, and it tends to be restricted to certain fields (and of course a few are just naturals, but you can't count on that). Some TAs at some schools get a course in how to teach, as well. This seems to be the exception. I think this verges on criminal, and the equivalent of a master's in education ought to be required before people are let loose in classrooms. I know, dream on.
posted by wintersweet at 11:38 PM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Great advice everyone! I am in the midst of working on my final draft of my syllabus this afternoon.
Wintersweet: I totally agree with you about TAing being a failure of the university system in general. Among my fellow, it splits about in half of those who love to teach (aspiring professors) and those who loath it a chore (aspiring clinicians), hence the quality of the class varies extensively depending what section a student chooses. My cohort as new teachers has received a total of three hours of training for the endeavor, which I find totally inadequate... I am still shocked that I will be in a classroom this Fall. But I guess I will just try to do the best I can with the circumstances.
I will definitely be checking the above resources, and sending this around to the rest of my cohort.
posted by amileighs at 5:40 AM on August 5, 2010
Wintersweet: I totally agree with you about TAing being a failure of the university system in general. Among my fellow, it splits about in half of those who love to teach (aspiring professors) and those who loath it a chore (aspiring clinicians), hence the quality of the class varies extensively depending what section a student chooses. My cohort as new teachers has received a total of three hours of training for the endeavor, which I find totally inadequate... I am still shocked that I will be in a classroom this Fall. But I guess I will just try to do the best I can with the circumstances.
I will definitely be checking the above resources, and sending this around to the rest of my cohort.
posted by amileighs at 5:40 AM on August 5, 2010
I taught Intro Psych at a large state school last fall (2 sections of about 45 students each). I am a little late to this question, so a lot of my answers have already been given, but definitely nthing a detailed syllabus. That way, if you are overly nice and worried about upsetting people like I am, you can use the syllabus as an excuse to enforce deadlines, rules about late assignments, etc. If someone came to me asking for an exception, I always just told them that I needed to be fair to all students and go by exactly what was on the syllabus.
One thing that I really worried about as a young, female TA was whether the students would respect me as an authority figure. Amazingly, they just will. If you ask everyone to move closer to the front of the room or split into groups or whatever, they will do it. I did dress more formally at the start of the semester and tried to lay down ground rules and not let my nerves show in class, but I never had a single problem with someone challenging my authority.
As for specifics about course material, my students loved videos and in-class demonstrations. They liked the stroop task, inattentional blindness (gorilla basketball video), optical illusions, memory tasks (they really liked the one where you give them a bunch of words related to the concept of "sleep," and they incorrectly recall the word "sleep" being on the list), and videos of old experiments (Milgram, Stanford Prison Experiment, Conformity experiments, etc.). Basically, any time you can get them to DO a mini-version of an experiment that relates to your topic or show them a video of a classic study, they seem to remember it better and enjoy it more. Seriously, if you only show one video, make it gorilla basketball. It BLOWS THEIR MINDS.
Topics that my students were especially interested in talking about in class (good for assignments, additional light reading, etc.) were the placebo effect, dreams, psych disorders, and social psych. Things that they found to be more difficult (maybe spend more time on these or find additional activities to bolster their learning) were correlation vs. causation, reliability vs. validity, and most bio-related stuff, such as neurons, vision, and hearing. However, there are usually a few Bio majors who LOVE those chapters and get really excited about them!
Please feel free to MeMail me if you have any other questions! Good luck! I think teaching Intro Psych is a lot of fun because it's like a "Greatest Hits" of Psychology, and it's a chance to get students interested in Psych and see how diverse of a field it really is!
posted by rebel_rebel at 10:41 AM on August 5, 2010
One thing that I really worried about as a young, female TA was whether the students would respect me as an authority figure. Amazingly, they just will. If you ask everyone to move closer to the front of the room or split into groups or whatever, they will do it. I did dress more formally at the start of the semester and tried to lay down ground rules and not let my nerves show in class, but I never had a single problem with someone challenging my authority.
As for specifics about course material, my students loved videos and in-class demonstrations. They liked the stroop task, inattentional blindness (gorilla basketball video), optical illusions, memory tasks (they really liked the one where you give them a bunch of words related to the concept of "sleep," and they incorrectly recall the word "sleep" being on the list), and videos of old experiments (Milgram, Stanford Prison Experiment, Conformity experiments, etc.). Basically, any time you can get them to DO a mini-version of an experiment that relates to your topic or show them a video of a classic study, they seem to remember it better and enjoy it more. Seriously, if you only show one video, make it gorilla basketball. It BLOWS THEIR MINDS.
Topics that my students were especially interested in talking about in class (good for assignments, additional light reading, etc.) were the placebo effect, dreams, psych disorders, and social psych. Things that they found to be more difficult (maybe spend more time on these or find additional activities to bolster their learning) were correlation vs. causation, reliability vs. validity, and most bio-related stuff, such as neurons, vision, and hearing. However, there are usually a few Bio majors who LOVE those chapters and get really excited about them!
Please feel free to MeMail me if you have any other questions! Good luck! I think teaching Intro Psych is a lot of fun because it's like a "Greatest Hits" of Psychology, and it's a chance to get students interested in Psych and see how diverse of a field it really is!
posted by rebel_rebel at 10:41 AM on August 5, 2010
A piece of advice that is non-specific to Psychology but germane to teaching a first in general is to remember that you do not have to be 15 weeks ahead of the class. While it helps to have the readings and course milestones plotted out, your best laid plans will go astray. Do not let that freak you out--adjust, adapt, and aspire to do better.
posted by beelzbubba at 1:25 PM on August 5, 2010
posted by beelzbubba at 1:25 PM on August 5, 2010
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posted by dorque at 7:27 AM on August 4, 2010