TAs in your large classes

TAs in your teaching team

Guidelines to set up the large class teaching by using a group of TAs:

1. Think broadly about training the teaching team
2. Recognize the different developmental stages among the TAs
3. Determine a clear organizational structure
4. Select and train the TAs
5. Communicate your expectations clearly
6. Evaluate across the semester the team work
7. Model teamwork and professional behavior

1. Think broadly about training the teaching team
- Emphasize a large definition of teaching which involves any interaction with students in the content of a course. Many times TAs think about “teaching” as standing up and lecturing. However the teaching work of a TA involves peer facilitation in working with small groups, organizing the class, dealing with discipline in the classroom, grading papers, responding to questions in office hours, responding and sending e-mails. Stress to your TAs that all work involving the course are in fact the different facets of teaching.

2. Recognize the different developmental stages among the TAs
- Consider the preparedness when making assignments for TAs. Those who have previous experience can handle more assignments and have many responsibilities compared to new TAs who need more guidance and instruction and help. Recognize that your TAs need different levels of structure, supervision, help, and guidance. Experienced TAs can take the role of teaching a lecture when new TAs feel uncomfortable even speaking in front of a small group.
- Be sensitive to age, gender, race, ethnicity aside of the teaching experience.

3. Determine a clear organizational structure
- Usually TAs share class responsibilities with the faculty member, assist the faculty in class organization, class materials, office visits, student e-mail, proctoring exams, grading papers and exams, peer facilitation, groups work coordination, lab work supervision, small section discussions, facilitate learning in break out sections and other problem solving activities.
- Decisions on organization and most appropriate structural model depends on department specifics, resources, functions that TAs need to fill, and particular faculty decisions in what concerns the course needs.

4. Select and train the TAs
- Selection and training of TAs is a very important part of working with TAs in small or large classes alike. No matter which organization model is used and what are the functions for each TA in the course several important criteria for TA selection are as following:
o Competency and direct experience with the course content
o Ability to work at different levels and in a team of instructors and TAs
o Ability to communicate with students
o Diversity of staff
o Willingness to participate in meetings, training, and weekly discussions with the instructors
- Per-semester training and Weekly meetings should provide TAs with details about the syllabus, class activities, student progress, grading issues
- A major topic for training the TAs should be concerning how to evaluate students work. A grading pan should be in place before the semester start. The use of a grading rubric is strongly advised. Using the grading rubric for the course TAs should be trained using some mock up student work so all TAs of a course be able to understand the grading requirements

5. Communicate your expectations clearly
- Always communicate high expectations for your course so that TAs understand that you are serious about your work. Involve the teaching team in setting the specific team work goals and interactions so they feel part of the team and that you are considering their needs
- Alleviate the concern that they should master perfectly the course content. Assure them that they have skills of working as a TA that you appreciate and that they have the expertise necessary and that they also learn in the process of being a TA
- If you have many TAs and also undergraduate peer facilitators it is good to set a clear structure. That will help in communication and also in the level of responsibility. For multiple TAs is always good to name a team coordinator (a TA with more experience) who will be the main contact person between you and the entire team. This way you could inform the team coordinator who will then make sure to deliver the information to the entire team, and vice versa.
- Use wiki password protected for your teaching team. There you will post the scoring rubrics for the exams, quizzes, homework and other assignments to be graded. Post on the wiki also at least one assignment that was graded by you so your TAs have a model. Post threads with your rationale when you grade the different parts. Explain in your own words your thinking process for each step of the grading rubric. In case you do not use a grading rubric then you MUST post detailed explanation about how you think when you grade an assignment. Allow your TAs to ask questions and post their reasoning on the wiki, keep a dialog and that will help the entire team and especially you (the faculty) to learn from present experience and improve your work with future teaching teams. Besides you can keep the same wiki across many semesters and improve it.

6. Evaluate across the semester the team work
- Feedback should be an ongoing part of team teaching. Your team will respond better if you stress developing versus performing, and learning versus knowing.
- Provide feedback and ask for feedback. Try to brainstorm with your team solutions to obstacles as well as to teaching goals.
- Ask everyone in your teaching team to encourage feedback from students.

7. Model teamwork and professional behavior
- You should present to the students from first day of classes your teaching team. All their names and information should be on the syllabus and they should be present in the first day. Involve them from the first day and stress to your students that you keep a close team work relationship with the teaching team and that you have weekly meetings.
- Provide diverse way to form and maintain team cohesion. It is important that student hear the same message from every member of the teaching team to not create confusion. If students observe that different TAs have different approaches or disagreements they will use these differences to create more confusion and discord in the classroom. For this reason weekly meetings and tight communication with your TAs is of major importance in teaching large classes.