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Workshop: TAing Engineering Sections
Michael GeorgescuME Department Lead TA 2013-2014
Office: Engineering II 2211
Email: [email protected]
Tuesday September 24th, 2013
UC Santa BarbaraCampus-Wide Orientation For New TAs and Readers
Workshop: TAing Engineering Sections
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]7/27/2019 TAing Engineering Sections
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Outline for Workshop
What is a TA?
Responsibilities and Duties
- Description of Duties
- Workload
How to navigate
Office Hours
Discussion Sections
Homework & Grading
Academic Dishonesty
Your Concerns
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What is a TA? (University Definition)
A teaching assistant is a registered graduate student in full-time residence, chosenfor excellent scholarship and forpromise as a teacher, and serving an
apprenticeship under the active tutelage and supervision of a regular faculty
member.
All candidates for appointment and reappointment should be subjected to careful
review and recommendation, either by the department as a whole or by a
responsible committee.
What is a TA? (According to your Description of Duties)
A grader and recorder, an exam proctor, an office hour holder
Limited review process (if any)
- there is room for improvement here
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What is a TA? (other thoughts)
As Teaching Assistants we are the meat shield that isolates the professor and the students. At face value we are basically graders and office hour holders, but
Our dedication and enthusiasm can help set the tone for the course (we pick up slack).
We are in a position to motivate students and help them enjoy not only the specific course
material but the entire realm of mechanical engineering we are in a position to aid in their
success. (Like it or not, you are a role model)
We have a responsibility to our profession.
We have a responsibility to the Students, the Department, the University, and to the state
of California to help produce the finest engineers possible.
Consider the ASME code of ethics...
Fundamental Canon #3:
Engineers shall continue their professional development throughout their
careers and shall provide opportunities for the professional and ethical
development of those engineers under their supervision.
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Where do you fit in
Find out about yourdepartment who do you need to know.
department chair
graduate program
coordinator & assistant
undergraduate program
coordinator & assistant
new TAslead TA (if any) experienced TAs
In ME
course instructor
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TA Responsibilities & Duties
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Understanding our responsibilities/duties
According to the UC Academic Personnel Manual
The teaching assistant is responsible only for the conduction of recitation,
laboratory or quiz sections under the active direction and supervision of
a regular member of the faculty to whom final responsibility for the
courses entire instruction, including the performance of his [or her]
teaching assistants, has been assigned.
This boils down to.
Description of Duties document lets review!
Knowing what you are notresponsible for equally important.
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Description of Duties and Workload
Understanding your appointment
(check your Teaching Assistant Appointment Notification Letter visit your mailbox!)
50% appointment = 0.50 FTE (Full Time Equivalent)
25% appointment = 0.25 FTE (Full Time Equivalent)
How does your appointment translate into hours?
There is no timecard system, but
Quarterly workload = 220 hours
Average weekly workload = 20 hours
Maximum weekly workload = 40 hours
Maximum daily workload = 8 hours
You set your schedule manage your time appropriately!
Please be sure to check your first paystub to see that the monthly salary
and type of pay hrs/pct is correct.
Plan ahead and keep track of your hours
Realize that things will vary from week to week and from quarter to quarter
This is a lot of your time!
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Description of Duties and Workload (contd)
How does your appointment translate into hours?
There is no timecard system, but
Quarterly workload = 220 hours
Average weekly workload = 20 hours
Maximum weekly workload = 40 hours
Maximum daily workload = 8 hours
You set your schedule manage your time appropriately!
Plan ahead and keep track of your hours
Realize that things will vary from week to week and from quarter to quarter
This is a lot of your time!
Very Important!
Your appointment begins the first day of the quarter and ends when grades
are due to the registrarthis is AFTER the end of finals week
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What are your notresponsible for?
According to the UC Academic Personnel Manual
A teaching assistant is not responsible for the instructional content of a
course, for selection of student assignments, for planning of examinations,
or for determining the term grade for students.
You are not responsible for
Instructional content
Selection of assignments
Planning of exam
Determining term grades
However, you may be asked to
develop final copies of assignments and exams
based on rough drafts developed by the
instructor
provide input with regard to studentperformance
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Office Hours
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Office Hours
Perhaps the most regular and effective interaction you will have withstudents will be during office hours
Why?
- limited time for comments during grading of homework/exams
- you may not have a lab & discussion section
The Basics:
Scheduling
Preparedness
Running the Show
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Office Hours: Scheduling
Your thoughts?
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Office Hours: Scheduling
Work them into your schedule
- try not to schedule immediately before/after your own classes
(you will want time to prepare)
Keep in mind the needs of the students
- dont offer MON 7am or FRI 5pm hours
- consider surveying the class about when it is most convenient for them
(this limits their ability to complain about OH attendance)
Keep in mind the needs of your office mates!
- if you are going to offer OH in your office, check the schedules of those around you
and ask them if it would be inconvenient for them- consider using a classroom, conference room, or study room if possible.
Strive for professionalism - maintain regular office hours.
Its all about compromise
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Office Hours: Preparing
Your thoughts?
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Office Hours: Preparing
Before Office Hours Begin
Common sense look over problem sets and solutions before hand!
- this is especially important if you are not in charge of solutions that week
- have the solutions handy (your own, the book, etc)
- consider multiple approaches to solving the problem
Try to anticipate students questions- this will help you formulate explanations
- talk to your fellow TAs, what have been regular questions this week?
- talk to the instructor, have there been questions during lecture?
Be proactive ask students to submit questions prior to office hours
- gets students thinking about questions (and looking at them) early
- allows you more time to consider problems
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Workshop: TAing Engineering Sections
Office Hours: Running the Show
Your thoughts?
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Workshop: TAing Engineering Sections
Office Hours: Running the Show
Get to know the students- find out their names and try to remember them, once you know them use them
- get a sense of who they are (background & engineering interests),
this might help if they are struggling (direction for review, examples, etc)
Dont just be a checker
- try to let the students explain where they are having trouble, dont silently survey
their work until you find the problem.
Be inquisitive
- ask them to explain what they have tried, talk out the approach, assess whether there
is a problem with the big picture
- question their approach (even if correct), get them to think about what they are doing
Before your first office hours, brainstorm how you might interact with a student:
- are there any key questions or phrases that you could ask?
- think about how you might guide a student through a problem?
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Workshop: TAing Engineering Sections
Office Hours: Running the Show
Make students use the board & get groups of students involved Allow them to make mistakes, and help direct them to the correct approach
Stress the approach, not just the answer
- let them write out everything and try to reinforce good homework and problem
solving practices be a stickler for the basics
From Preface To the Student in Statics (J. L. Meriam)
Success in analysis depends to a surprisingly large degree on a well-
disciplined method of attack from hypothesis to conclusion where a
straight path of rigorous application of principles has been followed.
The student is urged to develop ability to represent his work in a clear,
logical, and neat manner.
From the Preface in Statics (J. L. Meriam & L. G. Kraige)
The experience of formulating problems, where reason and judgment
are developed, is vastly more important for the student than is the
manipulative exercise in carrying out the solution.
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Discussion Sections
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Discussion Sections Content
Plan your section dont assume that since you have a solution in front of you
everything will be OK.
succeeding as a TA can be as
easy as PIE. (TA Handbook)
Communicate with the instructor and find out how much control you have over
the discussion section
- are there specific problems to cover or concepts
- will you use the instructors solutions or your own
Plan: What will the objectives be?
How will they be achieved?
Implement: Performing in the classroom.Evaluate: generally taken care of by exams
Communicate and Plan early you and your students will benefit
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Discussion Sections (contd)
Choose your own style but do a good job choosing
Set the tone for your session through your attitude and actions
Any ideas?
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Discussion Sections (contd)
Choose your own style but do a good job choosing
Set the tone for your session through your attitude and actions
You will find that this practice will be invaluable when you start to give
conference talks
Be punctual to your session (just as you would OH)
Take roll and learn student names
Make eye contact and call on students
Move around, use the space available to you
Be audible, speak clearly, project to the students
Never be dismissive encourage discussion and questions
Be confident
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Discussion Sections (contd)
Choose your own style but do a good job choosing
Strive to improve your board work skills
write legibly
allow time to copylend some background/insight
return to your writing
use consistent notation
stay organized
question the students- let/make them help
emphasize important points
success as a TA is as easy as
walrus qe (Hans Mayer)
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Homework and Exam Grading
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Grading Homework & Exams
What you will find is that there is a range of responsibility when it comes to grading.
It will depend on the instructor
answer key/rubric
provided
develop answer key/rubric
with help from instructor
develop answer
key/rubric
Before you put pen to paper (students papers).
Solve the problem on your own even if you have been provided with a solution
Break down the solution into important parts
- Can we quickly brainstorm what we might consider to be important pieces of a
solution that we will look for?
Discuss grading criteria with the instructor what do they want to emphasize
Draft an answer key/rubric
Start by grading a handful of assignments to assess how well the key/rubric fits
- Use pencil so that you can modify if necessary
- Are there common errors that will require you to modify the key/rubric?
least work most work
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Grading Homework & Exams (contd)
When you are grading
Be as consistent as possible
- answer one question at a time
- try to grade blind
- check your work and refer back to your key/rubric often
Add helpful comments
- your comments should be legible
- they should help student understand where they went wrong
(and why they didnt get full credit)
- dont write a novelconsider your time
- if there is a very common issue, consider addressing it using a Gauchospace,
website, or in-class announcement
When you are done grading
Keep your rubric you may have to use it again! (e.g. dissatisfied students)
Respect the privacy of students
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Grading Homework & Exams (contd)
Provided by previous Lead TA (Trevor Marks now a Development Engineer)
Example Rubric
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Grading Homework & Exams (contd)
Or be picky about the details
+1
+1
+1+1
+1
+1
+1
+5
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Academic Dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism, etc)
It is ultimately the job of the instructor to pursue academic dishonesty cases once they
have been reportedbut there is a lot you can do.
Talk to the instructor ahead of time regarding their take on cheating and
plagiarism. What do they want you to look for on homework and exam solutions.
Be diligent in your observations and take precautions:- watch carefully during exams
- cross out blank spots on homeworks and exams to prevent writing after work
is handed back
Tell students what is not acceptable at the start of the quarter, and tell them you
are looking for copied solutions, etc. But, tell them why it doesnt benefit them to
do it.
Try to prevent it provide them with a level of help they cannot get from a
solutions manual.
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Concerns?
W k h TAi E i i S ti