FEd November 1994 Newsletter - Letters
FORUM ON EDUCATION
November
1994
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LETTERS
Preparation of teaching assistants
Our department at Cornell has two aspects to its preparation of teaching
assistants. The first is an intensive two and one-half day session
before student orientation, which is run by the Director of Undergraduate
studies and four to six "facilitators" (upper level graduate students
with an interest in the education process). This workshop is coupled
with classroom visitations and video-taping during their first semester
as teachers. There is certainly a great deal of overlap between the
topics covered in the University of Maine's meetings (ed's note: see FEd
news, Summer 1994, p. 6) and our intensive workshop, and I commend
that department on integrating the introduction to teaching skills
and teaching philosophy with an introduction to their colleagues and
peers.
One aspect which was not mentioned in the article which we emphasize
is practice at the blackboard, referred to as "microteaching." Each
new teaching assistant has two turns at the blackboard, each lasting
15-20 minutes; they have had the evening before to prepare. In the
first microteaching session they present a problem and its solution
to the "class" which consists of fellow incoming TAs and a facilitator.
In the second, the TA is to respond to questions from the class about
a homework assignment of several typical problems. In both cases, there
is time for feedback immediately after the TA has been at the blackboard.
Without question, the incoming TAs find these microteaching sessions
the most useful aspect of the workshop. I suggest that all efforts
trying to bring incoming graduate students into the world of teaching
incorporate them into their program.
Richard S. Galik
Professor of Physics
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853-2501
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