Training While Teaching
Our goal is to help gradute students learn in situ, or in place, while they are actively teaching discussion sections in Biology. Our resources are both practical (whom to contact for keys) and pedagogical (how to encourage small-group participation).
These resources are designed to help new faculty, course coordinators, and TA mentors train their TAs.
If you are a TA looking for some teaching help and ideas, go to our resources page.
Choose a link:
Before Class Begins
Preparing for Discussions
Different universities have different procedures for preparing for a large lecture course with multiple discussions. We post the required steps here as a practical help for UCI faculty, and as frame of reference for those at other institutions.
Discussion Preparation Overview
We have most recently had discussions and the discussion TAs led by a "Head TA," who had taught the discussions in the past and has good leadership and organizational skills. Here is the UCI-specific "Head TA Handbook" given to these TAs.
Head TA Handbook
The Reference Binder
Discussion leaders can hit the ground running if they know precisely what their job duties are and whom to contact with any problems. In our training, we also use this binder to reinforce the idea of active learning by providing sample activities and journal articles that encourage student engagement. Create a resource binder and have discussion leaders keep the important papers inside. Here are samples of our starting binder inserts to give you an idea of how to begin.
Contact list
Meeting schedule with location, dates, times, topics, assignments(a sample is given)
TA Responsibilities
Activity pack (more are available online, but these are printed for the binder)
Reference list for articles on Active Learning
Four articles on active learning (we include the full articles)
Training Activities
If you have an opportunity to meet with discussion leaders before the term begins, use these activities to prepare them for teaching.
Microteaching (Very highly recommended, even if there isn't time for anything else)
Icebreaker activity (good for a first activity during training)
Reference Binder scavenger hunt (combination icebreaker and binder exploration)
Balancing Teaching and Research (time management while teaching)
How to design a discussion syllabus (and why discussion leaders need one)
Demographics of the UCI Student (and a group game technique)
The Early Weeks
The first few weeks is the most nerve-wracking. And even if new discussion leaders are not bothered by speaking in front of students, they now realize that "me talking" does not equal "students learning" in the way they thought it would. It's time for discussion leaders to stop lecturing and develop ways to help students learn on their own and from each other.
Top 10 Misconceptions about Teaching
Teaching based on VARK learning (including online survey and quiz -- UCI specific)
Building an excellent worksheet (getting away from 10 pages of simple vocabulary)
Exam Prep
Most discussion leaders have to write quizzes. They may also be asked to help write the lecture exam. Everyone's TAKEN a bad exam, but do discussion leaders know how to write a GOOD one?
How to write a bad exam (and then how to make it a good one)
Creating a good exam review game
After the Basics
Now that you've got discussions humming along, here are some higher-level skills and administrative details for discussion leaders to learn.
Dealing with evaluations
FERPA Rules Quiz
Concept Mapping
Administrative Tasks
As a faculty member, you or your TAs may be dividing up the administration of a large class. Here are "white papers" and links for several common tasks.
Exam Prep and Grading:
- Creating a Seating Chart with special seating (lefties, front row, etc).
-- with a seating file for PSLH
-- note: use student names on posted charts, not IDs
-- General Rapid Return information
iClicker Instructions:
Other Tasks:
- Grading online quizzes and making a quiz gradebook
- University shredding services for the end of the quarter - use for all student paperwork with names and IDs (requires account and fund)
The Teaching Lab
Our grant has provided us with space to train graduate students and undergraduates. We provide resources to help teachers and students build demonstrations and design activities.
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