CET TA Training Curriculum

Combined Document

Contents

Page number:
Facilitator guide for pre-semester TA orientation session (including lesson plan) / 2
TA training course syllabus template / 8
Facilitator guide for one-semester TA training course (including lesson plans) / 15

TA Orientation Facilitator Guide

Notes

●This orientation is planned to be delivered as a one-time, three-hour session prior to the first day of classes in the semester. It does not address everything that a TA will need during their TA experience, but attempts to cover the essential topics that must be addressed before the first day of class. Other topics will be addressed in the full TA Training course curriculum.

●Providing visual support, such as simple PowerPoint slides, is recommended to help TAs follow the structure and main points of the orientation.

●Suggested essential content is provided for each part of the training, in the form of lists. Local (school or department) content for each part can be added as needed.

●Scenarios can be small-group activities. Suggested: provide TAs with scenario descriptions and ask them to discuss their specific responses/solutions. Assign a faculty member and/or experienced TA to each group to facilitate discussion. After a period of small-group discussion, have some groups share their group’s conclusions and briefly summarize the main points. Select scenarios from the appendix, or compose original scenarios.

●Times for each part are estimated.

Pre-orientation preparation
The facilitator should finalize the following action items before the start of the TA Training Orientation:
●Decide how to provide the handout materials. One option is to collate the materials in a folder and hand each TA a folder as they check in for the training. CET documents are available through the Blackboard CET TA Training Curriculum org or as downloads from the USC CET website
●Revise the provided lesson plan if your training does not follow the model of a single, 3-hour session.
●Arrange for speakers and group facilitators, if needed.
●Edit the provided PowerPoint presentation, if desired.
Module 0: Orientation Lesson Plan
Facilitator preparation
●Review lesson plan
●Review handouts
●Plan lectures for sections labeled “Deliver content” in the lesson plan
●Review scenarios and make notes on points that should be addressed
●Review PowerPoint presentation
●Secure needed materials (see list below)
Hand-out materials to provide TAs when they arrive
●Sexual Harassment policies (printed from
●CET document FERPA for TAs
●CET document TA student support decision chart
●CET document TA resources
●CET document First day of class checklist for TAs
●CET document Writing course-specific policies
●CET document A menu of discussion norms
●Scenario descriptions (see appendix)
●Instructions for accessing the online resources in the upcoming TA Training course (developed by individual academic units delivering the TA Training course)
●Graduate assistant handbook (accessed at
Materials needed for orientation session
●Room with projector and computer, if projecting material
●Check-in list of TAs
●Handout materials for TAs
●Food and drink for TAs, if desired
Welcome / 0:30
Greet participants, introduce any speakers/facilitators who will welcome the TAs. Short welcome speeches, if desired. Give basic introduction to the value of TAs and their importance to the student experience.
Agenda / 0:30
Display the general outline for the training session; explain structure, timing of breaks, locations of restrooms, etc.
Part I: TA/faculty relationship / 20:00
  1. Deliver content
  2. Responsibilities of the faculty member to the TA
  3. TA can initiate first meeting with faculty
  4. TA should defer to faculty; it’s the faculty member’s course
  5. When to ask questions of faculty, when to make decisions as TA
  6. Handling disagreements with faculty
  7. Facilitate faculty/TA scenario discussions (instruct TAs to use the referred documents in addressing the scenarios)
  8. Address any related questions, if time allows
/ 10:00
10:00
Part II: Essential policies / 40:00
  1. Deliver content
  2. The general USC educational system, semester structure, grading procedures, etc.
  3. Professionalism
  4. TA-student boundaries; friendly but not friends
  5. Sexual harassment policies (refer to handout)
  6. Accommodations and Disability Services and Programs
  7. USC resources (refer to CET document TA student support decision chart and CET document TA resources)
  8. Facilitate policy scenario discussions (instruct TAs to use the TA student support decision chart in addressing the scenarios)
  9. Deliver content
  10. FERPA (and HIPAA if necessary) (refer to CET document FERPA for TAs)
  11. Facilitate FERPA scenario discussions (instruct TAs to use the referred documents in addressing the scenarios)
  12. Address any related questions, if time allows
/ 15:00
8:00
7:00
10:00
Break / 10:00
Part III: The first day of class / 45:00
  1. Deliver content
  2. The importance of first impressions
  3. The importance of planning well for the first class
  4. The importance of attitude: excited, confident, helpful
  5. First day activity
  6. Have TAs take out the CET document First day of class checklist for TAs
  7. In groups, TAs review the document and select the five items they feel are most important. One goal of this activity is simply to have the students review the document, but with an active mind.
  8. Deliver content
  9. The importance of establishing respectful authority with students
  10. Recommendations of methods for establishing and affirming TA authority with students
  11. Introduce discussion/classroom norms. Reference CET document A menu of discussion norms.
  12. Facilitate authority scenario discussions
  13. Address any related questions, if time allows
/ 10:00
10:00
15:00
10:00
Break / 10:00
Part IV: Syllabi / 25:00
This section may be omitted if the TAs being oriented will not have an opportunity to create syllabi for their own courses or course sections.
  1. Deliver content
  2. The importance of syllabi
  3. A “contract” between student and instructor
  4. Establishes section policies
  5. Local policies on the use and contents of syllabi produced by TAs
  6. Syllabus activity
  7. Have TAs take out the CET document Writing course-specific policies
  8. Groups of TAs are assigned one of the three types of policies discussed in the document.
  9. TAs independently compose a policy (as assigned) for their specific course/section, using the document as a resource and in discussion with their groupmates.
  10. Volunteers read their policies and/or ask related questions that can be answered by the facilitator or other participants.
  11. Address any related questions, if time allows
/ 10:00
15:00
Closing / 19:00
Discuss the TA Training course, including
●Class locations and times
●Attendance requirements/expectations
●Introduction to the flipped educational model
●Introduction of how to access the TA Training course materials; refer to the how-to sheet created by the school/department
●Important first-day information, such as how to get the classroom door open if locked, how to get assistance with classroom technology, and whom to contact in the school/department with questions
●Pressing questions from the TAs
Thank participants, and release / 16:00
3:00
Total session time / 170 min

APPENDIX: Scenarios

Faculty/TA scenarios

Scenario 1: In discussion section one day, a student asks you to show her how to answer a particular question. You work through the question with the student, and the student says that she agrees with your answer. The student then pulls out an exam that had been graded by the course instructor. The student came up with the same answer you showed her, but only received a grade of 7 points out of 10. You look over the student’s answer, and it seems mostly correct to you. A detail was omitted that the student considered obvious. But there was nothing tricky or difficult about the omitted detail, so you probably would have given that answer 9 points out of 10. The student tells you she has already talked with the professor and explained her reasoning, but the professor refused to change the grade.

What do you tell the student?

Scenario 2: While you are leading your session, several students start to complain that they do not understand the instructor’s explanations during lecture. One of the students asks you if you could devote your sessions to explaining the material again, so that they can understand it all better.

How do you respond to the students?

Policy scenarios [Note: These scenarios have required responses that can be found in the CET document TA decision chart for supporting students]

Scenario 3: A student approaches you at the end of class and says that he has a learning disability, so he will need to be allowed extra time to complete a course assignment. How should you proceed, and what would you say to the student?

Scenario 4: A student comes to your office hours to talk about how they are doing in class and ends up disclosing that they are having trouble in class because they are having a personal crisis and have been depressed recently.

What are the recommended action steps for supporting this student, and what would you say to the student?

Scenario 5: You received the following email from a student.

Dear ___ (TA),

My name is Sam, and I’m a sophomore on a scholarship that requires me to maintain at least a 3.0 GPA. But right now I have a “C” in your class, and I stand a chance of not continuing next semester.

Is there a chance at all for me to schedule an appointment with you today to see if there is any possible way that my grade can be reconsidered? Is there any extra credit I can do to improve my grade and save my scholarship? I don’t know what else to do. If I don’t maintain a 3.0 for my scholarship, I will have to drop out of SC! My parents can’t afford the tuition, and I already have a part-time job.

Thank you for your consideration. And may God bless you for any help you can give me!

Sincerely, Sam Someone

How will you respond to Sam?

FERPA scenarios

Scenario 6: A student’s mother calls you on the phone, explaining that you are their son’s TA and they wish to discuss a poor grade that their son received from you recently.

What do you say to the parent?

Scenario 7: One of your fellow TAs decides that the most efficient way to hand back graded papers is to leave them at the end of class on a table in the back of the room and allow students to find and pick up their own paper. This way, time is not lost during class in handing back the papers individually. The TA recommends that you follow this same strategy.

How do you respond to your fellow TA?

Authority scenarios

Scenario 8: In your first semester as a TA you are assigned to a course related to your field but not one in which you consider yourself a specialist. Your discussion section has generally been going well, but the behavior of a particular student begins to be a problem. She seems unhappy with you as a TA and starts to challenge your authority right in the classroom. On one occasion, she openly rejects your explanation of a particular phenomenon and tells you in front of the class that your explanation is “simply wrong”! And she even presents an alternative explanation to the class. Because you do not know enough about the subject area, you are not sure whether her explanation is correct. During the past few weeks, she has become more and more combative in her attitude, and you worry it is making other students lose their confidence in you.

How do you address this behavior in a manner respectful of the student that also preserves your authority in the classroom?

Scenario 9: During a classroom discussion, one student uses a term that many people find offensive. Although it does not appear that the student intended to offend anyone, you see many shocked faces and a few gasps from other students in the room.

How can you address this issue without shaming the student who spoke or minimizing the offense taken by other students?

1

NOTE: This syllabus follows the USC Curriculum Office Syllabus Template and requires editing. Please add the specific details relevant to your TA Training course/program. Items in particular need of editing are indicated in red.

Course ID and Title

Units:2

Term—Day—Time:This class meets once a week for 2 hours

IMPORTANT:

The general formula for contact hours is as follows:

Courses must meet for a minimum of one 50-minute session per unit per week over a 15-week semester. Standard fall and spring sessions (001) require a final summative experience during the University scheduled final exam day and time.

(Please refer to the Contact Hours Referenceguide.)

Location: Physical address and/or course-related URLs, etc.

Instructor:

Office: Physical or virtual address

Office Hours: (General guideline: 1 weekly office hour for each 4 unit class taught. Office hours are not to be calculated in “contact hours.”)

Contact Info: Email, phone number (office, cell), Skype, etc. Timeline for replying to emails/calls (i.e. within 48 hours).

Teaching Assistant:

Office: Physical or virtual address

Office Hours:

Contact Info: Email, phone number (office, cell), Skype, etc.

IT Help:Group to contact for technological services, if applicable.

Hours of Service:

Contact Info: Email, phone number (office, cell), Skype, etc.

1

Course Description[select the TA roles covered]

This course is for graduate student teaching assistants (TAs) performing various roles including course section or lab leader, discussion leader, reader/grader, and lab manager and provides training on university-wide policies and procedures, school-specific requirements, and best practices for being an effective TA. The course will assist TAs in managing relationships with students, other TAs, and the instructor, planning and evaluating sections/labs, and practicing teaching skills. TAs are encouraged to share their triumphs and challenges for collaborative strategizing to improve the student experience.

Learning Objectives[select the Learning Objectives covered]

By the end of this course, TAs will be able to

  1. Create section/lab norms and policies
  2. Plan efforts to support diversity and inclusion
  3. Set goals to improve presentations and public speaking
  4. Design assessments and grading rubrics
  5. Select appropriate pedagogical strategies and technology based on learning theory
  6. Select appropriate technology for teaching
  7. Devise strategies for addressing bias incidents in the classroom
  8. Conduct peer and self evaluation
  9. Add other learning objectives to address local added content

Prerequisite(s): TA Orientation

Co-Requisite(s): course(s) that must be taken prior to or simultaneously

Concurrent Enrollment: Currently a TA for at least one course

Recommended Preparation: course work or background that is advisable, not mandatory

1

Course Notes

Grading Type, if other than the assumed letter grade (i.e., Credit No-Credit or Numeric and/or In Progress). Note any unique characteristics of the course of operating procedure. Is the course Web-Enhanced (i.e. Blackboard), Blended or Online? If copies of lecture slides and other class information will be posted on Blackboard, note that here. If multimedia or technology-enhanced learning strategies will be used, please describe them here.

Technological Proficiency and Hardware/Software Required

If applicable, provide details of accessing course if not in a traditional classroom setting.

Provide details where students can acquire required hardware/software (i.e., loaner laptop)

TAs will need to use their USC login and password to access Blackboard.

Required Readings and Supplementary Materials

Required readings and supplementary materials. Where to access/purchase.

Required readings [add others if desired/required]

Lang (2008), “On course: a week-by-week guide to your first semester of college teaching” (pp. 196-212)

Available as an e-book through USC Libraries.

Other course materials, such as required video viewings, will be posted on Blackboard.

Description and Assessment of Assignments

What kind of work is to be done and how should it be completed, i.e. how the learning outcome will be assessed. Include any assessment and grading rubrics to be used.

This course follows a flipped model. Students are required to complete readings/video viewings before meeting in-person. Students will apply concepts from readings/viewings during class time to accomplish in-class work.

In-Class Work: Students will complete and submit work during class time and earn credit for it toward their in-class work grade, which functions as a record of both attendance and participation. Examples of in-class work activities that may be assigned include small-group tasks, open-notes quizzes, and polls. Your lowest 2 scores on in-class work will be dropped.

Grading Breakdown

Including the above detailed assignments, how will students be graded overall? Participation (In-class Work) should be no more than 15%, unless justified for a higher amount. All must total 100%.

Grading Scale (Example) [If the course is credit/no credit, explain how a score of credit is earned]

Course final grades will be determined using the following scale

A95-100

A-90-94

B+87-89

B83-86

B-80-82

C+77-79

C73-76

C-70-72

D+67-69

D63-66

D-60-62

F59 and below

Assignment Rubrics

Include assignmentrubrics to be used, if any.

Assignment Submission Policy

Describe how, and when, assignments are to be submitted.

Grading Timeline

Announce a standard timeline for grading and feedback.

Additional Policies

Add any additional policies that students should be aware of: late assignments, missed classes, attendance expectations, use of technology in the classroom, etc.