Preparing graduate students to be successful teaching assistants involves more than giving them a textbook and a sample syllabus.
Yet sometimes that’s all they get. It’s the sink or swim mentality.
This fall, the Graduate School created a lifeline — not only for floundering students, but for anyone looking for more effective teaching methods. The website, ONLINE @ www.wsu.edu/~gradsch/resourcesfortas.html, is full of information, from how to set a positive tone on the first day of class to strategies for teaching a large group. The site includes links to WSU’s Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology (CTLT), as well as other useful sites created by leading universities. And best of all, it can be accessed during a midnight panic.
Lori Wiest, an associate dean in the Graduate School and associate professor in music and theater, said the website was created in response to teaching assistant (TA) requests for more online resources.
“We decided to pump that up as our first project.”
But there are other projects under way as well. Wiest, together with Gary Brown and staff at CTLT, is working to create a program of courses and portfolio assignments that would lead to a graduate teaching certificate for those TAs who want that qualification to add to their resume. Wiest expects the Faculty Senate will consider the graduate teaching certificate this spring.
As part of its efforts to improve teaching, the Graduate School is compiling information about how each graduate program handles TA training. The intent isn’t to interfere with departmental decisions, Wiest said, but to better understand what is happening so that the Graduate School can support those varied efforts.
Workshop and courses:
A graduate student workshop series, “Improving Your Teaching Performance,” is set for noon Fridays, Feb. 23, March 20 and APril 20 in Murrow 55. Contact the Graduate School ONLINE@ www.gradsch.wsu.edu.
In addition to TA courses offered by individual departments, the Graduate School offers two seminars:
*This spring, Howard Grimes, dean of the Graduate School, is teaching Univ 590, “Preparing the Future Professoriate,” 3:30-5 p.m. Thursdays in CUE 416.
*In the fall, Steve Burkett, associate dean of the Graduate School, coordinates a series of presentations by faculty and staff, “Prepartaion for College Teaching.” Contact the Graduate School for information.
