Returning TAs

UBC TA Training; Community of Practice
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Facilitators: Kyle Gooderham; Shaya Golparian

This page gathers notes and thoughts about this meeting.

Facilitated activities:

Why should we offer training for returning TAs?

Help them break some bad habits

Help them assess their success

Deepen their learning

Professional Development

Challenges with Programming for Returning TAs

redundancies in the TA Training program from year to year

needing to scale up competency level

Pro D needs of returning TAs

Motivation to attend

Being able to meet the demand (esp, if you don't have enough resources)

Institutional support around teaching

Unit culture that values teaching

Needs of Returning TAs

Sample Programs for Returning TAs

Program 1

Goals of the program:

Develop mentorship/leadership skills among returning TAs.

--> Motivation - commitment to ongoing learning

Components of the program:

Returning TA Training and orientation re: mentorship (theory and skills)
Matching b/w mentor/mentee for term

consistency/relationship and match teaching environment

TA Training coordinator matches/facilitates program

Check-in CoP - "How is it going?" (for mentors)
Check-in b/w mentee-mentor
Peer review of mentoring
Ongoing feedback (between mentors; mentor-mentee; mentee-students; and faculty-mentee (if on board)

Logistics: (When? How long? Who will run the program? What's needed?)

When:

Orientation/training --> Aug (Half day/ ~ 4 hrs)

Mentee-Mentor --> term (Sept - Dec / Jan - May)

Check-in sessions --> mid-term ( ~ 2hrs)

Feedback --> ongoing

What's needed?:

FOOD

Faculty- buy-in (i.e: if TAs are paid to attend training)

Tangible incentive

getting paid for training

letter of recognition

CTLT support (re:training)

Program 2

Goals of the program:

Integrate TAship into broader Prof path
Teaching and learning/ Scholarship/Research
Novice --> Expert

Components of the program:

Mentorship Program
ProD Plan (ie: teaching portfolio)
Workshops:

Orientation session

Departmental ISW

Mentoring

Teaching Portfolio

TA dev. Plan

Team/group management

Why TA? value of TAship

Communication upstream --> advocacy

Facilitation

Lesson planning/Design

Mini-lesson practice (departmental)

Community of practice (run by GTAs)

Logistics: (When? How long? Who will run the program? What's needed?)

CTLT support

Department support

Collaboration with other departments

Program 3

Goals of the program:

Motivating and showing value of TAship --> situating in larger career goals

ensure program is applicable to their experience/tasks

Navigating competing demands (TAship/research/etc)

Components of the program:

@TA orientation - what is the value of TAship/ professional development

to new TAs: Why come back later?

showing a pathway of ProD

framing TAship position in their career

(how to choose sessions)

Reflective modules - in each session (10 min)

"how will this be used in your future career?research?"

provide focus on SKILLS --> "How would I describe on my CV?"

TAship in research/career module (for senior TAs) - end of year

(What have you developed (Skills) and what do you want to work on next year?) -- (Motivate for new sessions)

-How will you talk about your skills?

-What have you learned?

-How apply to research?

-How use in career?

-How will this appear on your CV?

-What do you want to develop further in?

-How will you identify future ProD?

Logistics: (When? How long? Who will run the program? What's needed?)

Simplified, these are modifications for Exp TAs in existing programs

Could be run with multi-departments

TAship in research/career module (for senior TAs)

offered for senior TAs and offered at the end of the year

possible shared (multi-dept)

collects reflections from each session

could include new TAs - "Along for the ride' but mostly targeting senior TAs