My first semester, as a UTA, was an absolute whirlwind of an experience. Having taken ENGL101 and watching UTAs before me, definitely gave me some idea of what to expect, but I encountered many surprises, both pleasant and not-so-pleasant, along my journey. Luckily enough, I had mentors, such as Lyra Hillard, Professor Pleydell, and my ENGL388V peers, to guide me. Being a UTA is not an easy task. The four credits simply are not just handed to you. When you sign up to be a teaching assistant, you dedicate your free time to the education, improvement, achievement, and success of other students. This sounds overwhelming, and at times it is, but the experience is, without a doubt, one of the most rewarding.
When Professor Pleydell approached me about being a teaching assistant for her course, I was absolutely thrilled. I loved the idea of taking on a leadership position and sharing my love for her ENGL101 course with other students. Come fall, however, I realized I had a lot to learn, in order to become the UTA I wanted to be for my students. Thankfully, this is exactly what the ENGL388V course is dedicated to. I picked up countless amounts of teaching tips and skills from ENGL388V. I gathered a large majority of my information from the readings, which Lyra so kindly shared with us. One particularly prominent article I read was “Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education”. I was fond of this piece because it got straight to the point, listing seven ways instructors can improve the undergraduate education experience. I found these seven principles to be very reflective of the principles Lyra had established for my internship as a UTA. For example, the seven principles lists instructors should “respect diverse talents and ways of learning”. Our syllabus states UTAs should be able to “analyze how classroom applications of scholarship can or should account for differences in the gender, class, racial, ethnic, linguistic, and sexual orientation of class members and instructors”. Both of these points emphasize being inclusive of all students. Reading this article with the class goals in mind allowed me to recognize the importance of inclusion in my classroom. This was a recurring theme throughout the semester, and I found myself constantly thinking of ways to be as accommodating as possible for my students with learning disabilities etc.
Another piece I found myself referring to throughout the semester was the article “Writing as a Process Not a Product” by Donald Murry. This article emphasized searching for signs that a student was learning how to write better, not just submit higher grade papers. This article helped me focus on achieving the goal of articulating the processes required to bring about a successful outcome in the classroom. I felt inspired to be a mentor for my students throughout the writing process. To just have students hand me rough drafts for editing was simply not enough. I met with my students during office hours to share advice about how to better organize thoughts so their work could flow more smoothly. I was constantly messaging and emailing students asking for updates on their papers, which I am sure annoyed them endlessly, but was still helpful nonetheless. Checking in on students was tiring and felt like a never ending process, but I saw large improvement in the students who communicated with me versus those who never responded.
Finally, another piece that influenced and inspired my teaching is “Metacognition and Student Learning” by James Lang. I saw an overlap with the message of this article and my Psychology 100 course. The article describes how metacognition, which I delved deeply into in psychology, is essential for student success. A student who employs metacognition is aware of how prepared or unprepared they are for an assignment or exam. As a student it is important to have this level of awareness so you can achieve success in your courses. Without it, a student cannot gage how far behind or ahead they are. Professor Pleydell and I constantly encourage metacognition throughout the duration of our course, by encouraging students to reflect on their work and consider reaching out for assistance. The final assignment of the ENGL101 semester is called “Reflection” and it requires students to examine their own work and thought process throughout their writing process.
Aside from the three readings mentioned above there were many other experiences that I feel helped me become a successful UTA. The lesson plans we created for ENGL388V helped me achieve the final goal of the course, to effectively communicate the application of scholarship through ancillary material, by helping me organize my thoughts into powerpoints. I ultimately feel that I achieved each of the learning outcomes Lyra designed for me as a UTA.This experience was more challenging than I expected it to be. My UTA from when I was in the course made her job look so effortless. Hopefully, students from my class who are considering my position feel the same about my work. I certainly ended up building better relationships with my students than I ever expected to in the beginning of the semester. I will miss each of them next semester. As I watched them grow and excel throughout the weeks of the semester, I only ever became more impressed by their tireless motivation and determination. It is safe to say Professor Pleydell and I were blessed with a phenomenal group this semester. Being a UTA was like a breath of fresh air, as it allowed me to explore subject areas other than STEM, which relates to my major. I realized I never want to eliminate writing completely from my academic career, so I intend on minoring in professional writing. I feel I have achieved my goals as a UTA, and, perhaps, exceeded them, as Professor Pleydell has requested that I return as her UTA for her final semester in the spring. I could not be more thrilled to assist her once again, and I look forward to updating this page once I have completed my spring semester.
When Professor Pleydell approached me about being a teaching assistant for her course, I was absolutely thrilled. I loved the idea of taking on a leadership position and sharing my love for her ENGL101 course with other students. Come fall, however, I realized I had a lot to learn, in order to become the UTA I wanted to be for my students. Thankfully, this is exactly what the ENGL388V course is dedicated to. I picked up countless amounts of teaching tips and skills from ENGL388V. I gathered a large majority of my information from the readings, which Lyra so kindly shared with us. One particularly prominent article I read was “Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education”. I was fond of this piece because it got straight to the point, listing seven ways instructors can improve the undergraduate education experience. I found these seven principles to be very reflective of the principles Lyra had established for my internship as a UTA. For example, the seven principles lists instructors should “respect diverse talents and ways of learning”. Our syllabus states UTAs should be able to “analyze how classroom applications of scholarship can or should account for differences in the gender, class, racial, ethnic, linguistic, and sexual orientation of class members and instructors”. Both of these points emphasize being inclusive of all students. Reading this article with the class goals in mind allowed me to recognize the importance of inclusion in my classroom. This was a recurring theme throughout the semester, and I found myself constantly thinking of ways to be as accommodating as possible for my students with learning disabilities etc.
Another piece I found myself referring to throughout the semester was the article “Writing as a Process Not a Product” by Donald Murry. This article emphasized searching for signs that a student was learning how to write better, not just submit higher grade papers. This article helped me focus on achieving the goal of articulating the processes required to bring about a successful outcome in the classroom. I felt inspired to be a mentor for my students throughout the writing process. To just have students hand me rough drafts for editing was simply not enough. I met with my students during office hours to share advice about how to better organize thoughts so their work could flow more smoothly. I was constantly messaging and emailing students asking for updates on their papers, which I am sure annoyed them endlessly, but was still helpful nonetheless. Checking in on students was tiring and felt like a never ending process, but I saw large improvement in the students who communicated with me versus those who never responded.
Finally, another piece that influenced and inspired my teaching is “Metacognition and Student Learning” by James Lang. I saw an overlap with the message of this article and my Psychology 100 course. The article describes how metacognition, which I delved deeply into in psychology, is essential for student success. A student who employs metacognition is aware of how prepared or unprepared they are for an assignment or exam. As a student it is important to have this level of awareness so you can achieve success in your courses. Without it, a student cannot gage how far behind or ahead they are. Professor Pleydell and I constantly encourage metacognition throughout the duration of our course, by encouraging students to reflect on their work and consider reaching out for assistance. The final assignment of the ENGL101 semester is called “Reflection” and it requires students to examine their own work and thought process throughout their writing process.
Aside from the three readings mentioned above there were many other experiences that I feel helped me become a successful UTA. The lesson plans we created for ENGL388V helped me achieve the final goal of the course, to effectively communicate the application of scholarship through ancillary material, by helping me organize my thoughts into powerpoints. I ultimately feel that I achieved each of the learning outcomes Lyra designed for me as a UTA.This experience was more challenging than I expected it to be. My UTA from when I was in the course made her job look so effortless. Hopefully, students from my class who are considering my position feel the same about my work. I certainly ended up building better relationships with my students than I ever expected to in the beginning of the semester. I will miss each of them next semester. As I watched them grow and excel throughout the weeks of the semester, I only ever became more impressed by their tireless motivation and determination. It is safe to say Professor Pleydell and I were blessed with a phenomenal group this semester. Being a UTA was like a breath of fresh air, as it allowed me to explore subject areas other than STEM, which relates to my major. I realized I never want to eliminate writing completely from my academic career, so I intend on minoring in professional writing. I feel I have achieved my goals as a UTA, and, perhaps, exceeded them, as Professor Pleydell has requested that I return as her UTA for her final semester in the spring. I could not be more thrilled to assist her once again, and I look forward to updating this page once I have completed my spring semester.
Update
My second semester as UTA has been just as magical as my first. It is funny how the group of students you receive can completely change the energy of the course you teach. Last semester, Professor Pleydell and I had a classroom full of a lot of big personalities. They opened up quickly. They were always eager to share their experiences. This semester's group, however, was more reserved and soft spoken. Originally, I thought this was a bad sign. I thought this semester's class could never live up to fall's. However, as the semester progressed, the students began to come out of their shells. Seeing their progress was one hundred times more rewarding and exciting than having an initially loud class room ever was. I like to think that I had a hand in helping them become more comfortable and confident in the classroom through group activities and office hours.
388V no longer meets in person; the course is completely online, but I still remember a lot from what we learned last semester. I do not think of the readings from the semester nearly as much as i think of the group presentations. I am always thinking of ways to ensure that all students feel included in discussion because of the diversity presentation we had last semester. I want to reach out to all types of people and everyone's interests in my course. I am also proud to say that I have become so much more involved than was last semester. Professor Pleydell and I meet everyday before class. We review the to-do list and brainstorm activities that align with her lesson plans. I have definitely taken on more responsibility, as a TA this semester, than I ever did last semester, and although it has taken a little more elbow grease, it has cdertainly been worth it. The semester is not over yet, and my students still have to turn in two major assignments. More updates on final grades and closing thoughts to come...
388V no longer meets in person; the course is completely online, but I still remember a lot from what we learned last semester. I do not think of the readings from the semester nearly as much as i think of the group presentations. I am always thinking of ways to ensure that all students feel included in discussion because of the diversity presentation we had last semester. I want to reach out to all types of people and everyone's interests in my course. I am also proud to say that I have become so much more involved than was last semester. Professor Pleydell and I meet everyday before class. We review the to-do list and brainstorm activities that align with her lesson plans. I have definitely taken on more responsibility, as a TA this semester, than I ever did last semester, and although it has taken a little more elbow grease, it has cdertainly been worth it. The semester is not over yet, and my students still have to turn in two major assignments. More updates on final grades and closing thoughts to come...
Reflection on Both Semesters
This semester, just as my last flew by faster than I could have ever imagined. When I reflect on my goals that I established in the beginning of the semester, I am happy to say I achieved them. Having been in Professor Pleydell’s class as a student and TA for two semesters now, I was familiar that her class is excellent because it does not only teach you how to write; it teaches you all about one very special, unique topic that the student chooses to examine for the semester. This fact in conjunction with the “Writing as Learning” article from last semester, I was inspired to ensure that my students left the classroom more knowledgeable on their topic than wen they entered it. According to Janet Emig, “…because writing is often our representation of the world made visible…writing is more readily a form and source of learning than talking”. This quote in particular is the one that inspired me to encourage my students to take time in the beginning of class for activities such as free writes. Professor Pleydell and I adjusted quizzes to include reflections, so they could become more interconnected to their topic. I stressed constantly for the students to be excited about their topics. I wanted them to think of their papers as an opportunity to educate themselves outside of their regular field of study. I was happy to say I believe I was successful. By encouraging my students to research and write something about a topic other than their major, many of my students began to expand their horizons. I had ECON majors writing about journalism. Biology majors were writing about transportation. Most importantly, the students seemed genuinely enthused by their topics. I honestly did not even know that some of them had alternative majors from their topics of study because they seemed so invested in it. This was a huge success for me. i won’t lie, this goal took a lot of energy to achieve. It can be embarrassing to stand in front of students, sounding like a cheesy, broken record begging them to care about a class. Nevertheless,I felt so good knowing I had inspired my students to look for knowledge in their writing.
Something I have come to realize by experiencing both of my semesters, as a UTA, is a truth from the article “Teach Writing as a Process Not a Product” by Donald Murray. Murray says “…the students must explore the writing process in their own way…”. This truth was hard for me to accept, especially in my first semester. With my new title as a TA, I felt pressure to micro manage my students on the writing process. I would become confused or frustrated when students presented me with cluttered papers, that were chaotic and disorganized. I do not function like they do. I build an outline, a rough draft, and then I final draft. It wasn’t until the middle of my second semester that I realized we all create our best products through different means. Sometimes when I recommended my most disorganized students try the writing process I used, their papers ended up dry and simply were missing their personal touch. As time passed, I learned to respect the different methods of writing, and I happily accepted whatever phase of work a student passed along to me. As a TA, you need to be flexible with other peoples’ writing styles to honor the uniqueness of everyone’s thought process.
Both semesters of my UTA internship, I held office hours every Thursday in McKeldin library. During this time, I revised papers and gave advice to students in groups. A found a piece of information from the “Responding to Student Writing” to be very valuable. Peter Elbow explains that he always looks to incorporate positive criticism into his edits. I found this to be absolutely necessary, as I was often reacting to students’ writing in groups. I did not want to embarrass anyone in front of his/her peers. I always gave them my positive reviews first, hoping that the rest of the students would tone out of our conversations before I got into the problematic areas. I understand that it can be beneficial for students there what is wrong with others’ papers so they can fix their own,. However, I wanted to honor the promise that I made to my students that they would receive one-on-one assistance, so I feel this was most appropriate.
My first semester as a UTA, Professor Pleydell and i did not design may of my lesson plans to have lots of classroom interaction. My students first semester were naturally so talkative, that it usually was unnecessary to plan for it; it would happen regardless of our planning. My second semester, however, our students were far less talkative. to combat this, I began to incorporate group discussion into my lesson plans. I wanted to make the students feel comfortable with each other and myself , so I took a piece of advice from “Facilitating Effective Classroom Discussion” and I began to interact with my students on topics other than this course. I especially ramped up the small talk during my office hours. I bonded with some of the students about the stresses of organic chemistry and weather. I also wanted them to become comfortable interacted with each other, so I copied an activity I saw Nehali use. I had my students line up shoulder to shoulder in two parallel lines. Before each lesson plan began, they would exchange their frustrations and favorite parts of an assignment. I found this activity to be very effective in stimulating classroom discussion and helping the students get to know each other. It was a good way for students to realize the were not alone in their struggles and to get good ideas for their own papers.They often did not want to sit down after their conversation time, which made me feel successful in my goal.
Overall, both semesters as a UTA required a lot more help from just the four sources i mentioned. I was constantly looking to Professor Pleydell for advice, and she was always to quick to help me out. For that, I am grateful. overall, it was a very successful two semesters and I will miss my time as an undergraduate teaching assistant.I am hoping to return for one more semester at some point in my college career.
Something I have come to realize by experiencing both of my semesters, as a UTA, is a truth from the article “Teach Writing as a Process Not a Product” by Donald Murray. Murray says “…the students must explore the writing process in their own way…”. This truth was hard for me to accept, especially in my first semester. With my new title as a TA, I felt pressure to micro manage my students on the writing process. I would become confused or frustrated when students presented me with cluttered papers, that were chaotic and disorganized. I do not function like they do. I build an outline, a rough draft, and then I final draft. It wasn’t until the middle of my second semester that I realized we all create our best products through different means. Sometimes when I recommended my most disorganized students try the writing process I used, their papers ended up dry and simply were missing their personal touch. As time passed, I learned to respect the different methods of writing, and I happily accepted whatever phase of work a student passed along to me. As a TA, you need to be flexible with other peoples’ writing styles to honor the uniqueness of everyone’s thought process.
Both semesters of my UTA internship, I held office hours every Thursday in McKeldin library. During this time, I revised papers and gave advice to students in groups. A found a piece of information from the “Responding to Student Writing” to be very valuable. Peter Elbow explains that he always looks to incorporate positive criticism into his edits. I found this to be absolutely necessary, as I was often reacting to students’ writing in groups. I did not want to embarrass anyone in front of his/her peers. I always gave them my positive reviews first, hoping that the rest of the students would tone out of our conversations before I got into the problematic areas. I understand that it can be beneficial for students there what is wrong with others’ papers so they can fix their own,. However, I wanted to honor the promise that I made to my students that they would receive one-on-one assistance, so I feel this was most appropriate.
My first semester as a UTA, Professor Pleydell and i did not design may of my lesson plans to have lots of classroom interaction. My students first semester were naturally so talkative, that it usually was unnecessary to plan for it; it would happen regardless of our planning. My second semester, however, our students were far less talkative. to combat this, I began to incorporate group discussion into my lesson plans. I wanted to make the students feel comfortable with each other and myself , so I took a piece of advice from “Facilitating Effective Classroom Discussion” and I began to interact with my students on topics other than this course. I especially ramped up the small talk during my office hours. I bonded with some of the students about the stresses of organic chemistry and weather. I also wanted them to become comfortable interacted with each other, so I copied an activity I saw Nehali use. I had my students line up shoulder to shoulder in two parallel lines. Before each lesson plan began, they would exchange their frustrations and favorite parts of an assignment. I found this activity to be very effective in stimulating classroom discussion and helping the students get to know each other. It was a good way for students to realize the were not alone in their struggles and to get good ideas for their own papers.They often did not want to sit down after their conversation time, which made me feel successful in my goal.
Overall, both semesters as a UTA required a lot more help from just the four sources i mentioned. I was constantly looking to Professor Pleydell for advice, and she was always to quick to help me out. For that, I am grateful. overall, it was a very successful two semesters and I will miss my time as an undergraduate teaching assistant.I am hoping to return for one more semester at some point in my college career.