• Introduction

• Content of the Learning Community

• Structure of the Learning Community

• Rationale for the Undergraduate Teaching Assistant Model

• Compatibility of Teaching and Learning Needs

• Recruitment and Selection of the Teaching Assistants

• Preparation of the Teaching Assistants

• Roles and Conflicts

• The Teaching Team

• Evaluating the Undergraduate Teaching Assistant Model

• The Experiences of the Teaching Assistants

• The Pedagogic Value of the Model

• Printable Text of Article

© Copyright 2000 by Kimberly Eby (keby1@gmu.edu) and Paula Gilbert (pgilbert@gmu.edu). The right to make additional exact copies, including this notice, for personal and classroom use, is hereby granted. All other forms of distribution and copying require permission of the author.

While we are certainly rewarded by the fact that the TAs had such a positive experience, they are not the only ones to consider in evaluating the usefulness of the undergraduate teaching assistant model. Arguably more important is whether or not the students in the learning community found the undergraduate TAs to be helpful, or at least we needed to be assured that they did not hinder student learning in any way. 

In the survey distributed by our TA, the students overwhelmingly cited the teaching assistants as valuable "role models." In addition, the vast majority of students reported that they enjoyed having the TAs in the class (93%), felt comfortable discussing issues in their presence (90%), agreed that they effectively helped to facilitate classroom discussions (93%), disagreed that their presence was intimidating (86%), and agreed that they were helpful and approachable (90%). The students overwhelmingly disagreed with a statement that they would prefer not to have the TAs present in the class (97%). In the interviews with students the following semester, however, the results appear to suggest some ambivalence about the TAs' helpfulness, with some students reporting that they found them to be very or somewhat helpful, while others did not need their assistance. A final question we must raise when discerning the worth of this model has to do with our experience, as professors, with the undergraduate teaching assistants. We continue to feel extremely positive about this experience, and we would repeat it again without a second thought. While it is true that the model may not actually be a "time-saver," given the continuing supervision and the weekly team meetings, it is also true that the TAs provided past experience, student perspectives, and insights that added to the intellectual richness of the learning community. One could argue that having more perspectives in the classroom, through the TAs' participation in class, and having the student perspective at our faculty team meetings resulted in a more effectively taught course. Moreover, the insights that we have gained about student reactions to course material and effective strategies for presenting the various course themes will undoubtedly impact our teaching of the learning community in the future. 

Workload issues aside, the personal rewards, most particularly that of developing such rich mentoring relationships with each of the TAs, cannot be understated. This was an extraordinary experience that provided us with the opportunity to enrich our own learning, to serve students better through a demanding senior-level mentoring experience, and to provide the students in the learning community with important role models and peer resources. But perhaps most importantly, we have had the opportunity to develop friendships with each of these teaching assistants -- friendships that will last far into the future.

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