• 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.

As we discussed the demanding nature of the learning community, we initially began to look at the possibility of having a graduate teaching assistant. In considering the kinds of activities and responsibilities for a teaching assistant, however, we realized that advanced undergraduates who had already completed the course would be ideally suited for these roles.

In addition, research on peer teaching and mentoring has demonstrated its value for both peer teachers/mentors and those being taught/mentored. Moreover, we reasoned that using undergraduate TAs fit well with the values and philosophy of NCC. NCC has a strong focus on experiential learning and learning by doing. The college also focuses on collaborative learning, believing that students can learn effectively from and with their peers -- provided the professor creates a learning environment that facilitates this goal. While we were excited about the prospect of using undergraduate teaching assistants, we did question the feasibility of this approach. What were the potential limitations of using undergraduate students in this role (as opposed to graduate students)? What were our needs with respect to delivering this learning community? How would the undergraduate TAs benefit from this experience? And finally, would the time and effort spent on teaching and mentoring these TAs be superseded by the benefits to them and the students? 

In thinking about this first question, we considered issues of multiple roles and setting boundaries. NCC is a small, close-knit community. Using undergraduates as TAs invited the possibility that whomever we selected to participate in this more authoritative role would have friends and acquaintances in the classroom. In addition, they might be enrolled in another learning community with some of these same students. Therefore, we would need to have explicit discussions and open lines of communication with the TAs about dealing with these multiple roles and the potential boundary conflicts that could arise. Similarly, we felt that we had to make sure that the students enrolled in Violence and Gender felt comfortable with the students chosen as TAs. After consideration, we concluded that appropriate attention to these issues could sufficiently minimize our concerns.

Next Section: "Compatibility for Teaching and Learning Needs"

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