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Whether you're a new graduate teaching assistant or an experienced, senior-level TA, you're sure to find something in our campus-wide TA workshops to get you energized about teaching. The day also offers an opportunity to get to know other TAs who'll eventually become your friends and colleagues.
Skills Sessions
Why Your First Two Classes Matter So Much
Therese Huston, Founding Director, Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, Seattle University
We all want to make a good first impression, but that can be harder than it sounds. For instance, how do you establish credibility with your students but remain approachable? In this interactive session, we’ll talk about specific strategies and activities for establishing norms, reviewing the syllabus, and creating an environment where everyone can thrive and learn.
Working Effectively with a TA Supervisor
Elizabeth Weber Edwards, Associate Director of Graduate Student Development, Office of Graduate Studies
One of your best resources as a new TA is your TA Supervisor. Learn strategies for consulting effectively with your supervisor to help you plan to teach, work with students, troubleshoot classroom problems as they arise, and help students get the most from your course.
Designing & Delivering Effective Lectures
Samuel A. Nelson, Associate Director, Center for Entrepreneurship
Lectures are a predominate method of transferring information in university classrooms yet they tend to be instructor-centered and can have a bad reputation among students. In this workshop we’ll focus on how to engage students in the current age of smart phones and information overload.
Critical Moments in the Classroom: Video Vignettes
Richard Lombardo, Director, Office of Postdoctoral Studies and TA Development
Watch video scenarios of several critical situations that may at some point reflect your own experience as a GTA. Then discuss strategies you might use to manage the situations or, better yet, prevent such situations from occurring in the first place.
Interactive Teaching Techniques
Marilyne Stains, Assistant Professor, Chemistry
Learning requires students to participate in class, as opposed to sitting and listening quietly. How can you make your teaching more engaging and interactive? This workshop will provide several methods you can use in your own classes to motivate and engage your students in learning.
Professional Development Session: Constructing a Teaching Portfolio
Cal Garbin, John Weaver Professor of Psychology
If teaching is part of your future professional career plan, now is a good time to start developing a teaching portfolio that documents your teaching experiences and the improvements you make. In this workshop you'll learn what a teaching portfolio is, why it's useful to have one, how to write a teaching statement, and strategies for documenting your work as an instructor.
Disciplinary Breakout Sessions
Join new and experienced TAs in your discipline and learn about effective teaching methods relevant to the teaching you'll be doing as a TA — for example, holding office hours, grading papers, running a lab, or teaching a recitation.
Each session will focus on applying what you've learned about the principles of learning and effective teaching within the context of your discipline. Sessions will be facilitated by experienced faculty and award-winning teaching assistants.
Wrap-Up Session
Metaphors, Messages, and Morals to the Story
Jody Koenig Kellas, Associate Professor, Communications Studies
What did you learn as a participant in this year’s Campuswide Workshops for Graduate Teaching Assistants? What are your takeaways? This session will focus on the key themes discussed throughout the day, within the context of “metaphors, memorable messages, and morals to the story.”