Teaching Assistant Orientation (TAO) 2004

GROUPS and ROOMS for TEACHING CLUSTERS I, II, III

Teaching Types/ Facilitator

Disciplines

Rooms

Assisting Professors I/
Jeff Sheehan

Anthropology, Art History, Psychology, Sociology, Political Science

Calhoun 103

Assisting Professors II/ Heather Davidson

All Peabody Departments, Owen Graduate School of Management

Furman 007

Assisting Professors III/ Casey Leonetti

Economics, Mathematics

Calhoun 104

Engineering I/
Vindi Ndulute

Biomedical, Civil/Environmental, Management of Technology

Furman 109

Engineering II/
Anu Balasubramanian

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Furman 217

Engineering III/ Mozhgan Mirani

Chemical, Material Science, Mechanical

Furman 325

Labs I/Lisa Battaglia

Biological  Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, Geology, Biomedical Science and Medicine

Furman 209

Labs II/Rachel Rigsby

Chemistry, Neuroscience

Furman 132

Leading Discussions I/
Susan Crisafulli

History, Philosophy

Calhoun 117

Leading Discussions II/
Kat Baker

Graduate Department of Religion

Calhoun 219

Own Course I/
Hyeyurn Chung

English, Comparative Literature

Calhoun 423

Own Course II/
Forrest Perry

Classical Studies, French/Italian, Germanic/Slavic, Spanish/Portuguese

Calhoun 204

CONCURRENT SESSIONS (I and II)
(Wednesday, August 18, 2004)

I
10:30-11:45

II
1:15-2:30

Designing Your Own Course
F2P2 Track: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Hyeyurn Chung
In designing your own course, you may want to begin by thinking about what your course goals are and how you can help your students achieve them. This session will offer strategies for developing course objectives, putting together a syllabus, and creating lesson plans.

Calhoun 423

Difference in the Classroom: Race, Class, and Gender
F2P2 Credit: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Lisa Battaglia
This session will explore the implications of race, class, and gender differences in the classroom. We will examine diversity in teaching and learning and how privilege and inclusivity/exclusivity impact classroom dynamics.

Furman 209

Writing Exams and Quizzes
F2P2 Track: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Vindi Ndulute
Multiple choice, true/false, or essay? This session will discuss how to develop the right types of questions to effectively assess student learning.

Furman 109

Learning Styles and Group Dynamics in the Classroom
F2P2 Credit: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Heather Davidson
How can you create a group dynamic and class atmosphere that acknowledges all students’ learning styles? This session will cover principles of how people learn and ways in which teachers can accommodate various learning styles.

Furman 007

Fostering Critical Thinking
F2P2 Credit: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Katharine Baker
Many educators agree that fostering "critical thinking" is one of the primary goals of college education. But what is critical thinking? Is it a general competency or discipline-specific? What challenges might we encounter in trying to encourage it in our students?

Calhoun 219

Making the Best of Teaching
F2P2 Track: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Jeff Sheehan
You don't have to be ecstatic about teaching to make the experience a good one for you and your students. If you'd rather be researching or if you're unenthused by your teaching placement, come and discuss the ways that teaching experience can help you in your professional development.

Calhoun 103

Managing Challenging Moments in Class and During Office Hours
F2P2 Credit: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Rachel Rigsby
Will you know what to do when difficult situations arise in your classroom or during office hours? This session will explore a variety of scenarios and possible ways to manage these challenging moments.

Furman 132

Optimizing the Classroom Atmosphere
F2P2 Track: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Casey Leonetti
Students perform better and learn more when they enjoy the class, but what are effective ways to engage them? This session will discuss some strategies for providing an optimal classroom environment.

Calhoun 104

Establishing Your Teaching Persona
F2P2 Credit: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Mozhgan Mirani
You’ve set you goals, prepared your syllabus, and know your objectives for the class. But what methods can you use to establish your teaching persona? And what can you do on the first day of class to set the right pace and tone for the course?

Furman 325

Academic Service-Learning: Integrating Classroom and Community
F2P2 Credit: Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Forrest Perry
Service-learning aims to connect students to the world outside academia by bringing together community service and classroom learning. In this session you will be introduced to the practice of service-learning and hear from instructors from different disciplines who have incorporated service-learning into their courses.

Calhoun 204

The Psychology of Grading
F2P2 Credit: Teaching and Learning
Facilitator: Susan Crisafulli
What is the relationship between how you give grades and how students perceive your class? This session will cover such issues as the best place to put grades on tests and papers, whether marginal or end comments are better, and whether having students identify themselves by number instead of by name leads to less bias.

Calhoun 117

Time Management: Balancing Workloads
F2P2 Track: Professional Development or Teaching and Learning (1.25 hours)
Facilitator: Anupama Balasubramanian
Twenty-four hours in a day not enough? Too much to do? The life of a TA can be busy, what with teaching duties, research, and course work. Get some tips from the pros (experienced TAs) on how to get it all done and still have time to have some fun.

Furman 217

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