• The First Meeting
• Weekly Preparations & Holding Discussion Sections
• Q & A
• Dealing with Student Related Problems During Discussion

THE FIRST MEETING

BEFORE CLASS
Here's a quick way to show students that you're organized, and in charge (even if you don't feel like it just yet). Write the following things on the board or overhead before class begins (give yourself plenty of time to arrive early, it will help you relax and get things started on the right foot; nobody likes to be kept waiting).

INTRODUCE YOURSELF
Students need to know that you're a real person, not just the TA, so take a few minutes and tell them about yourself. But don't overdo it. Here's an example:

• "First I'll tell you a little bit about myself...."
• I was an undergraduate at ________."
• I am in my ________ (1st, 2nd,...5th) year of graduate school.
• My specific research interests are ________ " (tell what interests you and why).

• "In order to help me learn your names, I'd like to go around the room and have each of you give your name, and tell me... (for example) …
  • the one thing that you want to learn before this course is finished.
  • your major or why you are taking the class.
  • something about yourself.
• You could also play “Two Truths and a Lie” where students make three statements about themselves – one of which is a lie (the other two should be true but interesting and unusual). The class tries to guess which one is a lie.
• If you are short on time, or have a pretty large class, you might ask people to raise their hands if (for example)
  • If they are from California
  • If they are from out of state (you could find who has come from the farthest away)
  • If they are, or intend to be, psych majors
  • For some classes you might want to get an idea of their level of experience by asking things like, who has taken a stats class, etc.
  • You could also ask about movies, vacation spots, sports, birth order, etc.

• Keep up with the assigned readings."
• Bring specific questions to office hours. If you say, "Can you explain chapter 5?" it will be difficult for me to help you.

WEEKLY PREPARATIONS & HOLDING DISCUSSION SECTIONS

Discussion sections meet weekly. The details of what will be discussed should be provided in a weekly meeting with the instructor, and the specifics may change from quarter to quarter, or from instructor to instructor.

PREPARING FOR THE WEEKLY MEETING
It's important to remember that you are one member of a team. The goal is consistency, and since there are multiple TAs, the weekly meetings serve as the place where you run through the game plan. Here's a list of things you should do before the weekly meeting arrives.

• Obtain the written material regarding what's to be presented next week (if it doesn't show up in your mailbox, then you may need to request it from the instructor
• Read/scan the material ahead of time!
• Ask questions! If you are uncertain about the material, make sure you write down notes and questions to ask at the meeting.
• It’s not fair to the other TAs (or, perhaps to your students) if you deviate too far from the agreed upon lesson, so if you have an idea, now is the time to share it.
• If you realize after the meeting that you still aren’t quite getting it, visit with the instructor or the other TAs in the class, or with a TA who's done this class before.

• Ask the instructor or other TAs questions if something doesn't make sense (you still have time!)
• If the professor (or admin TA) is not getting you the materials until the day before your section (!), talk to Cindy & Lorna before things get out of hand or ask to reschedule the weekly meeting so that it is earlier in the week, or tell the instructor/admin. TA that you have a hard time getting a whole lesson in order the night before a section.
• If your section is not one of the first sections in the week, it may help to talk to other TAs after they have taught their sections. This is a good way to catch any unexpected glitches in the materials, lesson plan, handouts, etc. -- and a good way to avoid them!

• Familiarize yourself with supplementary material (handouts, modules, transparencies) and with the equipment that you'll be using (overheads, slides, video, TV).
• Call Joe in case of an emergency (X 2024) with the equipment or call media equipment if Joe cannot help.
• If the overhead light burns out during class, check for the extra bulb before you call Joe. If it just won’t work, you can either pass around the transparencies, draw on the board, or save the lesson for the following if week (if appropriate).
• Power outages shouldn’t occur, but you never know these days…You could either do the next lesson plan, attempt to complete the current one, using the board (provided there are windows), or attempt to reschedule the class.
• If you’re leading a computer based lab and one of the computers won’t work, you can either: let them use data from another student, meet the student at a special time, or try to get Jacek or Colin to help you…

• Outline your plan for discussion with specific chronological steps (ex. First, I'll ask them if they have any questions from the lecture. Second, we'll go over homework problems. Third, we'll discuss some topics from chapters 5 & 6)
• Try to make your discussions interactive.
• Some TAs find it easier to do a practice run through the lesson plan ahead of time.

• Your notes/outline
• Notes and textbook from class
• Attendance sheet (if needed)
• Supplementary materials (handouts, modules, transparencies,...)
• Media equipment (if needed)

• Starting a section can be difficult, but beginning with a personal anecdote, controversial discussion topic, or question to the group can grab students’ attention and hold it.
• Mention readings to be covered.
• Use the chalkboard or white board to outline format of today’s section. Students appreciate the structure!
• Go over homework problems, if necessary.
• Cover material thoroughly.
• Give examples, anecdotes, analogies, etc., where appropriate.
• Be attentive to how well the students are “getting it.”
• If a student asks you a question that you just don't know, it is OK to say "I don't know." Let them know that you will find out the answer and get back to them.
• Summarize the main points of today’s discussion at the end of the section. Students like to have a “take home message.”
• If student’s start griping about the professor you can either: (a) Explain that the professor is very approachable (if this is true), and that the students should let him or her know how they feel, or (b) Explain that you will be happy to tell the professor what you have heard, but that you are not in a position to judge.
• Never bad mouth the professor in front of students! Reflects poorly on you and the professor…

• Take some time to think about your teaching/learning philosophy before your first discussion section. Try to be consistent in your approach. Do you expect students to take charge of their learning experience in the course? Are grades negotiable? Do you lecture mostly? Do you expect participation in discussion? What is your style? Are points open for discussion or not? How much control do you want to have over your class?
• Reinforce students’ contributions and participation.
• Earn students’ trust and take class (and the students) seriously.
• Display enthusiasm for the subject -- show energy!!!
• Send the “right” messages from the beginning of the quarter by starting class on time, getting to know the students, etc.
• Remember, TAing is gaining you experience in teaching, which will be a major part of most of our careers -- use the TA experience as an opportunity to observe good and bad teaching styles and to improve your own teaching techniques.

Q & A

The question and answer session is the lifeblood of a discussion group. Remember, the primary goal of a discussion leader is to have people talking, and asking and answering questions may be the only effective method of accomplishing this goal.

TIPS FOR SUCCESSFULLY ASKING QUESTIONS:

TAKE IT EASY
You want to give your students a break and ask questions that they will want to answer. In the discussion section, you want students to be jumping in and smacking each other to try to answer each question.

• Ask questions that the “average” student should be able to answer.
• Be aware of the subject matter that your students should have prepared, so you’re not asking advanced or remedial questions.
• Don’t ask questions to which only you know the answer (i.e. don’t try to make yourself look brilliant at the expense of your students).

• Poor question: “Does the presence of others always enhance performance on a task?”
• Good question: “What are some of the effects of the presence of others on task performance?”

• If your original question isn’t answered, rephrase it and ask it again.
• Give your students hints by referring to the lecture or chapters in the text where the topic is discussed.
• Give your students part of the answer and ask for the remainder.
• Give your students some alternatives and ask them to tell you which one is correct and why.

• If you announce that you want someone to take a wild guess, it relieves the pressure of being correct and may get a shy person to answer.
• Having your students blurt out wrong answers is still better than you answering your own questions.

• Be cautious of putting someone who isn’t eager to answer on the spot.
• Try to salvage a bad response by finding some kernel of truth in the answer.
• If the response is entirely wrong, make the student feel better by explaining the logic behind their answer.

TIPS FOR SUCCESSFULLY ANSWERING QUESTIONS:

LISTEN CAREFULLY
Make sure you have great patience when you answer your students’ questions.

• Don’t attempt an answer until you fully understand the question.
• Make them clarify their question by asking them questions about their question.
• Rephrase the question as you understand it, and ask them if it is what they are asking.
• After you answer, you may ask students if they’d like you to explain more.

• Ask for another student to try to answer the question.
• It’s always good to provide some information and then throw the question back to the person who answered it.
• Don’t abandon your role, make sure you are still contributing and acting as quality control.

• The question may be too specific to be handled in the discussion section, and you might want to ask the person to have it answered during office hours or after class.
• If the question is inappropriate, redirect it to a related topic that is appropriate for class.
• If you don’t know an answer to a question, call on your students to help with the answer or agree to provide the complete answer at another time.
• Remember, it may not be the proper time and place for a specific question, but no question is bad.

DEALING WITH STUDENT RELATED PROBLEMS DURING DISCUSSION

The Silent Treatment
You have just finished a short explanation of the controversy surrounding ethical issues in psychology and you ask the section to give their opinions on the topic. Everyone is silent. You restate the issue and again, you are met with silence. What do you do?

• Suggest that the entire class shout out answers at once.
• Make a ridiculous and extreme argument to get people to disagree with you.
• Try a different question on the same topic.
• Ask students to discuss the answer with the person next to them.

• Talk to the student privately and ask him or her to please let others have a chance to become as proficient at answering questions.
• Ask if anyone else has an opinion.

• Explain to the class early on that you don't care if they read the paper, but that they should leave if they want to.
• Ignore it.

• Keep saying very calmly, "I'm sorry, that's not quite right," just like you would say to a less flippant student.
• Talk to the student privately about the problem.
• Try to nip it in the bud, by saying something the first time it happens.

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