Taking Action

Tips to Support Diversity

The following are some tips given to adapt to and support diversity in the classroom [1].

  • Learn about students' cultures, festivals, and challenges of different groups.

  • If you use Canvas's Speedgrader for student assignments and want to avoid potential bias while grading, it is possible to hide students' names within the tool. Read more on this in the section on grading and providing feedback.

  • Be flexible with due dates and when asking why an assignment may be late.

  • Use a background survey to learn about your students' current skills and knowledge. Apply that when designing course material or when helping individual students (e.g., get an understanding of their current knowledge first, in order to help explain new topics).

  • Provide examples and explanations that may be more relatable to students (e.g., use your knowledge of their cultures, interests, etc. when giving examples).

Adapting to Different Levels of Students

Having a position like a teaching assistant can bring pride and personal satisfaction. Nevertheless, this position can be challenging as you will help and assist your peers or same-age students in their work. There is a different kind of pressure and demand when serving Undergraduate students than serving graduate students. It is very important to understand that each student's level, for example, undergraduate students, can be very different from doctorate students. So, the TA should act differently and cater to students' needs.

The undergraduate students would have a presumption of direct application of study materials like their past academic fields, but in the college of computing and Informatics, they need to have critical thinking. So the TA should put extra effort into helping them understand the need for out-of-the-box thinking to perform effectively. To do this, the TA should review their already learned materials and put the problem or exercise in such a way that will trigger analytical thinking. TA should also keep track of their work to understand the progress and the grey area. The TA should promptly communicate these to the students periodically and encourage them to ask for help or talk. Before jumping straight to the new materials for upper-level undergraduate, the TA should repeat already learned materials and emphasize the significant ideas prerequisite for a course. That can help bridge the gap and connect the lower-level course to the upper-level course

Being a graduate TA in CCI can be a whole different experience. These students are seeking a professional degree with an aim to be software professionals. Most of them have past strong educational and professional success. So, the TA needs to be crisp and clear about the grading, feedback and other related procedures. The TA should incorporate the ideas, examples of the professional software industry working environment to reflect their interest.

Providing Meaningful Experiences

Having an understanding of our students is also necessary to help provide meaningful learning experiences. Some ways to bring meaning to our teaching include:

  1. Adopt a student-centered approach. For example, allow students to be involved in the design of their learning experiences. This can help them have a better understanding of the learning objectives [3].

  2. Relate classroom material to real-life experiences. To do so, "you might want to adapt innovative activities such as storytelling, arts, graphic, and mnemonics" [3]. it may also be useful to give examples that your students can relate to or sparks their interests.

  3. Promote self-knowledge. It is important for learners to be able to also function well in the future, and to learn how to learn. A "knowledge ecosystem model" can be useful, and can include "offering additional courses, organizing school events, and integrating the use of social media" [3]. It is important to let us students know, and help them appreciate, that "learning is a personal process and there's only so much a teacher can do" [3].

Fostering Inclusive Environments

Trying to understand your class demographics can be the first step towards identifying which strategies you might want to use in your classroom. The following are a few strategies [2] one can think of when dealing with students who resonate with the following identities to create a more inclusive classroom that empowers students inside and outside the classroom.

Transfer Students

When teaching transfer students, it is important to keep in mind many of your students may not have taken the same pre-requisites for your course. The best way to determine the background knowledge of all of your students is to ask. Starting the course with an ungraded pre-test on the concepts you expect them to know can help guide the first few weeks of class and the rest of the semester. Be sure to either spend time in class discussing concepts that not all of your students know or provide students with materials so they can review the content on their own. The tips above on first-generation students can also be applied to teaching your transfer students.

First-Year Undergraduates

If you are a TA for an introductory course it is likely that many of your students will be first-year undergraduates. Supporting first-year undergraduates in your classroom can not only enhance their learning in your course but can enhance learning throughout their college career. Something really simple can be to reach out to those students regularly. As most freshman students won't contact you with a question unless

a) they had an emergency

b) they already felt comfortable contacting you for something diff before.

First-Generation Students

First-generation describes college students whose parents’ highest level of schooling did not include college. As the first in their family to attend college, these students are more likely to struggle to succeed compared to students whose parents did attend college. Be clear about classroom expectations and assignments. Be sure to state the task, purpose of the task, and criteria for how you will evaluate their work. This transparency can overcome the lack of implicit knowledge about how college courses work. Be approachable to your students.

Non-traditional Students

A nontraditional applicant must meet all of the following criteria:

  • Out of high school for at least five years (high school class graduated at least five years ago)

  • High school diploma from an accredited high school or satisfactory completion of GED

  • Fewer than 30 transferable hours of college credit

  • Keep in mind that not all students have recently graduated high school.

They come with a variety of life experiences and different background knowledge. Be sure to use examples and language that all your students will understand. Avoid idiomatic English (e.g., “once in a blue moon”) or short abbreviations unless you can be sure all students understand your references.

LGBTQ+ Students

LGBTQ+ refers to students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other identities. The University is committed to maintaining a learning environment that is free of bias, prejudice, and harassment for all students, including LGBTQ+ students. The following are some ways to be an active participant in creating an inclusive environment for LGBTQ+ students.

  • Ask for the preferred pronouns and terms that people use to identify themselves. This may vary from person to person

  • Be aware of gendered language. For example, instead of addressing the class as “ladies and gentleman,” use a gender-neutral alternative like “folks” or “friends.”

Student Athletes

Some of your students will be committed to one or more varsity sports or in the band or on the cheerleading squad. Because travel is often involved in such activities, these students may sometimes have to miss class or even an exam. One of your responsibilities as a teacher is to ensure that these activities are not allowed to interfere with the progress the students make toward a degree.

Students with Disabilities

You, as TA, have a responsibility to see that the rights of these students are not violated. Some TA's may feel uncomfortable at first with a disabled student because they have never had contact with a person with a disability.

Once they have a disabled student in their class however, they will realize that in nearly all respects they are just like the other students. Be careful to treat these students fairly: neither avoid them nor single them out for special treatment. Remember that while in some cases the student's disability will be obvious, in many others you will never know about it unless the student tells you.Any institution that receives federal funding must make its programs accessible to those with

References

  1. Sahoo, Lipsarani. (2020). Understanding students in CCI: student demographics and expectations. Teaching Seminar, Fall 2020. [link to view]

  2. Resources and TA Handbook: Graduate Student Services: Center for Teaching and Learning. (n.d.). Retrieved December 08, 2020, from https://ctl.uga.edu/grad-student/resources-and-ta-handbook/

  3. Relojo-Howell, D., MSc, & MBPsS. (2017, October 9). 5 ways to make learning more meaningful to students. Psych Learning Curve. http://psychlearningcurve.org/learning-more-meaningful/