Settings requiring long term projects
Typical Learning Environment
In some cases LAs are used to facilitate learning in courses that require long term projects. In these settings it is especially important for LAs to foster classrooms where students are interacting productively. LAs in these types of environments have to be extra attentive to group dynamics.
One example of this type of environment is the Engineering Design Class. In this video Drs. Ayush Gupta and Chandra Turpen and Peer Educator Paula Kleyman describe how they support students through the Learning Assistant Model, in the Engineering Design Course at the University of Maryland - College Park. They specifically highlight the different pedagogical skills and tools that LAs need to develop and refine in this type of environment, characterized by long term projects and long term team building. They discuss the idea of proudness, based on the work of Dr. Angela Little, and how thinking about different measures of success are important in extended projects to set up markers of progress for students.