<p>I'm looking for some general opinions from other people on the topic of TA'ing.</p>
<p>I was given a TA-ship by my department and right now I'm basically the grader for a 200+ person 100-level class. It has been an absolutely miserable experience so far. The prof. hardly shows up to class and when I am grading things, I am finding the key/answer guide often has a number of errors in it. For writing assignments, his directions are not clear and will deliberately tell students they don't need to include certain information, but then when grading, that information is vital to demonstrating they understand the concepts. He is also somewhat passive-aggressive, in that if I legitimately cannot do something on account of a conflict, he'll say he'll cover, but then change his mind and make me do it some other time.</p>
<p>While I realize that probably not all TA assignments are like this, some of my colleagues are experiencing very similar issues in their positions. The department's response is basically: "He's absent-minded and he's retiring soon" and offer no other advice.</p>
<p>Are many TA positions like this? I'm finding that all of this frustration is, in a way, killing my attempts at making the most of my academic program (which isn't very strong in its own right either). I'm just finding myself becoming more irritable, angry and getting a "screw this" attitude. Is this at all common? My department (Terminal MA program) does not offer RA's and the university only offers a handful of general Graduate Assistantships.</p>
<p>Sounds about right for large intro-level courses which require TAs. That’s insane that you’d have to grade that many homeworks. I know at many schools they won’t require someone to handle more than 30-40 or so students.</p>
<p>My experiences with TAing have been either great (lab course), tough but rewarding (TAing a grad course I’d never taken), and terrible (just found out last week I have to TA a grad thermo class).</p>
<p>Is there any way you’d be able to get a second TA in helping with the course? Can you send out e-mails to the class to override anything the professor says about what needs to be shown and what doesn’t?</p>
<p>Bummer, vent the frustration. Can I ask how you came upon this TAing position? I was thinking of TAing later during grad school and have heard horror stories like yours. I was hoping to identify red flags signify a bad TA position. Did you respond to a departmental posting or speak directly to faculty member? Was this a class that you were more qualified to TA than other grad students in your cohort? Had you talked to previous grad students who TAed with this character? Obviously size of the class is a pretty good indicator of what TAing would be like, but were the requirements of the position spelled out for you in the beginning? Any thoughts you might want to share about this?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>It probably isn’t a bad idea, but you should make sure you get a position where you’re actually teaching and not just grading, assuming you’re looking into getting a faculty job.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Well, my strategy was to simply identify early on who the “golden boys” of the class that never miss a homework problem are and then use them as the real key. It took me awhile to grade the first set or two, but after that it was smooth sailing.</p>
<p>belevitt, TAing definitely has its rewards and you should have a shot at it, but I’d recommend trying to do more upper-level courses since they tend to be smaller, more laid back, have more motivated (and less grade-grubby) students, and require you to stretch a bit more in your own abilities in order to do the work.</p>
<p>belevitt- I was offered the position as an incoming Grad Student- it was part of my funding package. I was no more or less qualified really than any other TA in the department. It’s also actually a course in which I have nearly no background in, so it’s difficult to provide a lot of assistance to the students. The prof. was supposed to have gotten me a textbook from the publisher, but it mysteriously never gets to me, despite the number of times I have approached him about it. I definitely see the “grade grubby-ness” in my course, and they feel like they should get A’s just for showing up. I’m anti-entitlement, so I’m not as much of a pushover as the prof., unless he explicitly overrides me. The previous TA graduated, so I have no one to ask, but during orientation I learned this class has a reputation across the university as being ridiculous for a number of reasons.</p>
<p>RacinReaver- The prof. tried to get another TA, but the department was not able to accommodate his request. He tends to be finicky about me sending emails that override him too. He tends to be more lenient on these students, allowing them to get away with doing less…and what I would ideally do is make them do slightly more (nothing overwhelming, we’re talking 5-10 minutes per assignment).</p>
<p>The big reason I chose this school was because of the funding package they offered (10 credits of tuition/semester plus an 18k/year stipend), despite the program being less than what I was really looking for in terms of studying. I’m finding now that the funding package may not be enough of a draw anymore to remain here when the TA experience has been so dreadful. I wasn’t sure if this was a “normal” TA experience, or if it sounds like this is worse than “normal”.</p>
<p>Do you need to have any other dealings with this professor? If you need to TA for him repeatedly, it might be worth trying to talk with a dean or department head or something of those sorts to try and get things straightened out.</p>
<p>(Also, I’d recommend against complaining about a lack of solution sets for an undergrad course. You’re actually fairly lucky to even get some to work with. I know some classes here where TAs are responsible for writing the problem sets in addition to grading everything and making the solutions. There are even some classes where TAs have to write/grade the tests, as well. =/)</p>
<p>Wahoogrl08, usually students seek out other TA opportunities in their programs once they arrive and get to know the professors. Incoming grad students are often assigned to courses to make sure they all get assignments and to avoid a mad scramble for positions. </p>
<p>Find out what TA-ships are available next semester, and talk to the professors of each. Be very careful not to bad-mouth your current professor or the course; instead say that you’re looking for a better fit. You can tailor your reasons to fit the individual opportunity. For example, if you are applying for a position in an upper-level course, you can say that you want to TA a more challenging course. Or one more closely matched to your research/interests. If it’s for another introductory course, you can say that you enjoy re-visiting the basics but that you’re ready to move other introductory material after TAing for Intro Course A. </p>
<p>Do keep in mind that TAing for a new course always requires more work. If you TA the same course, semester after semester, you have to do less prep work, so it gets easier.</p>