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Would i make a good graduate teaching assistant?
First, be dependable.
Second, ask questions.
Schedule a meeting with your supervising professor at the beginning of each term to ask about your basic duties. Be sure you know ahead of time when you should be in class, what you will be doing in and out of the classroom, etc. Some professors will initiate this meeting, but it is a good idea to have one even if that is not the case. Not only will it help you to plan your time and have a general idea of what you will be doing; it will demonstrate that you have initiative.
As the term continues, don’t be afraid to ask whatever questions you may have about each task you are given. It is far better to clarify something – even if you feel you should know what to do – than to face your supervising professor with a stack of incorrectly graded papers or a course website with several egregious errors several days later. To put it another way, your supervising professor will value competency far more than expertise. You will not be thought ignorant for asking questions about course content, grading procedures, or any such thing. Questions are expected. Ask them.
Third, make it a learning experience.
Fourth, relish your role.
On our first day of orientation, the department chair of my graduate program told all of the new teaching assistants that we would now be occupying a special place in academic culture – one we would never occupy again later. We would be a combination of friend, mentor and guide to our students, and often times, we would be seen as more approachable than a professor yet more knowledgeable than a fellow student. She also advised us to relish this particular role, because it’s literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. She was absolutely right, and so I pass along her words of wisdom. Embrace your status as a go-between, and you will enjoy as well as benefit from the experience.
About the Author: Ann van der Merwe is a singer and music historian based in southwest Ohio. She holds a B.M. in music performance and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in music history.