Happy 2019, and welcome to the UTA Program! This post follows up on several recent conversations I’ve had with new instructors on the goals of the UTA Program and how we meet them.
Goals of the UTA Program
The UTA Program is designed to increase student success in English classes. UTAs halve the student-to-teacher ratio, giving students more individual support in and out of class and more feedback on their writing. UTAs help communicate course and assignment expectations, work with students in and out of the classroom, and model how to become successful writers, researchers, and young scholars in our various subfields and discourse communities.
The UTA Program differs from other campus college teaching preparation courses and peer mentor programs in several important ways:
- The UTA Program is specifically for English Department classes, which means that the pedagogy and best practices UTAs learn in ENGL388V is tailored to discussion-based humanities classes and writing-intensive courses.
- The UTA Program is instructor-centered and flexible. It is adapted to meet instructors’ and UTAs’ needs for their courses, including courses that are not writing-intensive and courses taught in blended and online formats
- 388V is structured as a majority-internship Scholarship in Practice course. The 388V coursework accounts for 25% of UTAs’ time; the other 75% is with their students and instructors in the course for which they are UTAing
- The UTA Program is supported by an in-house coordinator (me) who has been working with UTAs for seven years in a range of classes for AWP, PWP, and Main English and in a variety of formats, including 100% face-to-face, blended, and 100% online
I support instructors by providing materials I’ve developed and resources I’ve collected over the years and posting them on this UTA Program website I’ve created for instructors. I update this website continuously, write instructors regularly throughout the semester, and am always available for 1:1 assistance in person (TWS 2103, T/W), by video chat or phone M/R/F, and by email.
What UTAs get out of this experience
Through this experience, UTAs develop critical leadership and interpersonal skills. Through responding to a variety of overlapping and often divergent needs from their students, their instructors, and their peers in 388V, they become more agile and effective communicators. UTAs quickly improve their time management and decision-making skills as they balance their responsibilities as UTAs with their responsibilities as students in their other classes. UTAs strengthen their initiative and ability to work independently: they become more self-directed and proactive as they reach out to students who may need help without being told to do so, and they become more capable and confident as they approach their instructors with suggestions about the course. Throughout all of this, UTAs develop precisely the skills most valued in professional settings while enjoying the support and guidance they receive in 388V and with their instructors.
I support UTAs by teaching 388V, the course that new and returning UTAs take, which I update every semester in response to UTA and instructor feedback. More details on 388V are on the About 388V page.
What UTAs do
I am committed to instructor autonomy. I believe that instructors and UTAs are best positioned to determine UTAs’ specific responsibilities. At the same time, I am committed to our UTAs. I want them to have a rewarding, enriching experience. You can help your UTAs get the most out of this by giving them opportunities to apply the skills that they develop in 388V.
As such, I ask that all UTAs be encouraged to do the following in their classes:
- Be active participants in the classroom (face-to-face instructors)
- Your students will look to you to determine how much confidence to have in their UTAs. If you frequently reference your UTAs, invite them to chime in when you’re explaining something, and ask them to speak in front of students early and often, your students will see that you value your UTAs’ experience and insight, and they will be much more likely to turn to your UTAs for help. If, however, your UTAs don’t have much to do during class and rarely speak, your students won’t reach out to them beyond an occasional question about ELMS.
- For examples of what this can look like, please see In class
- Here’s an instructor’s (anonymized) account of what this looked like in (their) class:
- Your students will look to you to determine how much confidence to have in their UTAs. If you frequently reference your UTAs, invite them to chime in when you’re explaining something, and ask them to speak in front of students early and often, your students will see that you value your UTAs’ experience and insight, and they will be much more likely to turn to your UTAs for help. If, however, your UTAs don’t have much to do during class and rarely speak, your students won’t reach out to them beyond an occasional question about ELMS.
My UTAs attended every class session and were fully prepared for each day’s lesson. They established an immediate rapport with students; first by introducing themselves on the discussion board, and then in class each day by taking attendance. I always ask a “Question of the Day” to record attendance. It’s a way for the students and I to all get to know each other and engage in conversation. The questions are usually fun and whimsical. [My UTAs] took attendance for their classes and came up with their own questions. They immediately put the students at ease and developed a trusting relationship from day one. Consequently, students felt comfortable emailing them questions, discussing their work, and requesting office hour appointments. [My UTAs] also facilitated group work, both online and in class. It was evident to me that the students looked up to [them]. The classroom atmosphere was positively enhanced all semester because of their friendliness and concern for the students’ well-being.
—Fall 18 Instructor
- Present at least one “lesson plan” in front of class
- I enclose “lesson plan” in quotation marks for two reasons: 1) it’s mostly a secondary education concept, one that not all of us were formally taught when we learned how to teach, and 2) I define it broadly. Very broadly.
- More on the lesson plan requirement can be found here: Lesson Plans
- I enclose “lesson plan” in quotation marks for two reasons: 1) it’s mostly a secondary education concept, one that not all of us were formally taught when we learned how to teach, and 2) I define it broadly. Very broadly.
- Work one-on-one with students in some capacity
- UTAs learn how to respond to student writing in 388V. If you’re teaching a writing-intensive course or have at least one major writing assignment, your UTAs are expected to work with students on their writing. How precisely this happens—in class, out of class during office hours or by appointment, out of class during UTA-student conferences/ UTA-instructor-student conferences, etc.—is entirely up to you.
- For more on this, please see Responding to student writing and out of class
- UTAs learn how to respond to student writing in 388V. If you’re teaching a writing-intensive course or have at least one major writing assignment, your UTAs are expected to work with students on their writing. How precisely this happens—in class, out of class during office hours or by appointment, out of class during UTA-student conferences/ UTA-instructor-student conferences, etc.—is entirely up to you.
I strongly encourage you to browse the UTA Portfolios on the website to get a sense of what UTAs do in the classroom and how they benefit from this experience. You might read the final reflective essay for a comprehensive look at what UTAs do. These portfolios are all from returning UTAs, so you’ll see more than one final reflective essay on most of them. (This is also a great resource to see what UTAs do for their lesson plans.)
How instructors support UTAs
Ultimately, this experience is for UTAs: they are registering (i.e., paying) for a course designed to be a rewarding, beneficial experience. Instructors can support UTAs by reading my emails, which will be archived as blog posts on the website; browsing the resources and advice on the website; and checking in with UTAs during weekly planning meetings.
I have provided a handy To Do List for new instructors on the website. This 8-step guide will help you navigate (and prioritize) all of these suggestions and materials. Early next week, I will write all Spring 19 instructors with key items to consider over the next two weeks.
Until then, thank you for reading through this lengthy missive. I hope that it is useful to you as you prepare for working with your UTAs this semester. If you have any questions on anything, please do not hesitate to ask.