1. Classroom management Organization, organization, organization!
Arrive a little early
Hand out a syllabus on the first day & go through it with the students (p 133 McGlynn)
Be thoroughly prepared for each class period
End class on time
Teaching is a profession – be professional
Maintain a collegial atmosphere in the classroom
Maintain a professional attitude towards your students
While there is no dress code, students will respond to your appearance

2. Classroom management Student “incivility” (p101 McGlynn)
Causes: entitlement, consumerism, lack of respect for authority/teachers, feeling anonymous & disconnected, lack of congruence between student & teacher expectations
Whatever the cause, it can take just a few students to ruin the class for everyone
Proactive ways to deal with incivility
Be professional
Get to know your students
Clearly communicate your expectations
Listen to your students – make sure your expectations are reasonable
Be consistent
Keep students engaged during class with frequent
Be professional
Get to know your students
Clearly communicate your expecations
Be consistent
Keep students engaged during class with frequent interactive activities

4. Effective teaching in a laboratory setting
Julanna Gilbert, Director
Center for Teaching & Learning
University of Denver

5. A first day activity Break into groups by counting off as instructed.
Getting to know you!
Introduce yourselves to each other
Tell your group members one thing about yourself that you would like them to know

6. The Nuts & Bolts of Being a Competent GTA
Groups count off as instructed – select your topic from this list & decide on 4 reasons why your topic is important. Write them down.
Organization
Grading, office hours
Conduct
Clarification of expectations
NOTE: In science labs, safety is also the GTA’s responsibility

7. The Art of being an Exceptional GTA
Establishing a welcoming environment
Allowing students to present in class
Show respect for your students
Teaching is about the students not about the teacher

8. Students in the Laboratory
Usually work in groups
Need supervision/direction
May need help in understanding how the lab experience is related to course work.

9. Apply Cooperative Learning Strategies
Cooperative learning: when a group of students work together on an assignment that is purposely structured so that all members of the group participate & cooperate to learn the material
Decades of study have shown this to be an extraordinarily successful learning method!

10. Forming Student Groups in the Laboratory
Group size
Large groups have trouble keeping everyone engaged
Group makeup
Mixing students provides an equal opportunity for success
Should stay together for an extended period of time (eg, for the entire term)
Students “bond” - learn how to work together effectively (interpersonal skills, positive interdependence)
Provide opportunities for evaluation of peers
Provides incentive for individual responsibility
Provide opportunities for evaluation of group
Provides a time for group to reflect on how well it is doing

11. Getting Started - Implementation
Include CL exercises in the syllabus, explain CL to students
Select groups
Monitor the groups
Ask and answer questions
Explore individual understanding
Be sensitive to group interactions
Show enthusiasm for creative thinking!!!
It is highly recommended that you tell the students what you are doing and why. Otherwise they will assume the worst! They need to know that this is a proven method, that it has been used successfully in higher education, lab settings, classroom settings, etc.
Formal cooperative learning is different from active learning. For an active learning exercise, you might pose a question to the class, and tell them to discuss it with the individuals sitting next to them. You don’t worry about the composition of the groups. This is a good way to break up a lecture and get the students engaged, but it is not CL. In CL, the instructor sets up the groups, trying to achieve as much diversity as possible. Many instructors have said that three students per group is optimum, but this could depend on the specific activity. Some think that two student groups are too small with not enough diversity of ideas and no third person to help resolve conflicts. There are also potential issues with groups of five students – it is easy for one student to not fully participate without the others worrying too much about it.

12. Finally
Take responsibility for and ownership of your teaching to make this the best experience for you and your students.