Your role as a teaching assistant

Teaching assistants (TAs) are an integral part of the teaching community, often acting as a bridge between the students and the instructor.

Whether you are stepping into your first teaching assistant position or have been a TA in previous semesters, your experience in this role can extend beyond your time at Concordia. Teaching assistantships can help prepare you for a future teaching career in academia by practising clear and concise communication with students and assessment of student work. Teaching assistantships also help to develop transferable skills that are highly valued outside of academia. Leading labs, tutorials, or studios help develop facilitation skills, while the role generally provides an opportunity to develop leadership and interpersonal communication skills.

In general, there are two different types of teaching assistant roles at Concordia: Tutorial/Studio/Lab Leader and Marker/Grader. The main difference between the roles is the former can be responsible for teaching and grading, while the latter only focuses on grading. Although your role and responsibilities may vary greatly, there are several common and essential TA competencies. Teaching assistants should be able to:

• Exhibit respect and empathy for students
• Present information clearly
• Use effective discussion and questioning techniques
• Engage students with the learning materials by using active learning methods
• Facilitate student learning by conveying feedback effectively
• Construct valid and reliable assessments of student learning
• Provide fair evaluations
• Communicate and manage appropriate expectations for achievement in the course
• Conduct themselves according to high standards of professionalism and ethics

Essential TA competencies compiled from Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (2008), Prieto & Meyers (2001), and Schönwetter & Ellis (2009) via Fraser et al., (2017).

At the start of your role, it may be helpful to reflect on what prior experience you bring with you, what competencies or goals you’d like to work on during your position, and what you’d like to get out of this experience.

Rights and responsibilities

As an employee and student at the university, you are protected and guided by the Code of Rights and Responsibilities, which sets the standards of conduct for all members of Concordia. This applies to incidents that occur on campus, during an on or off campus university-sponsored activity or event, or during an activity or event that has a substantive link to the university. The Code also promotes equity, respect and diversity, and seeks to address behaviours such as discrimination, violence, and harassment.

Be sure to familiarize yourself with the Code for a complete list of behaviours.

Sexual violence

Any member of the University might be a witness to sexual violence or could be approached by someone wishing to disclose, report or complain about an incident of sexual violence. Any member of the University, especially those acting in supervisory and instructor capacities, who receives a disclosure alleging any form of Sexual Violence, has the responsibility to:

• consult the Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC), the Office of Rights and Responsibilities or Human Resources for confidential debriefing and advice on how to handle the incident that is disclosed; and
• refer survivors/victims to SARC.

Relationships and boundaries

Becoming a teaching assistant may be the first time you are placed in a position of power over other students – your relationship to the students in your course is that of an instructor rather than a fellow student. You may spend a substantial amount of time working directly with students and have an impact on their academic success. When personal and professional relations become blurred, conflicts of interest can arise – placing both students and TAs in vulnerable positions. Giving some advance thought to where and how you will draw your professional boundaries will help you avoid these problems and will benefit your students in the long term.

If a personal relationship should develop (or be pre-existing), it is important to disclose this immediately to your supervising instructor to plan for and manage the conflict of interest. It is not recommended to engage in romantic or sexual relationships with students that fall within your responsibility as a TA. You read the University’s full guidelines on Consensual Romantic or Sexual Relationships here.

As a primary point of contact to students, you may come across issues that are outside the scope of your role. You can be empathetic to students, but never try to provide advice or become involved. If you are ever made aware of such issues, refer the student(s) to the appropriate resource on campus or speak to your instructor.