Discipline-Based Professional Development

A Conceptual Framework for Graduate Teaching Assistant Professional Development Evaluation and Research

“…, 2014 ). As noted previously in the literature, TPD content and structure vary considerably from institution to institution and across different institutional contexts ( Marbach-Ad et al ., 2015a ; Schussler et al ., 2015 ), including institutional cultural differences with respect to how teaching is viewed ( Serow et al. , 2002 ).…”

“…In this context, at its core, formative evaluation endeavors to inform iteratively the quality of GTA TPD program design and implementation. As an example of a formative evaluative activity, a GTA TPD program staff member might collect data after the first of two TPD sessions to identify content GTAs would like to revisit during the third TPD session ( Marbach-Ad et al ., 2015a ). Summative evaluation, on the other hand, aims to summarize what happened as a result of GTA TPD program implementation.…”

“…(1997) findings are suggestive of a key role of institutional type (e.g., research-intensive university) in shaping GTA TPD design, (arguably) other variables are important as well. For example, the typical teaching role of the GTA at a particular institution (e.g., facilitating discussion sessions, coordinating laboratory sessions, or grading assignments) and the presence of a faculty development unit (e.g., Center for Teaching and Learning; Marbach-Ad et al ., 2015a ) might also affect the design of a GTA TPD program, specifically its duration, structure, or content.…”

“…The current literature base for GTA TPD is primarily limited to small-scale evaluation studies concerning individual TPD programs ( Abbott et al. , 1989 ; Marbach-Ad et al ., 2015a ). Though these studies can be used to suggest practices that TPD leaders may adopt, there is no guarantee that what worked at one institution will effectively transfer to a different context.…”

Preparing Biology Graduate Teaching Assistants for Their Roles as Instructors: An Assessment of Institutional Approaches

“…The question of how to get more institutional support for GTA PD is often not easy; nor is it easy to know who to approach for such support. Institutional teaching and learning centers may be one place to start with these efforts, since they often have connections with influential members of the administration and/or could help to initiate and sustain interdisciplinary collaborations for PD ( Marbach-Ad et al ., 2012b , 2015 a). Working with institutional teaching and learning centers to develop cross-departmental GTA PD programs may also centralize some components of PD ( Amundsen and Wilson, 2012 ) and bring additional visibility to these efforts.…”