Making large classes feel small: An examination of student interactions with undergraduate teaching assistants.

Abstract

The current pattern of class size increases and funding decreases have forced introductory course instructors to develop increasingly creative teaching methods. The use of undergraduate teaching assistants (UTAs) is a viable option, especially if departments lack funding for graduate teaching assistants. According to previous research, the use of UTAs is beneficial for both the students and the UTAs themselves. However, the nature of the direct relationship between students and UTAs is unknown. This project looked at the frequency and content of student interactions with UTAs in two large sections of introductory psychology. Each section was divided into eight teams with a UTA heading each team. To explore the interactions between UTAs and students, team GroupMe conversations were obtained for two week-long periods during the semester. Teams were categorized as high, medium, and low engagement based on the number of interactions reported; the interactions were then coded based on topic. We examined the relationship between UTA interactions, self-report data (e.g., course satisfaction, subject matter interest, satisfaction with UTAs), and academic outcome variables such as exam scores and final grades. We found that low-interacting groups more frequently engaged in classrelated conversations, while high-interacting groups more frequently engaged in humorous and non-class-related dialogue. Low-interaction groups rated their UTAs lower in quality, responsibility, and usefulness than the high-interaction groups. However, frequency of interaction did not predict class interest or ratings of team usefulness. The frequency of team interaction significantly predicted final course grades, with the medium-interaction groups earning the highest marks.

Flexible teaching during a pandemic and beyond: A reflection on lessons learned from the society for the teaching of psychology’s pivot teaching committee.

“…Finally, it should be noted that groups can also be established for the exclusive purpose of peer support, rather than to facilitate assignment completion. Previous research on teaching with teams has demonstrated the efficacy of this type of course design (Cavazos, Riggenbach, et al, 2021;Whisenhunt et al, 2019). This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.…”

Exploring UTA Effectiveness: Leveraging Undergraduate Teaching Assistants for Student Learning and Help-Seeking

“…Data on the benefits of student participation in peer-facilitated workshops is compelling. PLTL, SI, and UTA experiences are positively associated with course grades (Pennington et al, 2021; Stewart et al, 2007) comprehensive final exam scores (Lewis, 2011), pass rates (Horwitz & Rodger, 2009), retention from one class level to next (Mitchell et al, 2012), and emotional support in challenging classes (Cavazos et al, 2021). Although peer-facilitators may differ in the scope of their responsibilities, the linchpin of students’ success is often the peer-led supplemental workshop and their positive outcomes, which affirm the recommendations made by early progenitors of such programs (Gafney, 2001; Varma-Nelson & Gosser, 2004).…”

An introduction to the special issues on teaching the introductory psychology course.

“…In short, to boost performance and interest in psychology, design engagement into the course.Students who feel like outsiders may not be engaged by introductory psychology, so another theme is to foster students' sense of belonging. Like engagement, belonging predicts course performance (Yust et al, 2021), but students vary in how much they connect with their classmates (Cavazos et al, 2021) and some students do not see themselves represented in the science of psychology (Prevatt et al, 2021). Gender and multiculturalism are the two topics most likely to be omitted from the course (Richmond et al, 2021), and that is a missed opportunity to demonstrate the value of diversity in psychology.…”

“…To help students succeed, introductory psychology teachers can explicitly teach students about effective learning techniques (Richmond et al, 2021) and design their course activities and materials to maximize learning (Altman et al, 2021; Moen, 2021). Also, instructors can connect students to peers, teaching assistants (Cavazos et al, 2021), and learning centers (Grewe et al, 2021).…”

“…And of course, each article in the special sections represents yet another resource.Another key theme in special sections is the importance of engaging students. Engagement predicts introductory psychology students' performance in the course and their interest in the field (Yust et al, 2021), so it is worthwhile to increase engagement by using a variety of teaching methods (Richmond et al, 2021), giving students opportunities to interact (Cavazos et al, 2021), organizing the course around important themes (Halonen et al, 2021), and assigning creative and rewarding work (Altman et al, 2021;Prevatt et al, 2021). In short, to boost performance and interest in psychology, design engagement into the course.Students who feel like outsiders may not be engaged by introductory psychology, so another theme is to foster students' sense of belonging.…”