Advice for a new instructor?

[fouler657]

I'm currently a first year Master's student. I've just been informed that in the fall I'll no longer be working as a research assistant, but instead I'll be teaching two sections of an undergraduate class. I'm 23 years old, and it was just last year that I was an undergraduate student. I'm pretty nervous and unsure about how to go about everything. I'm in charge of picking my own textbook, creating my own syllabus, setting my own rules, etc.

If anyone could give me some advice, I would more than appreciate it!

[lyonessrampant]

Ask profs and fellow grad students if they would be willing to share their syllabi with you to give you an idea of materials, how much you can cover in a course, reasonable expectations for student work, and, if possible, maybe go sit in on a couple of those classes being taught now by an experienced professor so you can observe some classroom management strategies. Good luck!

[IRdreams]

I'm currently a first year Master's student. I've just been informed that in the fall I'll no longer be working as a research assistant, but instead I'll be teaching two sections of an undergraduate class. I'm 23 years old, and it was just last year that I was an undergraduate student. I'm pretty nervous and unsure about how to go about everything. I'm in charge of picking my own textbook, creating my own syllabus, setting my own rules, etc.

If anyone could give me some advice, I would more than appreciate it!

The APSA website also has many sample syllabuses which should be good for constructing your own. As to setting rules, what rules will be needed an appropriate will depend greatly upon the culture of your school. For example, if there are rampent grade appeals, you might want to add that grade appeals will only be considered if the student writes a two page memo justifying why they think there has been a mistake (this will save you a lot of time by weeding out all but the most ardent appealers). Related to this is that research is your main job so you want to do everything possible to protect your time. I have rules about far in advance I will answer emails so that I do not get 12am emails the morning an assignment is due.

The other thing to remember is to be confident. Yeah, your not much older than them, but so what? You got into grad school so you have a right to be an authority figure in your classroom. If they sense a lack of confidence they will take advantage of you which will mean TAing will take substantially more time than is ideal. PM if you'd like to talk so more about PoliSci specific stuff. I've tought for IR and American Politics.

[Kessith]

I was a TA for 2 years while doing my Master's and have been teaching at a University as a Lecturer for the past four years. Definitely ask fellow students and faculty if they have any material and advice to share with you, there is no reason to do everything from scratch yourself! You always want to try to think of every eventuality for policies for your syllabus but chances are you will miss something until you've been through a few semesters. Just try and be flexible and don't feel bad if you mess up. It will happen and it happens to everyone! Being confident is good and don't be afraid to act like yourself. You don't have to put on a "professor" persona. If you are asked a question you don't know or get something wrong don't try and cover it up with B.S. Students will respect you more if you just admit your mistake/ignorance and tell them you will get back to them on that particular question. I learned a lot over my years of teaching and it was mostly things you learn from trial and error. Good luck!

[rising_star]

Find your university's teaching center and use all of its resources to help you.

[runonsentence]

Are you teaching freshmen? If so, it'll work to your advantage. You may think you look young, but wait until you walk into the classroom.... And if they're first semester freshmen, they will look absolutely terrified on the first day.

One thing we tell all our master's students here (who teach with full responsibility their very first term!!): remember that no matter how unsure you may feel, you still know more than they do. And hopefully you'll have some department support to help you through this as you go along.

Adopt a persona that's comfortable for you. I tend to dress a bit more formally because it's somewhat natural for me, especially toward the beginning of the term, and ask students to call me "Ms. XX," but some of my colleagues prefer to dress a little more down-to-earth and tell students it's okay to call them by their first name. I've generally found that students respond well to either approach, as long as it's genuine. You should do whatever feels natural to you, department culture and policy permitting, because students will see right through it if you're tottering on high heels/choking in ties just to try to impress them. And you'll always be a more effective presence in the classroom if you're comfortable.

Definitely ask for as much help and as many samples as you can from colleagues. Don't try to reinvent the wheel your first time out!!

Take everything a few steps at a time. And like Kessith said, don't be afraid to mess up or admit you're not sure about something.