Teaching Assistants' Training Program

Description

Group work is a recurring aspect of academic learning experiences. As an instructional tool—whether collaborative, cooperative, or problem-based—it can facilitate students’ active engagement in their learning, encourage team building and skill development (e.g. communication, problem-solving, and decision-making, etc.), and bring forward different perspectives. However, there are also many challenges associated with group work, such as maintaining group agreement, fair work division, opportunities for equitable participation, and time management. Fair evaluation of group work can also be a challenge for many TAs/CIs. By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to articulate the benefits of employing group work in their classrooms, identify common challenges and address them with concrete strategies, and apply strategies for facilitating effective group work in their classrooms.