How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traits
IntroductionGraduate students engage in college teaching with varied attitudes and approaches. Their teaching practices may be influenced by professional development experiences related to pedagogy, and their personality traits.MethodsThrough an online survey of graduate students teaching undergradu...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-02-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Education |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2023.982998/full |
| _version_ | 1797934956962381824 |
|---|---|
| author | Elizabeth S. Che Elizabeth S. Che Patricia J. Brooks Patricia J. Brooks Anna M. Schwartz Ethlyn S. Saltzman Ronald C. Whiteman |
| author_facet | Elizabeth S. Che Elizabeth S. Che Patricia J. Brooks Patricia J. Brooks Anna M. Schwartz Ethlyn S. Saltzman Ronald C. Whiteman |
| author_sort | Elizabeth S. Che |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionGraduate students engage in college teaching with varied attitudes and approaches. Their teaching practices may be influenced by professional development experiences related to pedagogy, and their personality traits.MethodsThrough an online survey of graduate students teaching undergraduate courses (N = 109, 69.7% women, M age = 30 years, 59% psychology), we examined whether self-reported participation in professional development related to pedagogy, teaching assistantship (TA) experience, academic discipline (psychology vs. other), and Big Five personality traits were associated with variation in teaching practices.ResultsParticipation in professional development correlated positively with years of undergraduate teaching experience and with the trait of openness. Hierarchical regressions indicated that professional development served to promote student-focused practices and discouraged lecturing, while TA experience (mostly restricted to psychology instructors) promoted lecturing and discouraged a student-focused approach. Regarding academic discipline, psychology instructors gave higher endorsements to an information transmission, teacher-focused approach to teaching, lectured more, and were less likely to provoke debate than instructors of other disciplines. Such differences may be attributed in part to larger enrollments of psychology courses. Regarding personality traits, both openness and agreeableness were associated with some student-focused practices, while conscientiousness was associated with an information transmission, teacher-focused approach and with practices aligned with backward course design.DiscussionIn light of previous evidence that personality traits are malleable, graduate training programs may want to cultivate traits like openness as a means of encouraging graduate students to reflect on their pedagogy and seek ways to improve their teaching through professional development. Relatedly, graduate programs should aim to support students’ participation in professional development related to pedagogy and, in doing so, communicate its value. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T18:08:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4ae02889665e4c66bf35975d34cb5e94 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2504-284X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T18:08:04Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Education |
| spelling | doaj.art-4ae02889665e4c66bf35975d34cb5e942023-02-02T12:22:44ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Education2504-284X2023-02-01810.3389/feduc.2023.982998982998How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traitsElizabeth S. Che0Elizabeth S. Che1Patricia J. Brooks2Patricia J. Brooks3Anna M. Schwartz4Ethlyn S. Saltzman5Ronald C. Whiteman6Department of Psychology, College of Staten Island, City University of New York, Staten Island, NY, United StatesDepartment of Educational Psychology, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, NY, United StatesDepartment of Psychology, College of Staten Island, City University of New York, Staten Island, NY, United StatesDepartment of Educational Psychology, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, NY, United StatesBouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, United StatesDepartment of Educational Psychology, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, NY, United StatesDepartment of Psychology, Baruch College, City University of New York, New York, NY, United StatesIntroductionGraduate students engage in college teaching with varied attitudes and approaches. Their teaching practices may be influenced by professional development experiences related to pedagogy, and their personality traits.MethodsThrough an online survey of graduate students teaching undergraduate courses (N = 109, 69.7% women, M age = 30 years, 59% psychology), we examined whether self-reported participation in professional development related to pedagogy, teaching assistantship (TA) experience, academic discipline (psychology vs. other), and Big Five personality traits were associated with variation in teaching practices.ResultsParticipation in professional development correlated positively with years of undergraduate teaching experience and with the trait of openness. Hierarchical regressions indicated that professional development served to promote student-focused practices and discouraged lecturing, while TA experience (mostly restricted to psychology instructors) promoted lecturing and discouraged a student-focused approach. Regarding academic discipline, psychology instructors gave higher endorsements to an information transmission, teacher-focused approach to teaching, lectured more, and were less likely to provoke debate than instructors of other disciplines. Such differences may be attributed in part to larger enrollments of psychology courses. Regarding personality traits, both openness and agreeableness were associated with some student-focused practices, while conscientiousness was associated with an information transmission, teacher-focused approach and with practices aligned with backward course design.DiscussionIn light of previous evidence that personality traits are malleable, graduate training programs may want to cultivate traits like openness as a means of encouraging graduate students to reflect on their pedagogy and seek ways to improve their teaching through professional development. Relatedly, graduate programs should aim to support students’ participation in professional development related to pedagogy and, in doing so, communicate its value.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2023.982998/fullgraduate studentsteaching assistantshipprofessional developmentBig Five traitsapproaches to teaching |
| spellingShingle | Elizabeth S. Che Elizabeth S. Che Patricia J. Brooks Patricia J. Brooks Anna M. Schwartz Ethlyn S. Saltzman Ronald C. Whiteman How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traits Frontiers in Education graduate students teaching assistantship professional development Big Five traits approaches to teaching |
| title | How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traits |
| title_full | How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traits |
| title_fullStr | How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traits |
| title_full_unstemmed | How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traits |
| title_short | How do graduate students approach college teaching? Influences of professional development, teaching assistantships, and Big Five personality traits |
| title_sort | how do graduate students approach college teaching influences of professional development teaching assistantships and big five personality traits |
| topic | graduate students teaching assistantship professional development Big Five traits approaches to teaching |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2023.982998/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT elizabethsche howdograduatestudentsapproachcollegeteachinginfluencesofprofessionaldevelopmentteachingassistantshipsandbigfivepersonalitytraits AT elizabethsche howdograduatestudentsapproachcollegeteachinginfluencesofprofessionaldevelopmentteachingassistantshipsandbigfivepersonalitytraits AT patriciajbrooks howdograduatestudentsapproachcollegeteachinginfluencesofprofessionaldevelopmentteachingassistantshipsandbigfivepersonalitytraits AT patriciajbrooks howdograduatestudentsapproachcollegeteachinginfluencesofprofessionaldevelopmentteachingassistantshipsandbigfivepersonalitytraits AT annamschwartz howdograduatestudentsapproachcollegeteachinginfluencesofprofessionaldevelopmentteachingassistantshipsandbigfivepersonalitytraits AT ethlynssaltzman howdograduatestudentsapproachcollegeteachinginfluencesofprofessionaldevelopmentteachingassistantshipsandbigfivepersonalitytraits AT ronaldcwhiteman howdograduatestudentsapproachcollegeteachinginfluencesofprofessionaldevelopmentteachingassistantshipsandbigfivepersonalitytraits |