COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical Development
ABSTRACT When coordinating teams of teaching assistants (TAs) in our courses, it can be time and resource prohibitive to provide mentorship for individual professional development of their teaching. Peer observation of teaching is a useful and effective approach for professional development and for...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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American Society for Microbiology
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.00191-22 |
| _version_ | 1797739362135310336 |
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| author | Megan K. Barker |
| author_facet | Megan K. Barker |
| author_sort | Megan K. Barker |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT When coordinating teams of teaching assistants (TAs) in our courses, it can be time and resource prohibitive to provide mentorship for individual professional development of their teaching. Peer observation of teaching is a useful and effective approach for professional development and for forming a community of practice that TAs can engage in. However, structured peer observation can require substantial training – which may make it infeasible for large teams of TAs with variable teaching expertise and limited contract hours. This article describes the development of an observation protocol, adapted for the TA context, from the Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate STEM (COPUS; by Smith et al. 2013). We have used this successfully, with very minimal training (15-min discussion plus one practice observation). I include the modified form (COPUS-TA) for practical and immediate use in supporting the development of TAs’ teaching skills. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T13:56:45Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-51e4d383cdd540c589ec6b9e96add0b3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1935-7877 1935-7885 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T13:56:45Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | American Society for Microbiology |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education |
| spelling | doaj.art-51e4d383cdd540c589ec6b9e96add0b32023-08-22T13:00:40ZengAmerican Society for MicrobiologyJournal of Microbiology & Biology Education1935-78771935-78852023-08-0124210.1128/jmbe.00191-22COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical DevelopmentMegan K. Barker0Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, CanadaABSTRACT When coordinating teams of teaching assistants (TAs) in our courses, it can be time and resource prohibitive to provide mentorship for individual professional development of their teaching. Peer observation of teaching is a useful and effective approach for professional development and for forming a community of practice that TAs can engage in. However, structured peer observation can require substantial training – which may make it infeasible for large teams of TAs with variable teaching expertise and limited contract hours. This article describes the development of an observation protocol, adapted for the TA context, from the Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate STEM (COPUS; by Smith et al. 2013). We have used this successfully, with very minimal training (15-min discussion plus one practice observation). I include the modified form (COPUS-TA) for practical and immediate use in supporting the development of TAs’ teaching skills.https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.00191-22peer observationclassroom observation protocolTA developmentTA supportcommunity of practicementorship |
| spellingShingle | Megan K. Barker COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical Development Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education peer observation classroom observation protocol TA development TA support community of practice mentorship |
| title | COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical Development |
| title_full | COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical Development |
| title_fullStr | COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical Development |
| title_full_unstemmed | COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical Development |
| title_short | COPUS-TA: An “Entry-Level” Peer Observation Tool to Support Teaching Assistant Professional Pedagogical Development |
| title_sort | copus ta an entry level peer observation tool to support teaching assistant professional pedagogical development |
| topic | peer observation classroom observation protocol TA development TA support community of practice mentorship |
| url | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.00191-22 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT megankbarker copustaanentrylevelpeerobservationtooltosupportteachingassistantprofessionalpedagogicaldevelopment |