Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistant
Effective physics instruction benefits from respecting the physics ideas that introductory students bring into the classroom. We argue that it is similarly beneficial to respect the teaching ideas that novice physics instructors bring to their classrooms. We present a case study of a tutorial teachi...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
American Physical Society
2010-12-01
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| Series: | Physical Review Special Topics. Physics Education Research |
| Online Access: | http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.6.020125 |
| _version_ | 1818690168935153664 |
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| author | Andrew Elby Rachel E. Scherr Renee Michelle Goertzen |
| author_facet | Andrew Elby Rachel E. Scherr Renee Michelle Goertzen |
| author_sort | Andrew Elby |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Effective physics instruction benefits from respecting the physics ideas that introductory students bring into the classroom. We argue that it is similarly beneficial to respect the teaching ideas that novice physics instructors bring to their classrooms. We present a case study of a tutorial teaching assistant (TA), Alan. When we first examined Alan’s teaching, we focused our attention on the mismatch between his actions and those advocated by the TA instructors. Further study showed us that Alan cared about helping his students and that his teaching was well integrated with his beliefs about how students learn physics and how teachers can best assist students. Learning about Alan’s beliefs and motivations changed our thinking about what might constitute effective professional development for Alan and other TAs. We advocate a new perspective on TA professional development: one in which TAs are seen as partners in the endeavor of educating students and one that seeks to find and build upon productive elements in their beliefs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-17T12:21:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-63904d44ad644158a981af04d5279a22 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1554-9178 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-17T12:21:43Z |
| publishDate | 2010-12-01 |
| publisher | American Physical Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Physical Review Special Topics. Physics Education Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-63904d44ad644158a981af04d5279a222022-12-21T21:48:57ZengAmerican Physical SocietyPhysical Review Special Topics. Physics Education Research1554-91782010-12-0162Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistantAndrew ElbyRachel E. ScherrRenee Michelle GoertzenEffective physics instruction benefits from respecting the physics ideas that introductory students bring into the classroom. We argue that it is similarly beneficial to respect the teaching ideas that novice physics instructors bring to their classrooms. We present a case study of a tutorial teaching assistant (TA), Alan. When we first examined Alan’s teaching, we focused our attention on the mismatch between his actions and those advocated by the TA instructors. Further study showed us that Alan cared about helping his students and that his teaching was well integrated with his beliefs about how students learn physics and how teachers can best assist students. Learning about Alan’s beliefs and motivations changed our thinking about what might constitute effective professional development for Alan and other TAs. We advocate a new perspective on TA professional development: one in which TAs are seen as partners in the endeavor of educating students and one that seeks to find and build upon productive elements in their beliefs.http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.6.020125 |
| spellingShingle | Andrew Elby Rachel E. Scherr Renee Michelle Goertzen Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistant Physical Review Special Topics. Physics Education Research |
| title | Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistant |
| title_full | Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistant |
| title_fullStr | Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistant |
| title_full_unstemmed | Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistant |
| title_short | Respecting tutorial instructors' beliefs and experiences: A case study of a physics teaching assistant |
| title_sort | respecting tutorial instructors beliefs and experiences a case study of a physics teaching assistant |
| url | http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.6.020125 |
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