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retroactive Experience

College of Engineering and Applied Science Teaching Assistant Retroactive Experience

Aratrika Pan – University Honors Program

 

               During my Sophomore year at the University of Cincinnati, I was a Peer Teaching Assistant at the College of Engineering and Applied Science. My main responsibilities involved mentoring undergraduate engineering students in STEM courses primarily, MATLAB programming, Excel and General Science courses such as Chemistry and Physics, monitoring in class discussions, leading review sessions, and holding weekly office hours. I was also required to evaluate and grade comprehension check questions and class assignments.

               The first segment of the work entailed supervising a Models I class which primarily consisted of MATLAB and Excel Programming. There was a total of 102 students that were divided in to three sections and there was a Peer Teaching Assistant responsible for supervising the 32 students in each section. The second part of the job involved serving as a resource at the Engineering Tutor Center which is a center where students can ask the Peer Teaching Assistants for help and guidance regarding General Science and Programming courses. Students were assigned a Lab assignment and a Homework assignment for the class each week and students are directed to the Peer TAs for guidance.

                Being a Peer Teaching Assistant is an extremely rewarding experience because there is a great sense of accomplishment in seeing the growth and development of the students over the semester. What I loved the most about the position was the types of questions that the students would ask. Some of the questions that are asked by students can really make you open minded and get you thinking.

               The University of Cincinnati and the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive learning environment for all its students. Being a huge advocate for diversity myself, I understood that I would have to ensure inclusive interactions with the students for which I am responsible. Diversity is the celebration of people’s differences and uniqueness. Having grown up in multiple countries and visited many more, I understand that the concept of diversity and inclusion omits the use of labels. In a diverse environment like a university, there will be people from all over the world, students of all ages, be it traditional or non-traditional, students from different racial backgrounds and ethnicities, students with disabilities, students with different sexualities and it is very important that the student feels safe and comfortable in expressing themselves. As a Peer-TA and specifically as a student at UC, it is my responsibility to create this safe atmosphere and make sure that students can feel like themselves in their own skin. Despite all differences, we are all equal and we are all the same as we are in this institution to achieve our common goal which is to create our careers.

              

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College of Engineering and Applied Sciences Tutoring Center: https://ceas.uc.edu/dee/fep_and_ease_students/the_learning_center.html

University of Cincinnati Tutoring Center: https://www.uc.edu/learningcommons/tutoring.html

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