Question about liberal arts colleges

Midwestmomofboys
Tue, 28 Jul 2015 14:27:53 +0000

On the TA thing, people seem to use a shorthand to say that TAs teach when in fact, the model is that professors lecture and Ph.D candidates in the subject matter (a/k/a TAs) lead small discussion sections, typically of 15-25 students, to review the material, discuss the concepts, explore it in more detail. Those Ph.D. candidates typically grade the exams, papers, participation in discussion section etc., so the course grade comes from the TA rather than the professor who lectures. TAs are the ones who know the student’s work in a large lecture class.

While there are less than stellar TAs out there, anywhere, there are also superb ones. These are essentially young academics preparing to enter their field. They are energetic, excited to share the subject with students, and can be great role models and instructors. My kid at UW has had great TAs and perfectly fine TAs. There isn’t anything inherently wrong with that model of instruction, its just different from the LAC model which is a professor who leads course, and grades the student work. Sometimes, Ph.D. candidates who are close to completing their program may teach an upper level seminar course in their area of expertise, an opportunity to learn from an expert in the field.