Saturday, June 16, 2007
Spring 2007 Math 20D Evaluation Results
If you've looked at my poker blog, then you would know that I like record-keeping and data. I've compiled the results from my TA Evaulations and put them in a this document for future reference.
Friday, June 15, 2007
What must I get on the final to earn an A?
I bumped into a professor in the math department the other day on the way to the math department party and during the course of the conversation he shared the following little anecdote that I think is worth sharing:
Why is it that students ask, "How well must I do on the final to earn ...?" If you them that they must get 80% on the final to earn a B, are they somehow more capable of getting an 80%?
Non-rhetorically, why do students ask this absurd question? I don't know, but I think it's all an illusion and I dislike it. Instead of the "do the best you can" mentality I hope for students to have, the exam is seen as a game of grades. Yes, the assessment leads to a grade, but the grade is the afterthought to the educational value of the content being taught. The right question is "What can I learn?" not "What must I do?"
Thinking about this question has made me contemplate the type of response I should have to students who ask that question. I have gone through a few which I've listed here along with some commentary:
Why is it that students ask, "How well must I do on the final to earn ...?" If you them that they must get 80% on the final to earn a B, are they somehow more capable of getting an 80%?
Non-rhetorically, why do students ask this absurd question? I don't know, but I think it's all an illusion and I dislike it. Instead of the "do the best you can" mentality I hope for students to have, the exam is seen as a game of grades. Yes, the assessment leads to a grade, but the grade is the afterthought to the educational value of the content being taught. The right question is "What can I learn?" not "What must I do?"
Thinking about this question has made me contemplate the type of response I should have to students who ask that question. I have gone through a few which I've listed here along with some commentary:
- "Your best chance of getting the best possible grade is to get a perfect score." - I'm not happy with this because it brings the grade into focus, and not the act of learning.
- "Just do the best you can." - While this is better, I don't think it demonstrates to the students that I care. Instead, this sort of sidesteps the question and doesn't give a helpful response (of course they will do the best they can).
- "Does it matter?" - It's getting closer. A question puts the ball back in their court to try to justify why they care. I'm not quite happy with it because I know the answer. It matters because they care about their grade.
- "Would it change anything if I told you?" - This is the best answer I have so far. It puts the responsibility on them to look at their question in a different light. I'm not denying the importance that they have put on their grade (as misplaced as I believe it is), but I am leading them to realize that this question is ultimately unhelpful to them.
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Evaluations
I've tried to do TA evaluations for every single class. I've tried a few different types, but the majority of them were this form from the UCSD Center for Teaching Development. I think it's a pretty good form, but now that I'm starting to think even more about teaching than I had before, I think it's a mistake to use that form over and over again. It is a good place to start, but I think that evaluations need to be customized to the goals of the class.
After all, in any class you teach, you set out with specific goals in mind. The evaluation should ask whether those goals were accomplished. As I read through the form that I had given to my students over and over again, I felt that I should try to make some adjustments to reflect my personal teaching goals. I wish I had thought to do this more than a couple days before I needed to have them filled out, but I still think I have a decent first level modification. You can download it here.
I haven't actually read their responses because I haven't graded their exams yet. This is something that I do more for myself than for them. As a matter of avoiding the appearance of impropriety, I don't want to give students the chance to perceive any undue influence on their grades as a result of their comments. I doubt this makes any difference in their responses, but I know for a fact that I can wait a week to find out what they said.
I'm just going to go from top to bottom and describe why I'm interested in their responses to various questions.
I borrowed the first couple questions from the CTD form, but I think they're wasted questions. How often students attend lecture is a reflection of the professor and not me. Also, by the end of the quarter, the students who are completing the evaluation are almost uniformly those who least frequently.
1) Aaron is easy to understand (both in speaking and writing).
There seems to be a recurring theme when people find out that I'm going to teach math. "At least you speak English." For some reason, it seems like lots of people have had bad experiences with TAs who struggle with the English language. However, my purpose for asking this is because I know I have a tendency to move really quickly through material. I am consciously aware when I start thinking faster than I can talk and when I start stumbling over my words. I also know my handwriting isn't always neat. It's generally legible, but I still want to keep track of these things as I continue to teach so that I don't become lazy about it. In retrospect, this should have been a 1a) and 1b) type question to isolate the the two parts.
2) Aaron has encouraged student participation.
There's a subtlety here that I think most students will catch. The question is whether I encourage student participation, not how successful I am at it. I've had some classes that are basically unresponsive no matter how I try. However, I think that students can see when you try to reach out to them and when they fail to respond.
3) Aaron has made the class more understandable.
This is an important marker for me. Students can often tell the difference between understanding something (or at least being in an illusion of understanding) and when they are going through rote motions.
4) Aaron has taught me how to think about the problems instead of just giving me the answers.
Most of my section time is filled with giving away answers. 90% of the time is spent doing some part of a homework problem. I want to know if students feel like I'm teaching them instead of just doing homework on my own. A more interesting question might be the following: I learn to think through problems as Aaron presents them instead of just copying the solution from the board.
5) Aaron has been helpful and accessible during office hours and via email.
This is a pretty standard availability question that could have been broken into two parts like #1.
6) Aaron managed section efficiently and effectively.
I believe that this is an area of strength in my teaching. I am very time conscious and I try hard not to go beyond the 50 minute section time. I also try to get to as many questions as possible in the allotted time. In my mind, this is more of a personal check-up to make sure that my perception doesn't deviate too far from the students'.
7) If given the chance, I would choose Aaron as my TA for my next math class.
This is the big picture question. Have I done well enough for them to want me to do it again? This allows the students to boil everything down and think through what they think is important and tell me if I'm meeting those educational needs. When it occurred to me to ask this question, it made me wonder why it wasn't on any of the other forms from the CTD.
I neglected to ask a couple things on this form:
After all, in any class you teach, you set out with specific goals in mind. The evaluation should ask whether those goals were accomplished. As I read through the form that I had given to my students over and over again, I felt that I should try to make some adjustments to reflect my personal teaching goals. I wish I had thought to do this more than a couple days before I needed to have them filled out, but I still think I have a decent first level modification. You can download it here.
I haven't actually read their responses because I haven't graded their exams yet. This is something that I do more for myself than for them. As a matter of avoiding the appearance of impropriety, I don't want to give students the chance to perceive any undue influence on their grades as a result of their comments. I doubt this makes any difference in their responses, but I know for a fact that I can wait a week to find out what they said.
I'm just going to go from top to bottom and describe why I'm interested in their responses to various questions.
I borrowed the first couple questions from the CTD form, but I think they're wasted questions. How often students attend lecture is a reflection of the professor and not me. Also, by the end of the quarter, the students who are completing the evaluation are almost uniformly those who least frequently.
1) Aaron is easy to understand (both in speaking and writing).
There seems to be a recurring theme when people find out that I'm going to teach math. "At least you speak English." For some reason, it seems like lots of people have had bad experiences with TAs who struggle with the English language. However, my purpose for asking this is because I know I have a tendency to move really quickly through material. I am consciously aware when I start thinking faster than I can talk and when I start stumbling over my words. I also know my handwriting isn't always neat. It's generally legible, but I still want to keep track of these things as I continue to teach so that I don't become lazy about it. In retrospect, this should have been a 1a) and 1b) type question to isolate the the two parts.
2) Aaron has encouraged student participation.
There's a subtlety here that I think most students will catch. The question is whether I encourage student participation, not how successful I am at it. I've had some classes that are basically unresponsive no matter how I try. However, I think that students can see when you try to reach out to them and when they fail to respond.
3) Aaron has made the class more understandable.
This is an important marker for me. Students can often tell the difference between understanding something (or at least being in an illusion of understanding) and when they are going through rote motions.
4) Aaron has taught me how to think about the problems instead of just giving me the answers.
Most of my section time is filled with giving away answers. 90% of the time is spent doing some part of a homework problem. I want to know if students feel like I'm teaching them instead of just doing homework on my own. A more interesting question might be the following: I learn to think through problems as Aaron presents them instead of just copying the solution from the board.
5) Aaron has been helpful and accessible during office hours and via email.
This is a pretty standard availability question that could have been broken into two parts like #1.
6) Aaron managed section efficiently and effectively.
I believe that this is an area of strength in my teaching. I am very time conscious and I try hard not to go beyond the 50 minute section time. I also try to get to as many questions as possible in the allotted time. In my mind, this is more of a personal check-up to make sure that my perception doesn't deviate too far from the students'.
7) If given the chance, I would choose Aaron as my TA for my next math class.
This is the big picture question. Have I done well enough for them to want me to do it again? This allows the students to boil everything down and think through what they think is important and tell me if I'm meeting those educational needs. When it occurred to me to ask this question, it made me wonder why it wasn't on any of the other forms from the CTD.
I neglected to ask a couple things on this form:
- Aaron treated the students respectfully and ethically. (Taken from my Standard Syllabus)
- What could Aaron have done better? (An open-ended question to allow students space to comment on whatever they want)
Friday, May 25, 2007
The Standard Syllabus
Every class deserves its own syllabus, but a lot of the content in a syllabus remains static from one class to the next. I spent much of this afternoon reflecting on the common content and pulling it together into a single document. I call it the "Standard Syllabus" and you can find it by following this link.
There are three components to the syllabus.
The first is a set of pithy comments that address the basic philosophical approach to teaching and assessment.
The second piece is a short essay to help students think about how they actually learn math. Just as problems are broken into two types on the first page (computation and concepts), their main structure for learning is also broken into these two components. Homework builds up the computational skill and classroom time will be spent trying to build up the conceptual framework. I think what I have now is an acceptable form, but it may be changed later.
The third piece is a layout of the expectations that the students should have of me and what they should expect from themselves (it's also what I expect of them). I think it's vital to the students' education that they actually own their own education. They must be responsible for it and I've made that explicit in having the space for them to sign their name. I admit it feels a little contrived, but I will gladly exchange that for being able to make this point absolutely clear to them.
There are three components to the syllabus.
The first is a set of pithy comments that address the basic philosophical approach to teaching and assessment.
The second piece is a short essay to help students think about how they actually learn math. Just as problems are broken into two types on the first page (computation and concepts), their main structure for learning is also broken into these two components. Homework builds up the computational skill and classroom time will be spent trying to build up the conceptual framework. I think what I have now is an acceptable form, but it may be changed later.
The third piece is a layout of the expectations that the students should have of me and what they should expect from themselves (it's also what I expect of them). I think it's vital to the students' education that they actually own their own education. They must be responsible for it and I've made that explicit in having the space for them to sign their name. I admit it feels a little contrived, but I will gladly exchange that for being able to make this point absolutely clear to them.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Daily Quizzes
As I've been thinking about my Math 097 class in the Fall, I seem to have broken the class into two components:
I would give this quiz at the end of the class so that they can leave when they finish and not have to sit around and wait. Also, doing it at the end of class instead of before a break means that students who compute more slowly do not have their break time penalized.
I can also see how this can also be an instructive tool. For example:
By giving problems that are suggestively sequential, I can introduce various aspects of arithmetic that will become relevant to their future algebraic manipulations. It could also be used as a starting point for a discussion for the next class period. I'll definitely have to take a closer look at the structure of the textbook to see how effectively such a scheme could be woven into the material.
- The development of computational proficiency
- The understanding of mathematical reasoning
I would give this quiz at the end of the class so that they can leave when they finish and not have to sit around and wait. Also, doing it at the end of class instead of before a break means that students who compute more slowly do not have their break time penalized.
I can also see how this can also be an instructive tool. For example:
- 85 + 74 = ???
- (80 + 5) + (70 + 4) = ???
- (80 + 70) + (5 + 4) = ???
By giving problems that are suggestively sequential, I can introduce various aspects of arithmetic that will become relevant to their future algebraic manipulations. It could also be used as a starting point for a discussion for the next class period. I'll definitely have to take a closer look at the structure of the textbook to see how effectively such a scheme could be woven into the material.
Monday, May 14, 2007
The Campus Interview
This is another post preparing for the job panel. I want to focus this one on the campus interviews. I had two interviews, and they were quite different from each other for a number of reasons.
After trying a couple times to organize my thoughts, I think the best way for me to do this is to set it up like a Q&A session. The topics are so varied that it seems that this is probably the most efficient way to do it.
Q: Where did you interview?
A: I interviewed at Simpson University (Christian college in Redding, CA) and Nevada State College (Henderson, NV).
Q: Was there anything distinct about the Christian college?
A: It was structurally very similar to the other interview. The market is less competitive (because there are fewer qualified applicants -- where "qualified" includes agreeing to a statement of faith). They also asked me some theological questions during the interview that I would not have been asked at a secular college. But otherwise, they were essentially the same.
Q: Where does the campus interview fall in the process?
A: Most of the time, you have a phone interview, first. If they like you enough after that then they'll fly you out for a campus interview. The campus interview seems to be the last step before they make their decision. However, I was called by CSU Fresno to schedule a campus interview without having a phone interview, so this is not universal.
Q: What is the structure of the interview?
A: The details will depend on the campus, but there seem to be a number of common components. They will send you an itinerary with all of this information:
A: One of them lasted all day (9 AM start, and we finished dinner at about 8 PM, but I did have a one hour break before dinner) and the other was just a morning (they picked up from the hotel at 7 AM and we finished before noon).
Q: What was the interview part like?
A: I just remember lots of questions. Some of the things they asked me were my views on how I would teach a certain type of class, what I think is important about teaching, and things like that. If you spend lots of time preparing your teaching statement, you'll likely have asked yourself at least a few of the questions they will ask you. If you can remember, have a cup or bottle of water with you for this part. It serves as a chance to take a quick rest, plus you'll going to be doing lots of talking.
Q: Will there be reimbursements?
A: Yes. You should keep all your receipts for everything on your trip, but you may not need them all (you may get a per diem meal stipend). There will be a form to fill out and send back to them when you're done. If you drive, keep track of the mileage and gas expenses. If you fly, you should be able to include airport parking or shuttle service.
Q: How did you prepare the teaching sample?
A: First, figure out who your audience will be. The full hour talk was given to a number theory class, so I picked a stand-alone number theory topic (continued fractions). The other talk had a designated topic, but was to be given to the interviewing committee plus a few students in the program. Since the school has some emphasis on preparing teachers, I assumed there would be some math education majors in the audience. They won't have as broad of a math background, but they are going to be interested in the presentation. So I planned to ask a few extra questions to the audience than I normally would. Everything else is just a matter of teaching. Be yourself and teach like you would normally teach.
Q: Any bits of random advice?
A: Sure...
After trying a couple times to organize my thoughts, I think the best way for me to do this is to set it up like a Q&A session. The topics are so varied that it seems that this is probably the most efficient way to do it.
Q: Where did you interview?
A: I interviewed at Simpson University (Christian college in Redding, CA) and Nevada State College (Henderson, NV).
Q: Was there anything distinct about the Christian college?
A: It was structurally very similar to the other interview. The market is less competitive (because there are fewer qualified applicants -- where "qualified" includes agreeing to a statement of faith). They also asked me some theological questions during the interview that I would not have been asked at a secular college. But otherwise, they were essentially the same.
Q: Where does the campus interview fall in the process?
A: Most of the time, you have a phone interview, first. If they like you enough after that then they'll fly you out for a campus interview. The campus interview seems to be the last step before they make their decision. However, I was called by CSU Fresno to schedule a campus interview without having a phone interview, so this is not universal.
Q: What is the structure of the interview?
A: The details will depend on the campus, but there seem to be a number of common components. They will send you an itinerary with all of this information:
- Teaching sample: The teaching sample for both interviews was very different. In one, it was a one hour talk where I was able to teach whatever I wanted and the other one was only 20 minutes long and they told me exactly what they wanted from me.
- The interviewing panel ("Bad Cop"): This is the part where they sit you down at a table with 4-5 other faculty and they ask you a bunch of questions.
- Meeting with Human Resources ("Good Cop"): This is where they tell you about your benefits (if you should get employed). These people have very little to do with whether you get employed, so there's nothing to fear here.
- Meeting with the Dean: This is the "vision-building" part of the interview, where you hear about the goals and the direction of the department.
- Campus Tour: It's exactly what you think it is. They take you around to various parts of campus and point out things to you.
- Meal: Most campuses will take you out to lunch or dinner, depending on the time and length of the interview.
A: One of them lasted all day (9 AM start, and we finished dinner at about 8 PM, but I did have a one hour break before dinner) and the other was just a morning (they picked up from the hotel at 7 AM and we finished before noon).
Q: What was the interview part like?
A: I just remember lots of questions. Some of the things they asked me were my views on how I would teach a certain type of class, what I think is important about teaching, and things like that. If you spend lots of time preparing your teaching statement, you'll likely have asked yourself at least a few of the questions they will ask you. If you can remember, have a cup or bottle of water with you for this part. It serves as a chance to take a quick rest, plus you'll going to be doing lots of talking.
Q: Will there be reimbursements?
A: Yes. You should keep all your receipts for everything on your trip, but you may not need them all (you may get a per diem meal stipend). There will be a form to fill out and send back to them when you're done. If you drive, keep track of the mileage and gas expenses. If you fly, you should be able to include airport parking or shuttle service.
Q: How did you prepare the teaching sample?
A: First, figure out who your audience will be. The full hour talk was given to a number theory class, so I picked a stand-alone number theory topic (continued fractions). The other talk had a designated topic, but was to be given to the interviewing committee plus a few students in the program. Since the school has some emphasis on preparing teachers, I assumed there would be some math education majors in the audience. They won't have as broad of a math background, but they are going to be interested in the presentation. So I planned to ask a few extra questions to the audience than I normally would. Everything else is just a matter of teaching. Be yourself and teach like you would normally teach.
Q: Any bits of random advice?
A: Sure...
- Take full advantage of bathroom breaks. Matthew Horton, a former UCSD math grad, gave me this advice when I happened to cross paths with him at the Meetings in New Orleans. They are watching you all the time and constantly building an impression of you, and you can start to feel a bit worn down by it. If there is time for it, take a minute in the bathroom to sit and relax, even if you don't really have business there.
- Make sure you wear comfortable shoes. You don't know how much walking they will have you do.
- Greet people by name if you can remember, otherwise ask them for their name again when you part company.
- This may be somewhat controversial, but don't overdress. I had a chance to talk with the students at one of my interviews, and I asked them about the other people who interviewed. One of their comments was that the other guy wore a suit, and that made him seem very formal. I wore khaki pants with a shirt and tie to both interviews. But then again, I got a job at a school where there were lots of southern Californians. I don't know if it would have gone over as well if I had interviewed at a school in the Northeast.
My Experience on the Teaching Market
This is the third of what will end up being either four or five posts in preparing myself for the "Finding Jobs in Academia" panel (tomorrow). This one is just going to be a simple timeline of events as I applied for jobs. I might come back later to fill in some details.
- Spring Quarter Before Applying for jobs - Started to ask questions
- What are the mechanics of applying for jobs?
- Deadlines: The first applications are due in early November
- Letters of recommendation: Give your letter-writers a full month to write the letter and remind them often. Letters are put on file the faculty support person. Just tell them where to send them and it is done for you at the department's expense.
- Teaching statement: See my other post about this one.
- Research statement: This is less important for a teaching job, but it must still be passable. Your advisor would be more helpful than me.
- What sort of job do I want? (This was easy for me -- I would much rather teach than do research, and if I could avoid mandatory research it would be even better.)
- Where am I willing to go? What sorts of situations may influence my decisions? (If I had a choice between a teaching job at a 4-year university in the middle of Arkansas or a teaching job at a community college in California, which one would I take? What if the California job paid less? Other issues to consider include family and dating relationships.)
- Summer Before Applying for Jobs
- Started writing drafts of my teaching statement
- Devoted extra time to my dissertation work so that I would be able to focus on the job application process.
- Continued to reflect on the questions above -- I think it's important to be reflecting on what you're doing (or about to do) at all times. It helps to gain perspective and insight.
- Worked on an informational webpage for prospective employers. I wanted a place where I would have more room to provide information without cluttering up the application itself. I don't know whether this had any benefit, but I feel like it didn't hurt anything.
- Late September - Early October (Beginning of the Fall Quarter)
- Secured four letter writers (I only needed three for most of my applications)
- Wrote up a generic cover letter to serve as a starting point for writing cover letters for specific schools
- Looked online for job postings
- Organized the information in a spreadsheet
- Researched the institutions
- Signed up for the Employment Center at the AMS-MAA National Conference (A resource I ended up not using very much... but that's another story)
- Late October - Early November (Middle of the Fall Quarter)
- Wrote Cover Letters
- Sent out my first batch of applications
- Updated the spreadsheet of job postings
- Late November
- Wrote more Cover Letters
- Sent out two more batches of applications
- Followed up on the first batch of applications
- Updated the spreadsheet of job postings
- December
- Followed up on the second and third batches of applications
- Wait and pray...
- Early January
- Attended the Meetings
- Semi-participated in the Employment Center
- Attended Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Talks
- Attended MAA mini-course in directing undergraduate research
- Got a two phone interviews
- Got a few rejection letters
- Late January
- Got a lot of rejection letters
- Prepared for on-campus interviews
- Mostly preparing two teaching talks
- Some time spent researching the institutions
- Early February
- Went for on campus interviews (I'll try to do this in a separate post)
- Started to schedule another on campus interview
- Late February
- Received an offer from my first choice and took it
- Canceled the third campus interview
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