graduate students – Teaching Hub

Webcameras that Facilitate Better Conversations Virtual Guests: Perhaps “OWL” Being See You…??

November 8, 2021

by Nathan Loewen, Department of Religious Studies What is this? Have you tried using a basic computer web camera to capture conversations in a classroom? Prof. Loewen has experimented with dozens of methods since 2009. With the arrival of the REL digital lab at UA’s Department of Religious Studies in 2021, things have changed. Among the digital tools being collected by Prof. Jeri Wieringa is the OWL Pro, which is a 360-degree camera, mic, and speaker combined into one device. […]

Discord App Adds Options for Remote Learning & Teamwork

March 15, 2021

by Nathan Loewen, Faculty Technology Liaison & Department of Religious Studies Someone responded to the survey for Last Week’s Teaching in 2020 with a comment about the Discord app. It turns out plenty of people use Discord for teaching and learning (Several teachers in France and Quebec are adopting Discord). Here are the experiences of four people at UA. (Please continue to share your ideas and experiences here, and your entry could spark another cross-campus search for teaching innovation!) Creating […]

Academic Support in Our New Online Context

April 8, 2020

large tree with branch supported by hand scuplture

By Amy Dayton, Department of English Many faculty members rely on UA’s academic support programs to provide students with the individualized help they need outside of class. Despite the current crisis, the UA Libraries, Capstone Center for Student Success, and UA Writing Center continue to offer support to help students meet their academic goals and to supplement your classroom instruction. “University Libraries faculty and staff have been redeployed to critical priorities to support all UA students, staff, and faculty in […]

Supporting Successful Graduate Thesis and Dissertation Projects

December 13, 2019

by Delores M. Robinson, Geological Sciences How do we best help our graduate students graduate on time? This is a question the Department of Geological Sciences asked ourselves in 2013. We had quality graduate students, but the time needed for them to reach graduation seemed excessive. The Graduate Program Committee identified the problems and began to change the graduate program to address the problems. Another post is required to outline the problems; however, one specific problem was that the MS […]

Teaching Graduate Students: The Public Value of Their Work

October 4, 2019

by John Giggie, Department of History In this faculty blog on graduate teaching, I would like to share a few observations on possible ways to help graduate students in American history think about the public value of their work. My hope is that as students broaden their identities as public intellectuals they will deepen their commitment to their craft and discipline. My ideas are based most recently on my experience working with graduate students to co-design and co-teach a new […]

Why Workshops Matter for Professionalization, Productivity, and Life!

September 30, 2019

table with people's hands, pens and paper

by Jenny Shaw, Department of History One of the most important skills graduate students learn is how to receive, assimilate, and act on feedback from peers and mentors. Often, as with peer review, feedback comes anonymously, and in written form, so responses can be contemplated and thought through. But at conferences, seminars, and public talks, scholars have to respond in person and in real time. Similarly, giving feedback in written or oral form is another essential skill and one that […]

Mentoring Graduate Students and Uncertain Job Markets

September 5, 2019

Mentoring Graduate Students in an Age of Uncertainty by Holly Grout, Department of History Mentoring graduate students is one of the most rewarding, as well as one of the most challenging, things that we as faculty do. On the face of it, our role is relatively straightforward: we advise our students through coursework and research; we teach them the tools of our trade; we acquaint them with the norms and practices of our profession; and we prepare them (as best […]

For Graduate Students: Preparing to Teach

November 5, 2017

by Jessica Porter, Office of Educational Technology (eTech) As a graduate teaching assistant, you play an important role in the University of Alabama teaching community. The information and resources on this page are designed to help you prepare for your responsibilities — from the first day of class to final grade submission. Before the First Day Syllabi Although the format is up to you, your syllabus must contain the basic information and policies outlined on our Syllabus Requirements page. You might consider […]

Diversity in Field Research

October 22, 2015

In their recent posts, Jo Weaver and Chris Lynn considers how field work effects the family and how it’s difficult to teach because it depends more on relationships than technical know-how. In “Talking about Race with ‘White Person Bias,’” Weaver notes that social tension shapes teaching and field research, and she asks researchers to re-examine their authority. Last year, when I received a student review that claimed my teaching suffered from ‘white person bias,’ I took the comment very seriously because I […]

Mentoring Graduate Teaching Assistants

August 15, 2015

As the supervising faculty member, you have the opportunity to shape your graduate teaching assistants’ development as educators, as well as how they support your role as the professor. We asked several faculty members how they guide GTAs in managing the classroom, interacting with students, and otherwise balancing the pressures of teaching. Here’s what they had to say. Offer Guidance “My GTAs attend every lecture, and we meet as a group once a week to discuss course issues, assignments, and to problem-solve […]

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