PERC 2025 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | Measuring and analyzing teaching assistant comfort with content in a reformed introductory physics laboratory course |
|---|---|
| Abstract Type: | Contributed Poster Presentation |
| Abstract: | Across the United States, Introductory Physics Labs are typically broken into multiple sections taught by (often graduate) Teaching Assistants. At REDACTED, the reformed Introductory Physics Lab TAs are mostly undergraduate physics majors. As part of a larger project studying the transformation and efficacy of these labs, we seek to understand how our TAs prepare, and specifically their comfort with the material. We have designed weekly surveys for our TAs and implemented them over multiple semesters. These surveys probe changes to TA comfort throughout the week: specifically before the preparatory meetings, after the meetings but before teaching, and after teaching. We present a preliminary analysis of these data over one academic year. Results indicate that self-reported TA comfort with the material was high before the weekly meeting and increased or stayed constant afterwards. Changes in comfort following teaching are also discussed, with more mixed results. |
| Session Time: | Poster Session A |
| Poster Number: | A-60 |
| Contributed Paper Record: | Contributed Paper Information |
| Contributed Paper Download: | Download Contributed Paper |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Melissa L. Barru University of Colorado - Denver Denver, CO 80204 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Julian D. Gifford (he, him, his), University of Colorado - Denver |




