Does Instructor Type Matter? Undergraduate Student Perception of Graduate Teaching Assistants and Professors

Graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) are used extensively as instructors in higher education, yet their status and authority as teachers may be unclear to undergraduates, to administrators, and even to the GTAs themselves. This study explored undergraduate perception of classroom instruction by GTAs and professors to identify factors unique to each type of instructor versus the type of classes they teach. Data collection was via an online survey composed of subscales from two validated instruments, as well as one open-ended question asking students to compare the same class taught by a professor versus a GTA. Quantitative and qualitative results indicated that some student instructional perceptions are specific to instructor type, and not class type. For example, regardless of type of class, professors are perceived as being confident, in control, organized, experienced, knowledgeable, distant, formal, strict, hard, boring, and respected. Conversely, GTAs are perceived as uncertain, hesitant, nervous, relaxed, laid-back, engaging, interactive, relatable, understanding, and able to personalize teaching. Overall, undergraduates seem to perceive professors as having more knowledge and authority over the curriculum, but enjoy the instructional style of GTAs. The results of this study will be used to make recommendations for GTA professional development programs.     

Trace Lines for Testlets: A Use of Multiple-Categorical-Response Models

It is not always convenient or appropriate to construct tests in which individual items are fungible. There are situations in which small clusters of items (testlets) are the units that are assembled to create a test. Using data from a test of reading comprehension constructed of four passages with several questions following each passage, we show that local independence fails at the level of the individual questions. The questions following each passage, however, constitute a testlet. We discuss the application to testlet scoring of some multiple-category models originally developed for individual items, In the example examined, the concurrent validity of the testlet scoring equaled or exceeded that of individual-item-level scoring     

Behavioral and adjustment correlates of problem solving: validational analyses of interpersonal cognitive problem-solving measures

The interpersonal cognitive problem-solving (ICPS) skills (i.e., means-ends thinking, identified obstacles, alternative solutions, consequential thinking) of 150 families (father, mother, and child 6-11 years old) were assessed via written tests and problem-solving behavioral performance. The interrelationships of ICPS written and behavioral problem-solving skills were examined, as were the relationships of each of these measures of problem solving to both parent and teacher indices of child adjustment. IQ, as measured by the age-appropriate Wechsler scale, was partialed out. Results indicated some ecological validity of written alternatives and consequential tests for children and means-ends tests for parents. Neither parents' nor children's written ICPS scores nor problem-solving behavior were systematically related to either teacher or parent ratings of child adjustment. However, a behavioral index of parental facilitation of child problem solving was significantly related to all problem-solving behaviors and some written ICPS measures. Results are discussed in terms of the role of ICPS skills in child adjustment, the potential limits of ICPS measures in therapy outcome, and the manner in which children learn interpersonal cognitive problem solving.     

Infant Auditory Temporal Acuity: Gap Detection

The development of auditory temporal acuity during infancy was examined in 3-, 6-, and 12-month-old infants and in adults using the gap detection paradigm. Listeners detected a series of gaps, or silent intervals, or variable duration in a broadband noise. In order to vary the acoustic frequencies available to the listener, a high-pass noise was used to mask frequencies above specified cutoffs. High-pass maskers with cutoffs of 500, 2,000, and 8,000 Hz were used. The minimum detectable gap was determined using the Observer-based Psychoacoustic Procedure. The thresholds of 3- and 6-month-olds were considerably poorer than those of the adults, although the effect of masker condition was about the same for these 3 groups. The thresholds of 12-month-olds were significantly worse than the adults when the stimulus was unmasked or when the masker cutoff frequency was 2,000 or 8,000 Hz. When the masker cutoff frequency was 500 Hz, 12-month-olds fell into 2 groups: some had gap thresholds that were about the same as 3- and 6-month-olds, while some had gap thresholds that approached those of adults. In a second experiment, a larger group of 12-month-olds were tested with a 500-Hz masker cutoff. Average performance of 12-month-olds was about the same as that of 3- and 6-month-olds in Experiment 1. Some infants attained thresholds close to those of adults. Thus, gap detection thresholds are quite poor in infants, although the similarity of the effect of frequency on performance in infants and adults suggests that the mechanisms governing temporal resolution in infants operate qualitatively like those in adults.     

‘Across the Divide’: Developing Professional Learning Ecosystems in STEM Education

Research in Science Education - This paper reports the findings from a cross-sector research project designed to question how the development of university-school partnerships can influence...     

What's so hard about teaching science?

Early Childhood Education Journal - Do you feel that science is sifficult to understand and hard to teach? Do you designate only a small amount of time for a science period? Are you afraid of the...     

Examining the Process and Outcome of Career Counseling for Different Types of Career Counseling Clients

Using cluster analysis, we identified two types of career counseling clients: (a) Clients with moderate levels of career-related distress, discomfort, and uncertainty and (b) clients with high levels of career concerns, personal distress, and stigma about career counseling. The more distressed group expressed lower evaluations of a career counseling session and perceived their counselors as providing fewer action-oriented counseling skills than the less distressed group. No differences emerged in terms of client's perceptions of the therapeutic relationship. The practical implications and limitations of these results are discussed.