It was also suggested that T.A.s do their class preparation in a block of time the night before they are to teach. Several T.A.s who felt the need to over-prepare, who scripted out every word of their lectures, were asked to try to force themselves to prepare an outline of their major points as a way of saving time and their sanity. The workshop concluded with the general acknowledgment that being a good scholar helps T.A.s become better teachers, and being sound teachers helps to inform the scholarship. On Thursday, the workshop was lead by Dr. August Tarrier, who last December completed her Ph.D. program in English at Temple, and is now a visiting Assistant Professor of English. August began by acknowledging that all new challenges are daunting, and our tendency as fresh T.A.s is to over prepare.
Work never seems to end, and time becomes a precious commodity.
What follows are excerpts from August's brief opening remarks. I am certain that somebody is going to tell me to set up a schedule so that I can be organized and efficient about getting work done. And the truth is that I am very well organized and efficient when it comes to doing laundry or food shopping or paying bills. When I arrived at Temple to begin my Master's degree, I learned quickly that I would need to teach two or three days a week for an hour or two and to attend classes about 5 or 6 hours a week. I was on a permanent vacation.