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Improving Training Opportunities for Computer Science Teaching Assistants

At universities around the world, teaching assistants (TAs) play a crucial role in supporting undergraduate students’ learning and success. However, TAs often lack the necessary teaching experience and skills to effectively motivate and engage students. To address this issue, a professor of educational psychology, Brett Jones, at Virginia Tech’s School of Education, is leading a project to enhance the training opportunities for TAs focusing on computer science.

Jones and his research team, which includes computer science and statistics faculty, have been awarded a $399,592 grant from the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for STEM Education for their project titled “Training Computer Science Teaching Assistants to Motivate Students.” This grant adds to Jones’ previous National Science Foundation grants, totaling over $2 million. Notably, Jones has also developed the MUSIC Model of Motivation, a widely recognized approach that is used in about 15 countries and available in 14 languages.

The project is a collaborative effort, with Margaret Ellis, an associate professor of practice in the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Tech, and Inyoung Kim, a professor in the Department of Statistics, serving as co-leaders.

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Addressing the Growing Demand for Computer Science Graduates

With a projected 23 percent growth rate for the computer science field from 2022 to 2032, there is a high demand for computer science graduates. However, engaging students in the classroom and equipping them with the necessary tools can be challenging. This is where teaching assistants become crucial in sparking students’ motivation and drive. Nonetheless, these TAs often lack the essential skills to effectively motivate and engage students.

Brett Jones emphasizes the importance of providing TAs with the skills needed to better motivate students to engage in class and pursue computer science courses, majors, and careers. The Training Computer Science Teaching Assistants to Motivate Students project aims to fill this gap by equipping TAs with the necessary skills and techniques to enhance student engagement and retention in computer science.

Project Goals

The project has several key goals:

• Improve the quality of teaching provided by teaching assistants in Virginia Tech’s computer science department, resulting in increased student engagement and retention.
• Develop a teaching assistant training prototype that can be implemented in other courses within the computer science department at Virginia Tech. The long-term vision is for other departments at Virginia Tech and universities worldwide to utilize the training materials, ultimately improving the quality of teaching provided by TAs.
• Promote diversity and inclusion within the computer science field by enhancing the self-efficacy and sense of belonging of minority students.

The School of Education’s Perspective

As the project lead, Brett Jones emphasizes the significance of applying research from the field of educational psychology to solve real-world problems. The collaboration between educational psychology and computer science aims to improve teaching in computer science courses and enhance students’ learning experiences.

Written by Samantha Smith

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