The English Department gives continuing attention to the pedagogical training of Graduate Student Instructors (GSIs); this training includes courses on pedagogy and an extensive system of mentoring. Teaching assignments will vary according to the student's degree program, their progress within the program, the availability of courses, and enrollment patterns in undergraduate courses. Language and Literature PhD students usually teach first-year writing courses (English 124: "Academic Writing and Literature" and English 125: "Writing and Academic Inquiry") other language or literature courses, discussion sections, or serving as a writing fellow. English and Women's Studies students usually teach introductory courses for both the English and Women's Studies Department. English and Education students teach first-year writing courses (124: "Academic Writing and Literature and English 125: "Writing and Academic Inquiry) and other language or literature courses, including English 225 (Academic Argumentation) and English 230 (Introduction to Short Story and Novel), discussion sections, or serving as writing fellows.
In making these assignments, administrators attempt to consider the preferences and academic preparation of GSIs as well as the current needs of the curriculum. English and Education PhD students teach English 125, "Writing and Academic Inquiry," during their first year in the Ph.D. program. Language and Literature PhD students teach English 125 during their second year and English and Women's Studies students teach English 125, during their third year in the PhD program. A required pedagogy course, taught by one member of the Faculty, accompanies this initial teaching assignment; the course provides professional preparation for teaching undergraduate courses, including tips for designing courses and syllabi, strategies for facilitating discussion, best practices for grading and responding to students' work, and advice for negotiating complex interpersonal dynamics in the classroom. The Faculty member teaching the pedagogy course also visits each GSI's classroom to provide feedback about his/her teaching.
Language and Literature students begin teaching in their second year. English 993 is a one-credit course designed to offer as much support as possible for teaching. During their first two years in the program, Language and Literature students need to enroll in two different sections of English 993. During the winter term of their first year, students are required to enroll in English 993 (“Winter GSI Training”). This winter section of 993 prepares students to write a syllabus for English 125; the course includes seven meetings plus an observation and one-on-one consultation. During the fall term of their second year, when they will be teaching English 125 for the first time, students are required to enroll in English 993 (“Fall GSI Training”). This fall section of 993 provides opportunities to address real-time questions and concerns about teaching, including topics such as classroom dynamics, facilitating discussion, developing activities and assignments, grading, time management, and drafting a teaching philosophy. The fall 993 course includes seven meetings plus an observation and one-on-one consultation.
Before any GSI teaches independently, he or she participates in a required training session offered by the English Department Writing Program. The training session takes place in late August, prior to the Fall term in which GSIs will begin teaching. This mandatory workshop introduces GSIs to the learning goals and the central concepts and skills for teaching first-year writing, and it provides several forms of support for GSIs to design their English 125 course syllabi over the summer. Throughout each academic year, the English Department Writing Program also offers colloquia and brown bag lunches that serve as ongoing professional development opportunities for GSIs at all stages of their teaching careers. When GSIs enter their second year of independent teaching, they are supervised primarily by members of the Faculty who are supervising their exams and dissertation. These Faculty members guide the GSIs' professional development as scholars and teachers.
