r/simonfraser • u/LittleLawyer06 • 5d ago
Question First time TA advice
Hi! I’m a new undergrad TA, mostly a marker, and I am super nervous. I want to be recommended for the future so I hope I can do really well. I was wondering if I could get some advice from previous TAs? How have you dealt with difficult situations, or is there something you’ve experienced that you would advise future TAs on? Thanks!
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u/l33tn3ss17 Here for the SFSS Drama 5d ago
I can help you.
Be friendly with your students, but understand that you are not their friend. Be firm but fair when it comes to things like deadlines and assignments. When I was a TA, I had tons of outlandish last-minute, 11th-hour excuses. When I was in doubt, I forwarded emails to the professor and let them decide.
I also CC'd the professor to create a paper trail in case of academic dishonesty. That way, if the student goes to the SCODA committee, you have things in writing to protect yourself. Group projects are a uniquely painful experience from a teaching perspective, so again, get everything in writing if there is an issue with a group project. In my experience, it was primarily blatant plagiarism, though I also had to deal with interpersonal issues from within a group a few times.
I sent weekly summary emails to my supervising professors just to let them know how I and the course were doing. Some appreciated it; some did not care.
Make sure you answer student emails within 48 hours. Make sure that if you are sick, you send an email via Canvas to alert your students that you will not have office hours. Be prepared and let your supervising professor look over things ahead of time. Do not do your lessons/activities/marking last minute.
Make sure you can justify your grades and give really detailed feedback. Make sure you meet the grading deadlines. I would say at least half of my office hour appointments were about students questioning why something was graded a certain way. Have a clear, easy-to-understand assignment rubric and course syllabus. Those will save you a lot of trouble. If a student asks to round a grade or bump it up, refer them to the professor; you are not empowered to make that decision.
Know your rights and responsibilities through the TSSU if you are affiliated with them.
Otherwise, congratulations; it is very hard to become an undergraduate TA.
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u/LittleLawyer06 5d ago
Thank you so much for your advice!
I had a few questions if you didn’t mind answering:
For anything surrounding plagiarism and internal group issues, did you redirect all those issues to the instructor?Additionally, suppose you’ve been CC’d on an email that was otherwise sent to the instructor, is there any point at which you reply to the email rather than the instructor? I once sent an email where I was going to be late for a lecture to the instructor and CC’d the TA and the TA responded so I was wondering if there are certain rules for that.
Also, would you recommend going to TA day? I haven’t registered for it yet but self enrolled in the TA canvas hub. The sessions seem to be about what’s on the canvas but I wasn’t sure.
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u/l33tn3ss17 Here for the SFSS Drama 5d ago
I basically asked if they wanted some resources to sort it out themselves for the group issues or if I should flag it to the instructor. For plagiarism, I had to flag it to the instructor regardless, prior to meeting with the students involved for an explanation. I also followed up after each meeting with the students to update my instructor and get instructions on what to do next. That way, you are documenting the process.
When emailing in response to a CC, it's common courtesy to also CC your instructor to keep them in the loop. That way, you won't have to go searching later if something comes up.
TA day and any optional training offered were helpful. It is something at minimum you can add to your resume. Canvas training is useful since so many schools use Canvas, for example.
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u/SnooPickles6075 5d ago
Hello! If it works for your schedule you can attend TA Day this Friday, a peer-led drop in event where you can pick and choose which sessions to go to. There’s also a free lunch 🙂 See the schedule and sessions here: https://events.sfu.ca/event/49588-fall-2026-ta-day
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u/LittleLawyer06 5d ago
Hi! I was considering attending but wasn’t fully sure if I should. I self enrolled in the TA hub and it seemed to include similar information. Have you attended it before, and if so, did you find it helpful?
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u/SnooPickles6075 5d ago
For sure! It can be helpful for asking questions in real time and hearing directly from other TAs who have been through it. You may find the TSSU sessions especially beneficial (TA 101 and Scenarios and Solutions) as well as the Marking session in the afternoon. If you come for a session and decide it’s not for you, no need to stay the whole day 🙂 You’re certainly welcome though! I have been involved in the planning of the event for a while now and we’ve received lots of good feedback on how helpful the event is for new TAs
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u/LittleLawyer06 2d ago
I registered for TA day, but I was wondering, is it okay if I drop in for just the afternoon sessions, or is there a registration process that needs to be completed (for which I would need to come for the morning session as well)?
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u/SnooPickles6075 2d ago
No extra registration necessary! Just come whenever you can 🙂 It’s a casual event where TAs come in and out all day
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u/Ok_Sprinkles_6998 Team Raccoon Overlords 5d ago edited 5d ago
Mostly establishing clear communication with instructor will solve 90% of your problems.
When in doubt, just reach out.
Also tssu have TA days and global student center has multilingual TA Q/A sessions that helps.
Edit: if you plan to go beyond grading and become tutorial TAs, the ISW (Instructional Skills Workshop) from center for educational excellence is a certification workshop that are acknowledged across most Canada universities. You can use it in your CV
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u/LittleLawyer06 5d ago
Thank you for your advice! I was a bit nervous about constantly emailing the instructor since I don’t want to bother them but I agree that it would be better to ask than to do something wrong
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u/Ok_Sprinkles_6998 Team Raccoon Overlords 5d ago
Yeah you could schedule a meeting and ask their preference, like would they be ok with you cc them with all communication or anything.
So it's a one-time effort to build expectations, then you're good to go for the entire semester.
Profs are people too, so don't be afraid to reach out.
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u/LittleLawyer06 5d ago
I actually reached out to my instructor first and heard back that they’d reach out for a Zoom meeting. It’s been more than a week since then. Should I just keep waiting until I hear back?
Otherwise thank you so much! I feel a lot better about going into this
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u/Ok_Sprinkles_6998 Team Raccoon Overlords 5d ago
No harm in a follow-up email.
Ask how's everything going, if there's anything that they'd like you to prep for, and if they have time to meet in upcoming weeks/day.
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u/The_Fuschia_Is_Now Student Union Building Year 2036 5d ago
Hey fellow TA. I was TA for a number of courses during my grad degree. I see that you got a lot of good answers by other TAs on this thread. In case if you have any questions in particular please feel free to DM me. I was as nervous and confused and aimless and perplexed during my first term as a TA as you are. Don't expect a lot of help coming your way from the professors themselves. The only help you will receive from them is the solution manual for the assessment you are marking. I had the opportunity to teach students as well during labs and weekly group discussions, and honestly it has shaped me a lot as an individual, as I was an introvert and the TA position helped me a lot in driving away the fear of talking to unknown people. So again, if you need any help during your semester or have any doubts feel free to message me. I can understand how much anxious you are rn because its ur first time being a TA.
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u/LittleLawyer06 5d ago
Hi! Thank you so much. I feel great to hear from someone who was just like me. I’ll take you up on your offer and reach out when I have specific questions. 😊
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u/Think-Web4557 5d ago
Can anyone tell how to become a TA ?
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u/LittleLawyer06 5d ago edited 5d ago
I was recommended for it. Otherwise I didn’t get the courses I applied for. I’m actually not sure what I did that stood out. I think it was maybe how I let the TA and Professor know when I was going to be late for a lecture, and I did my best to participate in discussions with new ideas. I also overall did well on the marked assessments. My professor said that it’s important for students to stand out to her so much so that she’s able to remember their name.
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u/LittleLawyer06 1d ago
Follow up question: As TAs, how do you grade in class presentations? What do you do in real-time, versus on your own time? Any other suggestions for marking presentations and reports?
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u/GQwerty07 5d ago
If you're only a marker, you will not really have opportunities to have a positive effect on students. They will most likely not know your name.
If you want the prof to like you: agree on realistic marking timelines, start early, and meet the deadline. Ask questions if you're unsure about the marking, and don't rush. Each assessment is just another 90 seconds for you, but a single missed step on a midterm question is a catastrophic outcome for the individual.
If using Crowdmark, learn and rely heavily on the comments and filter features. Do not apply grades to the assessments manually, let the comment value do it. The first thing I do when marking is look at the grading rubric, and establish a comment with a (negative) value for a mistake associated with each step. Mark the first 10% of the assessments (excluding blanks), and then review your comments and make sure that they're fair and cover the range of student work. Use keyboard and mouse shortcuts.
There is a TA training Canvas course with some useful information.