Coursework

Detailed Descriptions/Requirements for course work will be posted here.

Homework

The homework for this course consists of the following assignments:

• 1 page description of their TA duties
• A teaching statement
• Conduct a survey regarding their teaching effectiveness
• Write two assignments appropriate for an undergraduate computer science course
• Contribute to the course through peer reviews

Details will be added over the course of the semester

Homework #1: An outline of your Roles and Responsibilities

Due 1/26/2024

Complete the following:

• Ask the questions/fill out the checklist in the slide deck from lecture 1
  • We don't need to see the checklist, use it as a guide for discussions with your faculty
• Then write a “one-page”, clear, concise summary of your TA duties this Fall
  • Write it as a post on Edstem. You must tag the post with “Homework: Outline your Roles and Responsibilities”
• Include
  • Course name/number, faculty, course size, other course details (lecture only, lab only, lecture/lab, does it have a discussion section, types of assignments, etc)
  • Make sure to include at least all of the course details that are relevant to your TA duties so we can understand the context of your summary correctly
• Peer review
  • Comment on your peers' outlines. Be constructive (”looks good” isn’t a peer review)

Cohort A: Homework #2: A teaching statement

Draft Due 2/9/2024, final due 2/23/2024

Write a draft of a teaching statement. Use the resources in the slides and others to craft your teaching statement. Your teaching statement should be 1 to 3 pages in length. If you do not have any teaching experience, you can still write a teaching statement by focusing on your teaching beliefs and what you hope to achieve as a teacher. You may also reference your experiences as a student to describe practices you wish to emulate as a teacher.

Submit on EdStem in the proper category.

Cohort B: Homework #2: A cover letter and research statement

Draft Due 2/9/2024, final due 2/26/2024

Write a draft of a cover letter and research statement appropriate for a faculty application packet. The cover letter should be no more than one page in length. The cover letter is used to introduce yourself and to highlight why you think you would be a good fit for the position. The research statement should be 1-3 pages in length. The research statement is used to summarize the research you have performed so far in your PhD studies. It should not be an attempt to shorten your dissertation to 3 pages, rather you should highlight the following: 1) what was the research question/problem, 2) what was the result of your research 3) how did you go about solving this problem and 4) what are the insights and/or broader impacts of your research. A good portion of your research statement should focus on your future research, particularly how your PhD research forms a foundation for new and exciting research.

Homework #3: A written homework assignment

Due 3/29/2024

Write a homework assignment appropriate for a discreet math class (including counting and/or probability), CS theory course or similar. The problems should be coherent (ie. follow a theme) as if they were given as an assignment for a course. Topic examples: logic, proofs, run time complexity, trees/graphs, linear algebra. Think back to the classes you took as undergrads or look at the syllabus/course websites for courses like USC CSCI170, CSCI270, CSCI570/670 The assignment should be typeset in Latex and should be 1 to 2 pages in length.

Submit a PDF on EdStem in the proper category.

Homework #4: A programming assignment

Due 4/26/2023

Write a homework assignment appropriate for a CS0/CS1/CS2 programming course (roughly CSCI 102/103/104 here at USC). The assignment should include necessary background information and context as if it were being given for a real course along with one or more programming exercises. Examples are (but not limited to): simple I/O and data processing, sorting, graph/tree traversals, simple image manipulation, data structures (arrays, vectors, maps, sets). Good programming assignments almost always include diagrams or other visualizations to help the students. The assignment should contain examples with expected output given a particular input. A grading rubric must be part of the assignment. Please include any skeleton code that would be provided to students. Also include a reference implementation. The assignment should be typeset in Latex and the content should run ~3 pages not including skeleton code and reference implementation.

Homework #5: A survey of your TA effectiveness

Due 5/3/2024

Create a [Qualtrics or Google Forms or similar] survey for the students in the class of which you are a TA. The exact format of the survey is not prescribed, however you must include a minimum of 5 questions that you think will help you judge your effectiveness as a TA and/or help you improve your teaching going forward. You may include Y/N, Likert scale or open ended questions. Create a PDF of the responses along with a self-reflection/commentary based on the results as a private EdStem post. Please create and release the survey as soon as possible to give your students time to respond.

In-class Paper Presentation

The in-class coursework component for this course is an 8 minute paper review.

Please open this Google Sheet to sign-up for a spot. Once everyone signs up, 5 of the people signed up for a particular day will be randomly selected to present their paper in person, the others will record a video review and post that to the course discussion board.

You must sign up by 12pm on Friday March 22nd or you will be assigned a time. The 5 per date that will present in person will be selected and notified at that time.

Students need to find a paper to review by looking at the CS teaching research resources listed on the last slide of lecture 3. Try to find something that you find interesting and relevant to your own teaching. The paper should be recent (<5 years old).

Use the "Papers" tab on the Google sheet to enter the URL to your paper so we can all read the paper before you present.

During your presentation you have 8 minutes, so you need to be succinct but you must cover:

• Name of the paper/author
• One sentence summary (preview what we're going to hear about)
• Detailed review:
  • Type of paper (experience report, teaching tool, teaching technique, position paper, etc)
  • Motivation: why did the authors write the paper
  • Research: what research was conducted, how was it done (A/B studies, surveys, observations, etc.) or
  • Teaching tool: what was developed and why? What problem does this tool solve
  • Research/teaching tool results: what results were obtained?
  • Conclusion
  • Any tie-ins with Blooms Taxonomy, the teaching techniques or teaching philosophies we discussed?
• Why did you choose this paper
  • Why was it interesting to you?
  • Why is it important for us to hear about it?
  • How will it inform your teaching?
• High level takeaways/conclusion