Teaching Political Science Sections

A Guide for Teaching Assistants

These pages are intended to provide helpful and interesting information that will hopefully answer some of the more frequently asked questions about teaching political science sections when you need it most – in the middle of the night! Few of the ideas and strategies that follow are my own, most are taken from one or more of the sources listed in the bibliography. To prevent information overload, I have waded through the overwhelming amount of information on teaching and selected what I felt was most important for TA’s in political science.

I found "Tools for Teaching" the most valuable individual resource. This is the only source that I cite specifically - but the same type of information is elaborated in nearly every reference material. Last year’s head TA, Kathleen Hancock, was so impressed with the book and arranged for the department to purchase it. Ask Chris Vaz if you would like to use it. Remember, the information included herein is only the tip of the iceberg! Please consult the bibliography for more in depth information on any topic.