Orientation 

A four-hour orientation program is required of all students who: 

  • have been certified at level A or B, and 

  • are teaching a university class for the first time. If this requirement applies to you, be sure to make arrangements with ESL Programs to attend the orientation during your first semester in the classroom. 

This orientation helps new teaching assistants understand the culture of the U.S. classroom and treats topics such as student expectations, teacher-student interactions, and understanding and answering student questions. Discussion focuses on suggestions for maximizing comprehensibility in spoken English. This course meets twice for 2 hours. 

Classroom Follow-up 

The final component of the TAPE Program is the follow-up classroom observation for test takers who received an A or B-level certification. This is designed to provide TAs whose first language is not English with support and assistance during their first semester in a UI classroom. The observations are conducted in the fall and spring semesters, when the majority of teaching assistants are in the classroom.  

How it works 

An instructor from ESL Programs meets with a first-time TA after class to suggest ways to improve the TA's language or ways to use language compensation skills. The TA is invited to discuss problems or questions which have arisen during the semester. Finally, a written report of the visit is later sent to the TA. 

Recertification 

In some cases, TAs who are certified at level B ("handle a discussion section or supervise a lab section with minimal supervision") will have their certification level raised to an A ("take full responsibility for a lecture/discussion class"), based on the classroom observation. Students with a B certification may ask their department to contact the ESL Programs office to request a recertification observation with the hope of raising their certification to the A level.