Abstract:
Most colleges of agriculture in land grant institutions offer an introductory soil science course. While structure and content of these courses varies considerably, most utilize graduate students as teaching assistants. In the fall of 2005, we sought to characterize the teaching experience of graduate students in introductory soil science courses through an online survey sent to 52 universities offering an introductory soil science course. The survey was designed to determine how graduate students perceive their teaching responsibilities, determine what their teaching responsibilities entail, and how they were prepared for their teaching assignment. Seventyseven surveys representing 40 (77%) universities were completed by graduate students at both the M.S. and Ph.D. level. Overall, the respondents held an overall positive view of their teaching experience. When asked how their teaching experience impacted their graduate education, 89% agreed their experience improved their knowledge and understanding of material in their field of study. However, 40% of the respondents indicated that their teaching responsibilities impeded their ability to conduct research. Although graduate students are widely used for a variety of teaching duties, 45% of the students reported having no structured training in college instruction, before or during their teaching experience. Overall, we feel these results illustrate the significance of incorporating college teaching into the development and education of graduate students.
Keywords:
soil science, student teaching assistants, graduate students
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