Goals Impacted as a Teaching Assistant for the Beatles FSEM

As this semester concludes and my undergraduate career comes to an end, I want to take this time to reflect on the goals I set for myself in this independent study and how this experience has influenced them. When I began preparation for "The Pedagogy of Writing in the College Classroom through Music," which began well before the start of this semester, I had two main goals: to gain experience in teaching undergraduate students the skills in technology, speaking and especially in writing to succeed in college; and to develop an understanding in designing a working syllabus and student assignments.

As part of my observations, I attended each of the FSEM classes to watch Professor Rafferty's teaching methods and the students' responses. These observations were particularly beneficial as they allowed me to witness first-hand experiences I would not have access to through academic readings. I was able to witness particular methods which worked well in the classroom, such as the addition of music as an accompaniment to the course, and other elements of the class which didn't work as well, such as student participation in discussion, and discuss with Professor Rafferty ways to improve these methods. This allowed me to reflect critically on the classroom structure and teaching styles which I plan on using in the future as a professor of English and creative writing.

It was this interest in being a professor that inspired my independent study; when I mentioned my desire to teach at a university level to Professor Rafferty, he immediately put me to work in designing this new freshman seminar, "The Beatles in the 21st Century." The benefit of assisting my adviser in designing the syllabus and student assignments was phenomenal - how many undergraduate students are able to assist in organizing an undergraduate class? In addition to helping design the syllabus, and revising it for future use, I wrote an assignment sheet and accompanying grading rubric for the students, and graded four papers written by anonymous students to fully grasp the use of the grading rubric.

Looking back on these experiences, I have to say that my expectations were fulfilled. I developed a better understanding of roles of the professor within the classroom as an instructor and outside the classroom as a designer of the syllabus, assignments, and as a grader of the students work. I succeeded in completing these goals with a level of independence (thanks to Professor Rafferty) that I had not originally anticipated. However, I honestly did not expect to enjoy my independent study as much as I did, and I credit this to Professor Rafferty and to the students in the class. Professor Rafferty has been an amazing mentor throughout the duration of this class; he has always been open to any questions, concerns or new ideas I've suggested and really allowed me a sense of independence throughout my independent study. And I found it amazing to watch the students grow throughout their freshman seminar, from timid students who struggled to participate in class discussion to well-rounded first-year students who, by the end of the semester, were more vocal about their ideas and opinions and actively took a role in discussions, participation and the Beatles Rock Band. Assisting in the education of these first-year students was an amazing experience and I am looking forward to applying the skills I've learned in this independent study to teach an university in the future.