Teaching First: A Guide for New Mathematicians (Maa Notes Series, Volume 54)

Teaching First: A Guide for New Mathematicians (Maa Notes Series, Volume 54) Review

It is very unfortunate that most teaching assistants (TA's) in mathematics are put in the classroom with little or no training. In my case, I faced my first recitation class after having only a two hour meeting with the instructor and all the TA's for the course. There is so much that is unknown and while you do learn on the job, the students often get shorted, and in this day of legal action run amok, is a potentially hazardous situation.
In this book, Rishel sets down some very sound advice for all mathematicians who are faced with teaching, from the first TA position to finding that first critical job after graduation. Simple things like preparing a resume and how to deal with difficult situations are examined. For example, suppose you know that a particular student has had a difficult time with a family illness or death and so in sympathy, you forgive a couple of points and award a higher grade. However, this act of compassion is not understood by another student who did not have such problems, has earned the same score and now demands equal treatment. What should(could) you do in such cases? Such scenarios can and do happen, so you had better be prepared to deal with them.
Other issues are topics such as the professional distance between student and teacher, which in terms of age and experience may almost be nonexistent. This is one that is very difficult and in many ways is a personal choice. Some people, both teachers and students, are more comfortable with a formal relationship and others find the formal approach uncomfortable and prefer the personal. When I was a TA, the course professor expressed displeasure with a colleague who played racquetball with another TA. In his opinion, such an action violated the principles of professional distance. Easy to dismiss, these are principles that need to be considered, evaluated and planned for.
Setting down policies and learning how to handle difficult situations is often considered to be unnecessary, but serious problems can and do occur, even to the point of violence. New TA's are often the least trained of all teachers, and I would strongly recommend that anyone just starting in that role read this book before facing a class for the first time. Mathematics majors who will be teaching in either middle or high school will also find some sound advice in course management.



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Teaching First A Guide for New Mathematicians
Series: MAA Notes

An invaluable guide for new teachers.

In Teaching First, Thomas Rishel draws on his nearly forty years of teaching experience to address the nuts and bolts issues of teaching college mathematics.

The book is written for the mathematics TA or young faculty member who may be wondering just where and how to start. Rishel opens the eyes of the reader to pitfalls they may never have considered, and offers advice to balancing an obligation to the student with an obligation to mathematics. Throughout he provides answers to seemingly daunting questions shared by most new TAs, such as how to keep a classroom active and lively; how to prepare writing assignments, tests, and quizzes; how exactly to write a letter of recommendation; and how to pace, minute by minute, the "mathematical talks" one will be called upon to give.

Teaching First is Rishel’s answer to those who may suggest that good teaching is innate and cannot be taught. This he emphatically denies, and he insists that solid teaching starts with often overlooked seeming trivialities that one needs to master before exploring theories of learning. Along the way he also covers the general issues that teachers of all subjects eventually experience: fairness in grading, professionalism among students and colleagues, identifying and understanding student types, and technology in the classroom. All of the subjects in the book are considered within the context of Rishel’s experience as a mathematics teacher. All are illustrated with anecdotes and suggestions specific to the teaching of mathematics.

Teaching First is a comprehensive guide for a mathematics TA, from the first semester preparations through the unforeseen challenges of accepting a faculty position. Its aim is to prepare new TAs with clear suggestions for rapidly improving their teaching abilities.

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