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The Division of Engineering Science is looking to hire Teaching Assistants for ESC101 in September, 2009, and ESC102 in January, 2010. While these are separate courses, applicants are encouraged to apply for both based on their skills, interests, and availability.
The formal course descriptions can be found here.
Please be aware that the description for ESC101 is effectively a placeholder and does not present the complete nature of the course. ESC101 provides first year Engineering Science students with an environment in which they explore different definitions and approaches to "engineering" and "design". Throughout the course, students refine their own definition(s) and approach(es) as they both examine existing works of engineering and develop their own designs. Many of the activities in ESC101 link with major projects from CIV102.
Teaching in a Praxis course requires a particular set of skills and a specific approach to working with students. We are looking for applicants who can:
While specific areas of technical knowledge may be helpful, the breadth of student questions and design challenges is such that TAs will generally be working outside of their areas of technical expertise. In a single tutorial students might ask questions ranging from "How do you measure depression?" to "What is the most likely failure mode of a revolving door?" to "How do you attach a cable to a bridge deck?". TAs are not expected to be able to answer these questions, but are expected to inspire and to help the students develop and credibly defend their own answers.
TAs will be expected to attend two, one-hour lectures (negotiable, depending on applicant background), a one-hour team meeting (negotiable, depending on applicant background), and (at a minimum) one, two-hour tutorial per week.
TAs will also be responsible for some, but not an extreme amount of grading (which will need to be completed in a relatively timely manner). Depending on applicant background and seniority, TAs may also be tasked with assisting in the development of instructional materials.
To support the professional development of our TAs, and as specified in the CUPE 3902 Collective Agreement, successful applicants will be required to attend a paid training session (negotiable, depending on applicant background). There will also be a second, paid and mandatory, training session specific to the Praxis courses. Finally, we are also working with the TA Training Program to provide TAs with feedback and suggestions for improvement during their appointment.
The schedules for ESC101 and ESC102 are as follows:
ESC101 -- September 10, 2009 - December 20, 2009
Lecture: M 1300-1400 and one of T 1200-1300 or T 1300-1400
Tutorial: T 1500-1700 / W 0900-1100 / R 1400-1600
ESC102 -- January 4, 2010 - April 30, 2010
Lecture: M 1300-1400 and one of T 1100-1200 or T 1200-1300
Tutorial: T 1600-1800 / W 1500-1700 / F 1000-1200
We are looking for a minimum of 4 TAs, sufficient to cover all tutorials, with each tutorial comprising 20-25 students. Should scheduling issues among qualified applicants arise, additional positions may be made available in order to complete the tutorial coverage.
The salary for this appointment is $32.42 per hour for undergraduate students and $38.76 per hour for graduate students, in accordance with the CUPE 3902 Collective Agreement.
Undergraduate applicants are welcome, but need to be aware that they may be asked to complete the grading of assignments in a timely manner at the same time as their own course assignments are due. As students you like to receive timely, thorough feedback; as a TA you will need to be able to deliver such feedback while still succeeding in your other courses. In the event of equivalently qualified graduate and undergradate applicants, in accordance with section 16:03(a) of CUPE 3902 Unit 1 Collective Agreement, preference will be given to graduate students enrolled in the School of Graduate Studies of the University of Toronto.
If you are interested in applying for one of these positions, please submit a cover letter and curriculum vitae, detailing examples of your relevant design and teaching experiences, by email directly to jason.foster@utoronto.ca. Please use standard electronic interchange formats (PDF, PNG, JPEG, etc.) and a subject line of "Praxis 2009 TA Application".
This posting closes on August 14, 2009. Selected candidates will be contacted to schedule an interview prior to the completion of hiring. All hiring will be completed by September 4.
If you have any questions about any of these positions, please contact Jason Foster at jason.foster@utoronto.ca.
This job is posted in accordance with the CUPE 3902 Unit 1 Collective Agreement, which can be viewed here.
The hiring policy is available at the CUPE Local 3902 office.
- helping students explore the role of the engineer, both within and beyond the classroom?
- working with students to develop their own engineering design mindset and skill-set?
- helping to develop innovative activities and assignments for the design classroom?
The Division of Engineering Science is looking to hire Teaching Assistants for ESC101 in September, 2009, and ESC102 in January, 2010. While these are separate courses, applicants are encouraged to apply for both based on their skills, interests, and availability.
The formal course descriptions can be found here.
Please be aware that the description for ESC101 is effectively a placeholder and does not present the complete nature of the course. ESC101 provides first year Engineering Science students with an environment in which they explore different definitions and approaches to "engineering" and "design". Throughout the course, students refine their own definition(s) and approach(es) as they both examine existing works of engineering and develop their own designs. Many of the activities in ESC101 link with major projects from CIV102.
Teaching in a Praxis course requires a particular set of skills and a specific approach to working with students. We are looking for applicants who can:
- Guide a group a students through a prescribed set of activities, and will adapt the activities to suit common interests and questions as necessary
- Take control of a group of questioning students and simultaneously let the students take control of their own learning
- Answer just enough of a question to give students some traction, but not so much that the students stop thinking on their own
- Come up in realtime with counter-examples to solutions proposed by the students
- Critique student designs in such a way that the students feel motivated to improve their designs
- Engage in the praxis of engineering design in both their teaching and their own engineering work
While specific areas of technical knowledge may be helpful, the breadth of student questions and design challenges is such that TAs will generally be working outside of their areas of technical expertise. In a single tutorial students might ask questions ranging from "How do you measure depression?" to "What is the most likely failure mode of a revolving door?" to "How do you attach a cable to a bridge deck?". TAs are not expected to be able to answer these questions, but are expected to inspire and to help the students develop and credibly defend their own answers.
TAs will be expected to attend two, one-hour lectures (negotiable, depending on applicant background), a one-hour team meeting (negotiable, depending on applicant background), and (at a minimum) one, two-hour tutorial per week.
TAs will also be responsible for some, but not an extreme amount of grading (which will need to be completed in a relatively timely manner). Depending on applicant background and seniority, TAs may also be tasked with assisting in the development of instructional materials.
To support the professional development of our TAs, and as specified in the CUPE 3902 Collective Agreement, successful applicants will be required to attend a paid training session (negotiable, depending on applicant background). There will also be a second, paid and mandatory, training session specific to the Praxis courses. Finally, we are also working with the TA Training Program to provide TAs with feedback and suggestions for improvement during their appointment.
The schedules for ESC101 and ESC102 are as follows:
ESC101 -- September 10, 2009 - December 20, 2009
Lecture: M 1300-1400 and one of T 1200-1300 or T 1300-1400
Tutorial: T 1500-1700 / W 0900-1100 / R 1400-1600
ESC102 -- January 4, 2010 - April 30, 2010
Lecture: M 1300-1400 and one of T 1100-1200 or T 1200-1300
Tutorial: T 1600-1800 / W 1500-1700 / F 1000-1200
We are looking for a minimum of 4 TAs, sufficient to cover all tutorials, with each tutorial comprising 20-25 students. Should scheduling issues among qualified applicants arise, additional positions may be made available in order to complete the tutorial coverage.
The salary for this appointment is $32.42 per hour for undergraduate students and $38.76 per hour for graduate students, in accordance with the CUPE 3902 Collective Agreement.
Undergraduate applicants are welcome, but need to be aware that they may be asked to complete the grading of assignments in a timely manner at the same time as their own course assignments are due. As students you like to receive timely, thorough feedback; as a TA you will need to be able to deliver such feedback while still succeeding in your other courses. In the event of equivalently qualified graduate and undergradate applicants, in accordance with section 16:03(a) of CUPE 3902 Unit 1 Collective Agreement, preference will be given to graduate students enrolled in the School of Graduate Studies of the University of Toronto.
If you are interested in applying for one of these positions, please submit a cover letter and curriculum vitae, detailing examples of your relevant design and teaching experiences, by email directly to jason.foster@utoronto.ca. Please use standard electronic interchange formats (PDF, PNG, JPEG, etc.) and a subject line of "Praxis 2009 TA Application".
This posting closes on August 14, 2009. Selected candidates will be contacted to schedule an interview prior to the completion of hiring. All hiring will be completed by September 4.
If you have any questions about any of these positions, please contact Jason Foster at jason.foster@utoronto.ca.
This job is posted in accordance with the CUPE 3902 Unit 1 Collective Agreement, which can be viewed here.
The hiring policy is available at the CUPE Local 3902 office.