Courses Taught
I have been a teaching assistant for the first-year physics laboratory courses listed below.| 2022 – 2023 |
PHYS 146: Fluids and Waves Winter 2023 (20 students) |
| 2021 – 2022 |
PHYS 126: Fluids, Fields, and Radiation Winter 2022 (45 students) PHYS 144: Newtonian Mechanics and Relativity Fall 2021 (7 students) |
| 2020 – 2021 |
PHYS 146: Fluids and Waves Winter 2021 (28 students) PHYS 144: Newtonian Mechanics and Relativity Fall 2020 (30 students) |
| 2019 – 2020 |
EN PH 131: Mechanics Winter 2020 (47 students) Lead TA (supporting other TAs, developing marking guides, administrative assistance) PHYS 130: Wave Motion, Optics, and Sound Fall 2019 (95 students) |
| 2018 – 2019 |
PHYS 130: Wave Motion, Optics, and Sound Fall 2018 (109 students) |
- Making PowerPoint slides and delivering lab presentations multiple times a week
- Developing learning resources to support student learning (see Teaching Resources)
- Helping students complete the lab experiments and answering their questions
- Marking lab reports and assignments according to a common rubric
- Tracking student learning and providing constructive individualised written feedback
- Assisting students at office hours and via email
Teaching Evaluations
Below is data from teaching evaluations from the most recent course for which I was a teaching assistant. The data was gathered from online Universal Student Ratings of Instruction (USRI) / Student Perspectives of Teaching (SPOT) responses. The students were given options on a Likert scale:| Question | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Mean |
| The teaching assistant graded assignments fairly. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 4.8 |
| The teaching assistant gave clear and understandable explanations. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 5.0 |
| The teaching assistant was well-prepared. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 5.0 |
| The teaching assistant treated students with respect. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 5.0 |
| Overall, the teaching assistant was excellent. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 4.9 |
PHYS 146 (Winter 2023)
20 students (11 responses)
20 students (11 responses)
Students were also given the chance to provide written feedback. I received very positive feedback from all students that replied. Below are some selected responses:
William always had extensive slideshows prepared that went above and beyond helpful. When we had questions, he always knew exactly
how to help.
— PHYS 146 Student (Winter 2023)
William was a great TA. Super kind and knowledgable, and truly made an effort to reach out and help. I never felt awkward about
asking for help, and he was fantastic about providing as much feedback as he could!
— PHYS 146 Student (Winter 2023)
[William] was willing to discuss anything regarding our experiments, and provided feedback before giving marks, allowing us to get
the highest mark possible! As well, gave easy-to-understand answers, and was relatable and generally nice, so there was no anxiety
about asking questions. Also, he outlined every possible expectation, and provided more resources than we could dream of.
— PHYS 146 Student (Winter 2023)
[The teaching assistant was most effective in] every way. He made the students feel heard, always knew what he was talking about
and how best to help the issues that came up during the laboratory.
— PHYS 146 Student (Winter 2023)