My definite skills as a teaching assistant came from a few places. I would say my knowledge of the subject, time management, and communication skills. Communication skills are integral to being a successful teaching assistant, and even though we were online for this course, I attempted to uphold that in all communication with the professor and the students. Effective communication is particularly important online, as the primary method of communication, text, can be easily misconstrued. Being clear and concise in all messages sent allowed for effective ability to solve problems. I also remained timely in replying to emails, my goal was to reply within the twenty-four hours it was sent. I am proud to say I was able to always maintain that goal. In reference to the office hour correspondence, I am also proud to say I remained very timely in responses to those emails. I was able to constantly send a response within five or so minutes of it arriving in my email.

I felt very confident with the subject matter discussed in the discussions. However, knowledge alone does not make a good teacher. Effective time management skills are very important. As a teaching assistant, I did my best to finish grading in a timely manner. This was a definite area of improvement over the course of the semester, as I learned how to chunk out grading so as to not overwhelm myself. While I missed my mark of finishing grading on schedule a couple times, I remained aware of what got in my way that week and was sure to account for that in the next.

As for my weaknesses, an example I give in almost every interview is that my temperament can be rather timid. I am not someone to go rock the boat by nature. I am working on this part of myself as I would like to become more of an instigator; this has seen improvement over the years, but it is still something I try to be aware of.

Included below is Dr. Meca’s (the professor of the course) evaluation of my work for the spring 2021 semester.