Working with Teaching Assistants (TA)

Depending on the size of your class, you may be assigned teaching assistants (TAs). TAs can be graduate or undergraduate students and may be offered these roles as part of funding packages or through a competitive application process. All teaching assistants are members of CUPE 3906 (Unit 1) and work according to the terms of the Collective Agreement. A full teaching assistantship consists of 260 hours (130 per term), and a partial teaching assistantship consists of less than 130 hours.

TAs fulfill a number of important roles, including leading class discussions, supervising a lab or tutorial group, marking assignments, meeting and corresponding with students, and facilitating study sessions. The specific duties you require your TA(s) to complete and the estimated amount of time each activity is expected to take should be discussed with them before the term starts and recorded in their Hours of Work form provided by your department.

Please note that all TAs are required to complete Workplace Health and Safety training and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act training before they begin their first teaching assistant position. Moreover, each TA must also complete five hours of one-time paid anti-oppression and pedagogy training. This training is external to their TA contract hours and must be completed within the first 2-weeks of the start date of their appointment. To learn more about this training, please refer to the Mandatory TA/RA in Lieu Training (Anti-Oppression and Pedagogy) page on McMaster’s Human Resources Services website.

Should TAs wish to engage in additional professional development for teaching, please be sure to make them aware that there are many opportunities to do so via the MacPherson Institute. A full listing of opportunities can be found on the Institute’s New TA Programming page.