COACHING GEOSCIENCE GRADUATE ASSISTANTS TO EFFECTIVELY SUPPORT STUDENT INQUIRY

Introductory or lower division geoscience classes commonly use graduate assistants (GAs) to facilitate student learning. Quite often, these GAs are placed in a classroom or laboratory with minimal instruction on how to guide students through the learning process. This study followed GAs assigned at the beginning of the term to a one -semester earth science class that was designed to incorporate hands-on model construction within a large lecture-type setting that usually prohibits such an active learning technique. To maximize student learning opportunities, GAs needed to understand the basis for student inquiry and develop methods for asking probing questions. Before the semester started, the GAs attended a two-day workshop dedicated to explaining the nature of student inquiry and providing experiences on answering student questions with open-ended prompts that foster student inquiry and understanding rather than just giving the answer. At regular intervals through out the semester, the GAs met with the coach to discuss and evaluate their progress towards understanding and fostering student inquiry.

During the initial workshop sessions at the beginning of the term, the GAs were presented with two models representing concepts outside their scope of expertise. For the first model, the trainer gave the GAs the answers with little explanatory input. For the second model, the coach guided the GAs to discover the answers through the use of open-ended questions. A follow-up discussion of why students learn better when challenged to form their own understanding reinforced the need for the GAs to adapt their interactions with students. Through out the term, the GAs met with the coach to discuss their progress towards understanding and fostering student inquiry. The coach also periodically observed the GA's interactions with students and provided feedback on the GA's ability to implement the desired question strategy. Conceptual understanding was measured using a variety of instruments including surveys, interviews, and journaling.