Size and Modality of Discussion Sections Impact Teaching Assistant Practices and Experiences

Teaching assistants (TAs) are an integral aspect of undergraduate education, often leading discussion or laboratory sections for STEM courses. Despite the widespread use of discussion sections in large courses, the relationships between teaching context and TA teaching practices and experiences are understudied. In this study we analyzed 76 TA responses to a mix of closed- and open-ended survey questions to identify how classroom size and modality (in-person or virtual instruction) impacted TA teaching practices and feelings towards teaching. TAs who led smaller (< 50 students) and/or in-person sections reported using significantly more group work than those leading larger and/or virtual discussion sections. Analysis of open-ended responses revealed that TAs across discussion sizes and modalities found it rewarding to help students learn, but that a significantly larger proportion of TAs from larger remote discussion sections reported challenges related to time commitments, lack of time to accomplish tasks, higher pressure, and challenges with student engagement due to discussion section structure. Our findings offer insight into the variations of ways discussion sections are used in large undergraduate programs and provide data that can be used to inform future discussion section design across STEM disciplines.