In physics, it’s understood that for every force acting on an object, that object is sending back a force of equal and opposite magnitude.
But if you ask Joseph Rudnick, the dean of the UCLA Division of Physical Sciences and a professor of physics himself, this property of motion can apply to other areas as well, including education.
Rudnick is working on a proposal that would institutionalize the opportunity for certain undergraduates to work part-time as teaching assistants. His justification for the change lies in his belief that these elite undergraduates would not only have a more intimate knowledge of their students’ needs, but they would also directly benefit from the experience of leading classes. Equal and opposite.
While graduate students have expressed concerns about their job security, the benefits of such an arrangement would outweigh the costs, and accelerating this into practice would be a good move.
Rudnick has sworn that priority will be given to graduate students but would allow departments the option to use elite undergraduates as necessary, essentially minimizing the risk toward graduate student employment opportunities.
As it stands now, the proposal has already been through nearly all the steps it needs for ratification. It’s been cleared of logistical hurdles by the Faculty Executive Committee, which provides governance over the College of Letters and Science. Now it’s in the hands of the Undergraduate Council and the Graduate Council, which are made up of faculty and students that review university policies and make suggestions on potential changes.
For the Undergraduate Council at least, deciding whether to accept the proposal should be a no-brainer.
The position wouldn’t be available to just any student walking around campus. The TA spots are reserved for undergraduates termed “departmental scholars” – in other words, people who are in specialized programs pursuing dual bachelor’s and master’s degrees.
Essentially, these are the cream of the crop in their respective fields. They have to take especially rigorous courses while maintaining a GPA above 3.5, have scored above a 2080 on their SATs and had been in the top 3 percent of their graduating high school class. And that’s just to apply.
Which means these highly qualified people would now be available to fellow students as resources. Just about all of these TAs would be upperclassmen, teaching students who are just starting out in lower-division courses. This gives unique advantages to students taking these classes, since they’re being taught by someone who is no more than a couple years removed from the exact same material.
Many times, the best way to practice a skill is to teach it. Essentially, these departmental scholars would be getting practice in their field while simultaneously providing a service to younger students. Not only does this provide the instructor with a more intimate knowledge of their students’ needs, but it allows the undergraduate leading the course to reap the benefits of teaching.
Now, there are possible concerns about the undergraduate assistants’ workload. As I laid out before, these are already people with a lot on their plates. However, the revised proposal would limit these undergraduate TAs to 25 percent – or about 10 hours – of a full-time workweek, a threshold which makes them eligible for certain benefits.
Which means that the main problem lies with the Graduate Council.
The graduate students do have something to lose here. Given that each department only has a set amount of money allocated for TAs, the opportunity cost of having a few undergraduates on staff could mean a few less graduates. Since most graduate TAs rely on teaching jobs as their main source of income, they have the most to lose.
Essentially, the question has to be asked if the benefits of having a few undergraduate TAs outweighs the cost of potentially – but not inevitably – harming an extraordinarily small, undetermined number of graduate students.
Much of this proposal is still speculation, and your stance on it will probably be influenced by how likely you feel graduate students will actually impacted.
However, given the inherent advantages of passing this bill, I would urge the councils to be pragmatic in their approach to potentially hiring undergraduate TAs. Anything that is done can be undone; if there are problems that evolve with the program, then end it.
Given the obvious benefits, it’s at least worth a shot.