Returning TA Workshop

9:00 am–10:30 am

3rd Floor – Van Hise Hall

Work with peers to address the common teaching challenges that Teaching Assistants can face in the classroom. Practice proactive and reactive strategies for resolving or preventing challenges.

Learning Outcomes

• Reflect on challenges encountered while teaching.
• Identify proactive and reactive strategies for resolving challenges.
• Discuss contextual factors that affect teaching challenges and resolutions.
• Practice incorporating new strategies to resolve common teaching challenges.

The Returning TA Workshop sessions will be led by four Teaching Mentors. These Teaching Mentors are experienced UW-Madison Teaching Assistants who possess deep knowledge of teaching, have demonstrated excellence in the classroom, and are enthusiastic to help others develop as teachers.

Teaching Mentors

Marissa Gurtler, Lead Teaching Mentor

Marissa loves the dynamics of teaching whether in a classroom, outside enjoying a burst of spring, or visiting Special Collections and the Chazen Museum of Art. Her approach is best described as interactive and student-centered. Over the past ten years, she has taught middle school, high school, and undergraduate students and a variety of subjects – Latin and composition among her favorite subjects to teach. She also loves being outdoors with her two dogs, Korra and Asami, and she is currently obsessed with young adult literature. Marissa will be leading the Navigating Common Teaching Challenges session and the Facilitating Discussions breakout session.

Daria Tennikova, Lead Teaching Mentor

Daria Tennikova is a third year Doctoral Student at the Mead Witter School of Music, studying composition and piano performance, currently working on her dissertation project. She has completed her undergraduate Degree in Music Performance at UW-Madison in 2014, and a Master’s Degree in composition at Rice University in Houston in 2017, where she also took courses in higher education classroom pedagogy. Daria is a TA in Music Theory department. Daria has been teaching for over 10 years, and her experience encompasses various fields and age groups from 2-year-olds to adults of all ages. She has taught music theory, piano, composition, Russian and German languages, chess tactics and strategies. Her favorite subjects to teach are piano and music theory. Daria enjoys revealing the structure and meaningful details of the musical canvas to the students, aiming to illuminate their understanding of the musical language and enhance their potential as sensible interpreters.

Her teaching approach is driven by the desire to inspire the students to learn and discover the depths of the subject even beyond the classroom. In class she often stresses the direct connection between theory and performance practice, to get everyone in the room to participate and think critically about their own experiences. It is Daria’s strong conviction that an essential component of a successful teaching style is a flexible approach to finding solutions for any task, because we all learn differently and want to be involved in the process in a comfortable and efficient way. She always shares multiple methods of working on a task or assignment and explains the nuances of each method with concrete examples, so to help guide each student towards their right way. Daria will be leading the Navigating Common Teaching Challenges session and the Public Speaking for Instruction breakout session.

Kyle Miron, Teaching Mentor

Teaching became an important part of Kyle’s life in high school when they taught ballet to toddlers. In college they majored in Education and worked for three years in the Vassar College Writing Center, developing a love for mixing the history and sociology of education with on-the-ground pedagogy. They have been teaching at UW-Madison for three years to both undergraduate students and men incarcerated at a nearby prison. They are especially excited about developing students’ intellectual curiosity and empowering them to think deeply together about why history matters. Kyle believes that this is best done in a supportive intellectual community and has worked to nurture collaborative and generous classrooms. Kyle will be leading the Navigating Common Teaching Challenges session and the Building a Sustainable Teaching Plan breakout session.

Mingxin Xie, Teaching Mentor

Mingxin is a rising fourth-year Ph.D. student in Economics at UW-Madison with three years of teaching experience in Principles of Microeconomics and Macroeconomics. Previously, he led Pre-calculus recitations at the Ohio State University as an undergraduate. Mingxin’s teaching focuses on empowering students to become effective problem-solvers while fostering a supportive learning environment. He actively seeks students’ feedback, incorporating suggestions, and address concerns promptly. In his discussion sections, Mingxin combines concise reviews with interactive group work, frequently checking in with students to help them build a strong foundation. He finds the most rewarding moments in teaching to be when students confidently explain their reasoning with clarity and precision. Mingxin will be leading the Navigating Common Teaching Challenges session and the Developing Your Teaching Philosophy breakout session.