Undergraduates play an important role in the instructional teams in the Eberly College of Science. Their participation as teaching assistants (TAs), learning assistants (LAs), tutors, and mentors supports student learning and community building in our courses. Undergraduates also participate in educational research teams and contribute to our scholarship in science education.

The Grove Center supports undergraduate students’ professional development in science education through our coordination of our Learning Assistant (LA) Program, and it serves as a hub to assist students in identifying educational research opportunities.

Learning Assistant (LA) Program

The Eberly College of Science LA Program was launched with the support and coordination of the Grove Center. A need for peer facilitation in classrooms where faculty were trying to engage students in collaborative active learning activities led to the launch of the LA initiative in fall 2011. Our LA initiative has always been a collaboration between the center, our dedicated college faculty, and our students.

The goals of the Eberly College of Science LA program are

• to enhance the learning environment in Eberly College of Science classes that have chosen to use collaborative active learning activities as a part of the course curriculum;
• to train students to serve as learning assistants; this training takes place largely through a pedagogy class that focuses on how learning works and the strategies that LAs can use to facilitate learning; and
• to provide support to instructors who want to use LAs in their courses.

How Do I Become an LA?

Each Eberly College of Science department has their own application process to recruit and support LAs in their instructional teams. The following list contains the names and contact information for the departmental coordinators and links to their LA websites:

• Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics: Jennifer Marsh
• Department of Biology LA Program: Coordinator: Dr. Carla Hass
• Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology LA Program
• Department of Chemistry LA Program: Coordinator: Lori Stepan
• Department of Mathematics LA Program: Coordinator: Amine Benkiran
• Department of Physics LA Program: Coordinator: Louis Leblond
• Department of Statistics LA Program: Coordinator: Cecil Shelton

SC 220: Principles and Strategies for Effective STEM Learning

SC 220: Principles and Strategies for Effective STEM Learning is a one-credit course that meets once a week for seven weeks. It is taken by learning assistants in the Eberly College of Science. It focuses on evidence-based teaching and learning topics like the role of prior knowledge, growing metacognition, creating inclusive environments, and more. Faculty members from various departments teach sections of SC 220 to support our LA Program.