RCN-UBE Incubator: Biology Teaching Assistant Project (BioTAP)

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The biology teaching assistant project (BioTAP) will create a network of academics to inform best practices for biology graduate teaching assistant (GTA) professional development, with an eye toward fostering practices aligned with reformed biology courses. To improve GTA professional development on a national scale, this RCN-UBE network will first identify the instructional skills needed by GTAs to teach reformed biology courses, and then gather and study professional development models from institutions across the nation to identify those which may serve as standards of best practice. Intellectual Merit: BioTAP will foster national dialogue to improve collegiate biology instruction, and expand and promote the project at network and professional meetings. The project will enhance the communication among national professional organizations, biology faculty, laboratory coordination staff, teaching and learning centers, and GTAs to reduce duplication, unify resources, and promote the instructional strengths of biology GTAs.Broader Impacts: BioTAP aims to be the premier resource guiding biology GTA professional development in the nation. The findings of the network will be disseminated via articles and conference presentations, and by using the existing networks of other RCN-UBEs and professional organizations. By the end of the incubator funding, new members of the Steering Committee will broaden the representation of institutions and academic experiences, and a list of potential network participants will be compiled. The findings of the project will be made available to this network through a file sharing site. BioTAP will inform professional development practices across the nation to better prepare GTAs for their roles as future faculty members and improve their ability to deliver reformed biology courses.This project is being jointly funded by the Directorate for Biological Sciences and the Directorate for Education and Human Resources, Division of Undergraduate Education as part of their efforts towards support of Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education.