Recognition Where It Is Due: Towards a Teaching Qualification for Student Teaching Assistants in Higher Education

Abstract

Students working as teaching assistants (TAs) in tertiary education usually do not receive formal recognition for their contributions to the educational process. It has not been clear whether TAs would appreciate recognition in the form of a qualification or, if so, what form that qualification should take. This study aims to answer these questions by interviewing TAs currently working at two universities in the Netherlands in two semi-structured focus groups. The results show that TAs would welcome the possibility of obtaining a student teaching qualification based on their work, provided that it is not mandatory and that it results in a certificate rather than study credits. The associated training should comprise a suitable amount of formal training in the form of meetings on (subject) pedagogy, lesson visits, feedback by faculty staff, and some form of assessment. The results warrant pilot experiments on the implementation of a student teaching qualification.