Ask a friend, acquaintance or person in your department who is a T.A. if you could observe an office hour with her or him.

Your purpose is to observe and record the following in order to gain an understanding of the behaviors and situations that are normal in office hours.

1. How did the T.A. greet the student? How did the student introduce the topic?







2. What problems were brought up by the student(s)?







3. Describe the T.A.'s response to the student in terms of politeness, encouragement, direction, etc. Record any expressions of helpfulness, concern, reassurance, warning, etc., such as "ok, let's try to clarify the problem. Let's go through it together, you try the first step... you seem really upset, well, that's not quite it, let's go over it again.... you'll understand it better if .. there! You see, you got it ... keep trying ... don't give up .......







4. Did the T.A., give any information about exams or assignments? What advice did s/he give?






5. Describe the behavior of the T.A. with three adjectives. Describe the student's behavior with two or three adjectives. (helpful, worried, concerned, etc.)