Postgraduate Teaching Assisant 2018-2022
Undergraduate laboratories & courses, Lancaster University, Physics Department, 2018
During my PhD studies at Lancaster University, I also possessed the role of Postgraduate Teaching Assistant (PGTA), engaging and participating in the delivery and grading of a number of different undergraduate courses (modules). The primary set of courses that I assisted with was first year practical laboratories (PHYS133-135), in which I was a demonstrator, guiding students on a weekly basis through a range of up to 16 experiments simultaneously, and marked (graded) a number of student’s laboratory books, documenting their progress through the experiment. Additionally, I marked formal written assessments for these courses in the form of complete laboratory reports as well as shorter written analyses of experiments.
Alongside these courses, I assisted on a range of other undergraduate courses. The first of these is Basic physics Communication Skills (PHYS132) in which I marked student presentations providing them with general feedback for improving oral presentations as well as formally assessing a final presentation. I also assisted with Space and Auroral Physics (PHYS390), marking worksheets on a bi-weekly basis over the duration of the course.
During my time in this role the delivery of undergraduate courses was greatly disrupted and challenged by the covid-19 pandemic, this lead to a number of unique and often rapid alterations the role. Despite these challenges, I was awarded an PGTA award for my performance in the role for the 2019/2020 academic year.