Building Bridges Across Programs Graduate Students in New Roles Teaching Undergrads

Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR) graduate students have been in on the ground floor of the development of CAR, the Institute's undergraduate program, and have contributed significantly to its growth. In the four years of its existence many graduate students and ICAR alums have taught courses for the CAR Program, and some have served as graders or course assistants. These students and alums bring tremendous enthusiasm and cutting-edge knowledge of the field into the undergraduate classroom. In the coming years, ICAR graduate students will play increasingly important roles in teaching and program development. Last year, CAR established its first Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA) and awarded it to Mery Rodriguez. CAR's first GTA taught sections of CONF 101: Conflict and Our World and served as an academic advisor to CAR majors and minors. Also last year, CAR began a major initiative in curriculum revision, and Mery led the effort by conducting a thorough review of CONF 101.For 2008-09 academic year, the ranks of CAR teachers are swelled by three new GTAs. Each GTA teaches one course per term and advises students in addition to working ten hours a week on a project. Min Oo finds CONF 101 a great context for teaching students to think critically. He is developing assessment tools to be used in individual courses and to evaluate the program as a whole.

In teaching CONF 240: The Social Dynamics of Terrorism, David Alpher seeks to personify the "reflective practitioner."Talha Kose is spearheading a curriculum review of CAR's most popular course, CONF 340: Global Conflict and its Resolution, and developing units to involve students in simulated international conflict resolution processes. Critics of higher education question whether graduate students are as effective in the undergraduate classroom as more experienced teachers. CAR's emphasis on teaching basic social science theories and methods, and such general skills as analytic writing and critical thinking, can pose a challenge to graduate students steeped in the specialized knowledge required to complete a Ph.D. Mindful of the need for pedagogical training, ICAR has twice offered CONF 695: Teaching Skills for the Undergraduate Classroom. The ICAR faculty also decided to develop a more comprehensive approach to preparing graduate students for classroom teaching and also for mentoring their progress as teachers. This initiative, spurred by the growth of the CAR Program, positions ICAR as a leader in conflict analysis and resolution pedagogy.