SSP Upper Division - TA Practicum: Supplemental Instruction

Prereq: Being a Supplemental Instruction Leader is a highly selective process. To qualify, students must have completed all of the following courses with a grade of A- or better: Bio 1011, Bio 1012, Bio 2101 (Cell Biology), and Bio 2201 (Genetics). Interested students should contact Jill Strand.

Course Overview:
Supplemental Instruction (SI) is an academic assistance program designed to increase student performance and retention. SI targets traditionally difficult academic courses and provides regularly scheduled, out-of-class, peer facilitated study sessions for students enrolled in those courses.

Our SI leaders are the key people in our program. They are presented as model students of the subject/course with which they work. SI leaders attend all class sessions, take notes, read all assigned material, and plan and conduct multiple SI review sessions each week. Our leaders focus on both helping their students master the material and on developing critical thinking and study skills. They are not expected to "teach" the material covered in class but, rather, to clarify hazy concepts and facilitate group study of the material.

"By going to class with the students every day, grading their exams, and providing the SI sessions, I really felt like we were in the battle together." -Mike F.