Welcome to our latest essential resource for educators, administrators, and support staff! We’re thrilled to introduce our comprehensive guide, “Working with Teaching Assistants: An Instructor’s Guide to Effectively Mentor TAs.”
Build a Stronger Teaching Team
Managing Teaching Assistants can either lighten your workload or create more confusion, inconsistency, and student complaints. The difference comes down to one thing: effective mentorship.
This free guide gives you a practical framework for onboarding, mentoring, and collaborating with TAs so your course runs smoothly, students get consistent support, and your teaching team feels confident and aligned.
In this guide, you will learn how to:
- Set clear expectations from day one
- Foster TA communication
- Recognize TAs’ learning process
- Build TA confidence and accountability
- Foster a collaborative and professional teaching environment
What’s Inside
This practical instructor guide includes:
- Job posting template
- Checklist of typical TA duties
- Example of a TA questionnaire
- Feedback strategies
Whether you’re supervising your first TA or managing a large instructional team, this guide will help you create a more organized, effective, and supportive learning environment.
This guide is for anyone working with TAs.
Why Effective TA Mentorship Matters
TAs are often the front line of student support. When they are unclear, unsupported, or underprepared, students notice.
But when instructors provide structure, communication, and mentorship, TAs become valuable partners who improve the student experience and strengthen course delivery.
This guide helps you build that foundation.
Download Your Copy
Cynthia Korpan, PhD
Director
ITeach: Certification in Higher Ed Inc
About me
I have over 20 years experience in Educational Development in Higher Education and over 35 years related to workplace learning. As the former Director of Teaching Excellence at the University of Victoria, I garnered significant experience in developing programs and courses, teaching undergraduates, graduate students, and professors, and mentoring many about learning and teaching in higher education. In 2017, I was honoured with the Educational Developers Caucus Leadership Award for my national work related to educational development. My research focuses on emerging and early career academics’ first teaching in the academic workplace. This work and my expertise have been and continues to be shared with institutions around the world, such as Canada, the United States, China, Uganda, Pakistan, and Ghana.
Testimonials:
The courses I have taken from Cynthia have provided me with a theoretical foundation that I use to better understand how to design classroom environments that promote learning. That foundation gives me an improved capacity to articulate pedagogical concepts so that I can perform effective literature searches to continuously improve my own teaching methods. Being able to engage literature effectively then gives me more confidence to take risks and evolve my courses at a faster rate.
Former faculty member student
Dr. Korpan is very skilled in online teaching and learning, using many effective options for learning in that environment and was able to give fulsome and helpful feedback to all students. Cynthia’s knowledge of learning and teaching in university settings is extensive. Her skills as an educator ensures that her courses and classes are organized, interesting, interactive, and engaging.
Peer colleague
Cynthia is a great instructor. Very knowledgeable about the subject matter. Good choices for assessment. Highly student–centered (i.e., not lecture–based) course activities. One of the best courses that I have taken or observed. Overall, she is a fantastic instructor and role model for teaching.
Former graduate student
Dr. Korpan is a delight to work with and is genuinely sincere, open, and considerate. She brings extensive research experience to her work and simultaneously helps others thrive in their own teaching and scholarship of teaching. Above all else, she understands educational excellence from a variety of perspectives: her extensive understanding of the research in the field; her own research studies and editing experiences; her program-building capabilities; and her hard work and innovation.
Peer colleague
