Preparing in advance

Prepare lecture notes
Determine rough weekly schedule (based on notes)
Choose dates for assignments, exams, and problem sessions
Book rooms for exams
Book rooms for marking exams
Book rooms for problem sessions
Book audio-visual equipment needed in the classroom
Divide up tasks for a multi-section course
Determine schedule and duties for TAs
Determine whether or not course meetings will be held for course personnel

Teaching assistants

Create a list of duties to be done by one person and circulate it among the TAs to determine their preferences. Several might be bundled into a “head TA” job. Sample duties might include:

Maintaining marks

Updating the Web site

Answering e-mail sent to the course account

Posting announcements on the newgroup

Picking up assignments from the hand-in box

Sorting assignments for return to instructors

Writing a draft of the midterm of final

Ask TAs about scheduling problems, preferences

Inform TAs of all duties of all TAs, and make the list available on the course account. Other duties might include:

Holding office hours

Running problem sessions

Giving feedback on assignments

Marking exams

Assignments

Create model solutions in advance to help determine whether or not the questions are at the right levels and whether or not the wording of the questions is sufficiently clear.
Make solutions available to other course personnel for feedback.
Check assignments against those given in previous terms, in the textbook, and in problem sessions.

Creating exams

Determine a timetable for a first draft, feedback from TAs, etc.
Create a list of topics covered in lectures and a rough weighting scheme; ensure that your assignment of marks to exam questions fits the scheme.
Do not feel that hard questions need to be assigned a large number of marks. Ask yourself if you are prepared to have many students lose many marks for not being able to answer a difficult question.
Ask TAs to write answers and record the time taken to complete each question.
Check wording for ambiguity.
Try to have questions at different levels of difficulty; it is often nice to have a very straightforward question appear first to help students to calm down enough to write the rest of the exam.
Think about how you will assess part marks, and how little errors can result in many different answers.
Where possible, constrain what answers will be written and where on the page they will appear (by the use of charts, lines, boxes, etc.) in order to make the marking process faster.
Write the exam yourself. Rough guidelines: a TA writing the exam should be able to complete it in about 1/4-1/3 of the allotted time; your writing the answers (not thinking) should take even less time.
Prepare a cover sheet with useful information. This may include:
- Student name, ID number, section number, signature
- A chart for you to record marks during marking
- The number of pages in the exam
- Instructions:
  - Initial each page in case pages become unstapled
  - Write all answers on the fronts of pages or on extra pages at the back, saving backs for rough work
  - Numbers of marks do not correspond to difficulty of questions

Marking exams

Prepare a marking scheme in advance (as part of the process of checking the exam), but prepare to change it.
Before any exams are marked, read through a pile to determine what changes are necessary.
Divide exams into several more piles than there are markers and label each with a letter (post-it notes work well).
Create a chart on the board with entries for each letter and each problem (possibly grouping small problems or dividing up big ones depending on how they will be marked).
Assign markers or groups to questions, leaving straightforward ones (that is, ones where marking inconsistencies are unlikely to appear) for the end.
Ask each person to write in their initials in the entry for their question and the pile they have, and replaces it with an X when the pile has been completely marked.

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