AFRICAN INTERNATIONAL TEACHING ASSISTANTS
Background
This research investigates the challenges encountered by African International Teaching Assistants (AITA) at the University of Arkansas from a cultural perspective. The goals were to discern if African ITAs face challenges when carrying out their duties and to know their perspectives on how these challenges can be addressed by students, departments, and/or the University of Arkansas.
Method
To achieve these goals, I employed the survey and interview methods to gather data. I sent out the survey online using Qualtrics, and the interview was a semi-structured open-ended interview. I employed descriptive coding to analyze the data.
Key Finding
We found that African ITAs felt nervous, confused, and self-conscious about carrying out their duties because they were not sure what was acceptable and what was not. And 40% of the participants stated that having an experienced AITA mentor would have improved the experience and helped relieve the fear they felt when they started their teaching assistantship.
Proposed Intervention
This research recommends that a Mentorship program should be implemented for AITAs to build and improve vital skills, knowledge, and performance in a US classroom at the University of Arkansas.
For additional findings and learning please contact syabilsu@uark.edu
