Learning Assistant Program
The COSAM Learning Assistant Program launched in Fall 2015 and is modeled after the nationally recognized Learning Assistant Program at the University of Colorado Boulder. Funded by the College of Sciences and Mathematics, the program collaborates with the national Learning Assistant Alliance.
Professors in all five COSAM departments utilize Learning Assistants in their classes.
The COSAM Learning Assistant Program strengthens science and mathematics education by placing trained Learning Assistants in active learning environments. LAs provide valuable support in challenging courses by facilitating group discussions, encouraging collaboration and promoting deeper engagement in lectures, labs and discussion sections.
What Learning Assistants Do
Learning Assistants are undergraduate students who help create active, collaborative learning environments. As peers who have recently completed the course, LAs support fellow students by facilitating group discussions, encouraging participation, asking guiding questions and helping reinforce key concepts.
LAs do not replace instructors or graduate teaching assistants. Instead, they help make large and challenging courses more interactive, supportive and student-centered.
The LA Experience
Learning Assistants participate in three connected parts of the LA model: weekly preparation, pedagogy and practice.
Weekly Preparation
LAs meet with faculty, coordinators or instructional teams at least once per week to prepare for upcoming classes, deepen their understanding of course content, discuss teaching strategies and share observations about student progress.
Pedagogy
First-time LAs complete a pedagogy course that introduces educational research, active learning and strategies for supporting student participation, listening, questioning, relationship-building and inclusive learning.
Practice
LAs work directly with groups of students in the classroom, lab or discussion setting. Their role is to facilitate discussion, elicit student thinking and help students build shared understanding of course concepts.
Together, these experiences help LAs develop content knowledge, teaching skills and practical experience that are valuable across many career paths.
Interested in Becoming an LA?
Learning Assistants promote active learning, enhance understanding, develop leadership skills, strengthen their resumes, earn a stipend and connect with faculty while engaging deeply with course material and the academic community.
Interested in Using LAs in Your Course?
Instructors working with Learning Assistants gain stronger teaching support through structured training, weekly collaboration, assistance designing active-learning activities, streamlined assessment efforts and dependable LA help that enhances overall course effectiveness.
How the Learning Assistant Program Makes a Difference
The Learning Assistant Program strengthens science and mathematics education by supporting students, faculty and courses in new ways.
Curriculum and Course Transformation
The Learning Assistant model helps transform traditional courses into more active learning experiences, giving students more opportunities to engage with course concepts, collaborate with peers and practice problem-solving.
Discipline-Based Education Research
The program supports faculty collaboration around effective teaching practices and provides opportunities to study how students learn in science and mathematics courses.
Institutional Change
By creating infrastructure for active learning, the program supports lasting improvements in teaching within departments and across the university.
Teacher Recruitment and Preparation
The program gives undergraduates real classroom experience and exposure to evidence-based teaching practices, helping students explore teaching, mentoring and education-related career paths.
