This article explores the rationale for and creation of an international teaching assistant (ITA) handbook at a large southern U.S. university. It cites Florida statute 1012.93 (Florida Legislature, 1995–2016) as governing demonstration of English proficiency for faculty members who come from a country that is not considered English speaking, which is a legal concern for those who assume the duties of a faculty member or those who act in a faculty-like capacity by teaching, such as ITAs. The ITA handbook’s content and the administrative challenges behind its content are also explained.

Creating an ITA Handbook

Making the Case for ITA Training

State universities in Florida and elsewhere in the United States are charged to monitor and credential those teaching their students. Florida statute 1012.93 (Florida Legislature, 1995–2016) specifically governs demonstrations of English proficiency for faculty members who come from a country that is not considered English speaking. This becomes a legal concern for those who assume the teaching duties of an employee at colleges and universities. ITAs and adjunct instructors/faculty, specifically, are assuming more of these teaching responsibilities in universities because these institutions are dealing with challenging budgetary demands (Sessions, 2008), and administrators have seen the value in training future faculty members to teach. Given that (I)TAs are more affordable than faculty, the rate of their employment in ratio to other teachers at U.S. institutions has risen (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016). Those who would once have administered a lab or helped with grading or other classroom administration tasks are now being listed as the instructor of record and provided with much wider responsibilities, though at considerably lower pay.

It then becomes incumbent on the college or university to make sure that these ITAs are prepared not just to meet the minimum required proficiency in English but also to work with students in the United States, and more specifically those at their own institution (Ashavskaya, 2015). However, establishing English proficiency is frequently met with a variety of challenges from faculty advisors and department chairs, who are often more concerned with funding a promising and often brilliant student or filling vacant teaching positions. They regularly make the argument that “I’ve spoken with them many times and their English is excellent,” neglecting the fact that this is often based only on short samples of conversational English in a context that the student is likely familiar with negotiating and in which their attention is likely minimally taxed.

Teaching is a highly cognitively demanding task (Tsui, 2009) that comes with the added stress of performing before an audience of not necessarily sympathetic listeners. For ITAs of intermediate or low proficiency levels (TOEFL speaking section score of 25 or IELTS of 7.5 and lower at many universities), this simply puts too much stress on them to effectively process the task at hand, student demands, their own levels of affect, and operating in a foreign language (Ashavskaya, 2015). Clear communication and feedback, however, remain central factors in student reports on the efficacy of ITAs (Sohoni, Cho, & French, 2013). For this reason, many universities offer an educational option for these promising students who are operating just below the threshold for the required level of English performance (generally between 20 and 25 on the speaking section of the TOEFL). A one-semester course can not only builds their skills in English but also provides them with contextual experience and strategies that they can draw upon to reduce demands on their cognitive processing (Bartels, 2009; Tsui, 2009) and perform better in the target language. Gains in spoken English proficiency are then assessed by micro-teaching activities and rated on a Test of Spoken English. Further, such a course provides students with greater understanding of teaching and meeting the needs of the students at their institution (Ashavskaya, 2015).

Handbook Content

At the University of South Florida (USF; 2013), we have assembled a handbook specifically for ITAs. This handbook principally introduces what ITAs are to the university faculty and staff, clearly establishes why they must be credentialed and supported differently than domestic TAs, lists what additional training options are available to prepare ITAs, offers a checklist that includes HR resources, and provides a matrix that clearly outlines the differences between the responsibilities that ITAs and other types of graduate assistants may assume, depending on their qualifications.

An ITA is defined in the handbook as “those teaching assistants seeking employment in the 9183/9184 job codes at USF that are from countries that are not predominantly English-speaking countries who must demonstrate proficiency in speaking English.” USF currently relies on the list of English-speaking countries approved by the Board of Governors for Graduate Admissions in determining who among nondomestic students must demonstrate spoken English proficiency (USF, 2016). This list is based on census and other data gathered by neighboring institutions and on the CIA World Factbook (2016). However, it of course makes very broad generalizations of English use and still requires case-by-case oversight about what makes a country English speaking. For example, many countries list English as their official language but report that only a small percentage of the population actually speak English as a home language or use it dominantly. Moreover, the United States does not have an official language and in fact has less than an 80% English speaking population (CIA World Factbook, 2016), which makes creating criteria for classifying countries as “English speaking” problematic. However, demonstrations of English proficiency are still legally required by many states, and for those ITAs originating in a country classified as English speaking other evidence must be gathered by the credentialing college or university.

The ITA handbook clearly points to Florida statute 1012.93 (Florida Legislature, 1995–2016) and university legal interpretations that govern the credentialing of ITAs and what proof of spoken English proficiency has been approved by the Board of Governors:

• TOEFL iBT 26–30, which is described as evidence of a "Good" level of English proficiency by the TOEFL score scales.
• TOEIC 160–200, which is described as an appropriate level of English proficiency for professional and work settings.
  
  

Next, the ITA handbook focuses on describing the ITA course that the university has worked with INTO USF to create for supporting those ITAs who are just below the accepted proficiency levels above or have other unusual circumstances (e.g., attended all English schools in a country not listed as English speaking, acquired an undergraduate degree in the United States in English but lack the required English proficiency scores). This course focuses on the following:

• building oral fluency by developing strategies for improving English pronunciation and intonation
• developing presentation skills and learning how to effectively use practical language for classroom instruction
• learning about and discussing the intercultural issues related to communicating with students and colleagues in a U.S. university
  
  

The ITA handbook also provides a clear checklist for ITAs, hiring departments, and others to follow. First, an annually updated list of Human Resources guidelines and links is maintained:

• visa descriptions and employment restrictions
• special exceptions during holidays and breaks
• tax information
  
  

Next, the options available internally for credentialing an ITA are presented. Finally, links to official departmental contacts are constantly updated to provide clear lines of communication as requirements are fulfilled.

The last section of the ITA handbook provides a matrix for the types of job codes and their allowed responsibilities/restrictions. These codes are established and governed by state legislation, but they frequently confuse students that are primarily looking for experience and a way to fund their education. The matrix makes it much easier for them to find positions that meet their needs while they develop their spoken English proficiency and focus on their studies.

Summary

Both ITAs and the universities hiring them are faced with a myriad of demands before these ITAs can actually get to the work of teaching. Putting together a comprehensive, but clear and concise, handbook based on the demands of each institution can be a way of demystifying these demands and providing a clear path to the classroom and employment in the United States. Making a clear case for why these requirements are in place is essential, but providing updated resources is equally important. Both ITAs and their hiring departments will be generally grateful for such a resource that helps them plan and be more informed.

References

Ashavskaya, E. (2015). International teaching assistants’ experiences in the U.S. classrooms: Implications for practice.Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 15(2), 56–69. doi:10.14434/josotl.v15i2.12947

Bartels, N. (2009). Knowledge about language. In A. Burns & J. C. Richards (Eds.), The Cambridge guide to second language teacher education (pp. 125–134). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2016). Occupational employment and wages, May 2015. Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes251191.htm

CIA World Factbook (2016). Retrieved from https://www.cia.gov/library/
publications/the-world-factbook/geos/xx.html

Florida Legislature. (1995–2016). The 2016 Florida statutes. Retrieved from http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?mode=View%20Statutes&SubMenu=1&App_mode=Display
_Statute&Search_String=english&URL=1000-1099/1012/Sections/
1012.93.html

Sessions, R. (2008). Adjuncts, TAs fill teaching ranks. The Oracle.

Sohoni, S., Cho, Y., & French, D. P. (2013). A survey to capture needs assessment for graduate teaching assistant training. Advances in Engineering Education, 3(3), 1–20.

Tsui, A. B. (2009). Novice and expert teachers. In A. Burns & J. C. Richards (Eds.), The Cambridge guide to second language teacher education (pp. 125–134). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

University of South Florida. (2013). International teaching assistant handbook, 2016–2017. Retrieved from http://www.grad.usf.edu/
International_Teaching_Assistants_Handbook_2015-2016.php

University of South Florida. (2016). English proficiency. Retrieved from http://www.usf.edu/admissions/international/graduate/requirements-
deadlines/english-proficiency.aspx

Brandon J. King is a PhD candidate in the Second Language Acquisition and Instructional Technology Program at the University of South Florida, where he also works in the Office of Graduate Studies to organize research events and coordinate training/credentialing for (international) teaching assistants. His research interests include English language policy, issues of nativeness, heritage language maintenance and instruction, and discourse in online environments. He serves on the editorial board for E-JournALL: EuroAmerican Journal of Applied Linguistics and Languages as the APA style coordinator and previously served as an editorial assistant for The Reading Matrix.