CS46A/B Lab Assistant Training
Labs
- 2 hours 45 minutes each week
- Each lab section has about 25 students
- The lecture is a large-lecture session with about 100 students
- Purpose: Give students ample practice with programming, problem solving,
and tools
- NOT a tutoring session. Don't help students with homework assignments
Lab Instructions
- Students work in pairs
- Two roles: driver and scribe
- Driver “drives” the compiler, tools
- Scribe writes up answers to questions
- Driver also submits writeup, but only with code
- Roles switch each week
Pairs
- Pairs are good for learning
- When one student is stuck, the other may know the answer
- When both are stuck, they can discuss alternatives
- Keep each other on task
- Goal to have evenly matched pairs
- You assign partners—don't let them pick their buddy
- At the beginning, assign by GPA (CS46A) or CS46A grade (CS46B)
- Assign by gender (avoid boy/girl pairs)
- Revise after 3 weeks (use your observation and quiz/homework scores from
instructor)
- Revise again after 1st exam (use your observation and exam grades from
instructor)
- Partner doesn't show up? Regroup with someone else
- Nobody works alone
- If necessary, make one group of three
Lab Structure
- First 10 minutes: You give a short demo of some of the highlights of the
lab
- Motivate students—tell them why it's useful for them
- Show new tools
- Set goals for the day
- Next 60 minutes: lab work
- Walk around and listen
- Don't help unless students are really stuck
- Collect stories for your mid-lab demo
- 10 - 15 minutes: Demo to clarify issues
- Tell people to close their laptop
- Discuss common problems and their solutions
- Discuss alternate solutions that different pairs explored
- Don't do this at the end of the lab
- Next 60 minutes: lab work
- Students complete lab
- Help the weaker students
- Stronger students can leave when they are done with the day's
work
- Final 10 minutes: Meet with at-risk students
At-Risk Students
- Look out for students who make very little progress and tell the
instructor
- You will also get an at-risk list from the instructor
- Have them show you their homework scores, homework grade reports, and
quiz scores in the LMS
- In the last ten minutes or so
- Tell them they must stay until the end
- Send them to tutoring/mentoring
- DO NOT help them with homework
Weekly Report
- You send a report each week (Friday night) to the instructor and to
me
- What was covered in the week
- What were the most common difficulties that students had
- Any issues with at-risk students
- Any no-shows
- Spreadsheet with scores
- 0 points: No-show
- 5 points: Didn't follow instructions (e.g. didn't switch
driver/scribe), or did very little work
- 10 points: Did most or all of the required parts
- 15 points: Did most or all of the optional parts
Your Responsibilities
- Know the labs (i.e. do them in advance yourself)
- Report any problems/bugs with the lab materials to me
- Enforce lab instructions
- Help students during labs
- Give demos to motivate, clarify
- Match up pairs
- Grade lab reports
- Identify at-risk students
- Provide weekly reports and scores to instructors