Job Responsibilities
I have had various job functions during my career at UNC-Chapel
Hill as a teaching assistant in Italian and also have had the
opportunity to teach Italian and be the resident contact person
for the UNC study abroad students at the Institute Lorenzo de'
Medici in Florence, Italy. My teaching responsibilities have
included: 2 sections of Italian 1 or Italian 2 depending on the
semester, preparation of lesson plans and activities for class,
outside class one-on-one tutoring sessions, using the Blackboard
system for communicating with the students: homework
assignments, Italian extra-curricular activities being offered,
various other information relating to Italian (study abroad
programs), grading using a university data base grading system.
I've conducted private lessons outside the classroom for extra
income. I also was the Continuing Education teacher for Italian
1-4, a study program that enables people all over the US to take
Italian courses from their home. In this job I received their
homework assignments, graded them and offered detailed
information to the students on the grammar they were studying.
I also had to issue final exams to these students and grade
them. In Florence as the resident contact person, I was
responsible for emergency problems, both school and personal
related. I had a university cell phone specifically for the
students to contact me at all times of the day or night. I was
also responsible for the weekly Italian film night and had to
choose the films to show.
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Job Requirements
The program I teach in is very academic in nature. The Italian
courses are of a most high level and quality and the teachers,
whom are my colleagues, are either native Italian speakers or
fluent or near fluent Italian speakers. The classes meet three
days a week for 50 minutes. There are 4 quizzes, a mid-term, a
final exam, a presentation and a final 1 page paper required for
all Italian courses. Learning a language requires a good amount
of at-home studying and preparation, so the homework assignments
are challenging. All classes are of an equal nature, thus,
getting "popolar classes" does not exist for Italian language.
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Uppers
What I enjoy most about my job as an Italian teacher is the freedom I have to
make my own lesson plans, my course structure (which is geared to be fun and a
very comfortable learning environment), and the best part is meeting new
students. In language courses, the student/teacher interaction is important and
both learn much about each other.
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Downers
I do not really think there are any bad parts about my job,
other than maybe getting an 8am section to teach. I would have
to say that the grading data entry is a little tedious and
annoying.
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Lifestyle
The amount of work one puts into a teaching position is reflected in the
student's final grades. If the teacher is highly motivated and makes a good
classroom atmosphere, is well-prepared in and out of class, clearly knows how to
present the material being taught, this influences greatly on the overall
student's performance. I believe that the more hours a teacher puts into he/her
outside the classroom preparation, the more the student will want to study and
learn. I spend a lot of time in lesson planning (about 1 hour per lesson),
partly because I'm always changing and improving my lessons from the previous
years and partly because I need change too! I try to get to know the students
and am 100% available for outside classroom help if needed, or if the student
wants to learn more. I am required to put in 3 hours a week of office hours, but
I also am available, especially via email for questions or concerns.
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Compensation
The salary is based on the amount of courses one teaches each
semester. The base salary for a teaching assistant can be
anywhere from $4,000-$6,000 per course, depending on the
university. I am on a full scholarship so my medical insurance
is included in the scholarship as well as full tuition paid.
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Advice to Jobseekers
Apply to UNC Chapel Hill for graduate school and be sure to note
a strong interest in the teaching assistantship!!
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