RESPONSIBILITIES OF CHEMISTRY TEACHING ASSISTANTS
The Department of Chemistry has selected you as a Graduate Assistant-Teaching (GAT). GATs are professional salaried employees. They are an integral part of the teaching mission of the Department. In order to provide an appropriate learning atmosphere for undergraduate students, it is imperative that laboratory courses be properly instructed, and that your assigned duties whether they be laboratory instruction and/or grading be carried out conscientiously. You are required to:
1.Conduct the laboratory as directed by the Laboratory Coordinator.
2.Attend all required training sessions and TA meetings throughout the term.
3.Familiarize yourself with each experiment. Be sure you fully understand the necessary concepts, operations, and calculations. You may be required to undertake and complete each experiment.
4.Arrive in advance of the start of the laboratory as directed by the Laboratory Coordinator. If for any reason you are unable to meet your assigned section, you must arrange to have someone who has previously taught the course, or is currently teaching the course, substitute for you and you must notify the Coordinator in advance in writing.
5.Maintain a safe and orderly laboratory and enforce all department and university safety regulations. The TAMU Environmental Health and Safety Department laboratory safety guidelines may be accessed at
6.Aid students in their experiments and answer questions during the laboratory period. You are directly responsible for teaching correct and efficient laboratory techniques. Though you may assist your students as necessary for their understanding, you must not actually perform their experiments.
7.Oversee the use and care of equipment and supplies, guarding against the misuse of both.
8.Do no other work during the laboratory period.
9.Remain in the laboratory until all students have left and you have assured that all facilities are in good condition and all equipment is in the proper shutdown or standby mode.
10.Report information relating to laboratory accidents to the Laboratory Coordinator as soon as possible following the incident. Include a completed copy of the "Report of Injury or Illness" form.
11.Fulfill all other duties assigned by the Laboratory Coordinator including, but not limited to, grading laboratory reports, quizzes, prelabs and postlabs, and proctoring lecture examinations.
12.Maintain duplicate records of all grades for each student in the class.
13. Protect the confidentiality of any material entrusted to you. These may include instructor's notes, unknown keys, exam keys, etc.
14.Hold office hours in the place and time stated by you during your first class meeting. Also include your office hours in the written material you give to your students at that first meeting.
15.Act in a responsible professional manner, avoiding possible conflicts of interest. You may not tutor a student in your class for payment of any kind. In addition, you may not have a personal relationship with a student in your class, nor have anything more than a casual relationship through a previous acquaintance with a student in your class. You must bring any such relationship to the attention of the Laboratory Coordinator.
I have read the "Responsibilities of Chemistry Teaching Assistants" and understand that by accepting appointment as a teaching assistant in the Department of Chemistry I agree to them.
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