Understanding Undergraduate Teaching Assistants’ Perspectives on Inclusive Pedagogy in Introductory Computing Courses

Abstract

Computing-related introductory courses have significant barriers for underserved identities, leading to drastically low participation. One role shown to mitigate barriers are peer mentors and teaching assistants (TAs). We specifically explore the role of undergraduate TAs in introductory courses, whose near-peer status could be more impactful than graduate TAs. Our informal pilot study explores undergraduate TAs’ concerns about incorporating diversity and inclusion principles into their pedagogical practice in an introductory information science course. Additionally, we describe how future work will be shaped by sociocultural learning sciences and individual differences approaches.