Purdue University\u27s School of Liberal Arts Writing Intensive Initiative: A case of professional development for teaching assistants

This research project is an example of collaborative program assessment and research in the field of writing program administration, conducted using feminist epistemology and critical research practices. By that I mean that I problematized my research methodological decisions (regarding my research site, research participants, research question, data collection and analysis, and research reporting) and I used this research to enact positive change for my local context. Through individual and group interviews, I found that teaching assistants (TAs) participated in Purdue University\u27s School of Liberal Arts\u27 Writing Intensive (WI) Initiative by responding to and grading students\u27 writing. I identified gaps in the TAs\u27 pedagogical support that could hamper the successful implementation of the WI Initiative, namely that TAs do not receive instruction in writing-to-learn strategies similar to the kind that WI faculty receive. By framing my investigation with the lens of professional development, I guided these TAs to view their participation in the WI Initiative as an important part of their professional development, particularly when their supervising professor included them in their pedagogical decision-making processes. Furthermore, by reflecting on my own experiences as the Resource Person to the WI Initiative, I documented how my contribution to the WI Initiative contributed to my own professional development, particularly as an apprentice WPA. Finally, I found that these professional development processes are most effective when they are responsive the personal and professional goals of the TAs, while helping TAs learn how to become professional academics