TA Comments

Here are some comments I received while functioning as a teaching assistant with oversight of three to four weekly recitations and holding office hours:

  • I feel that Mike really explained things well and i always felt that i understood a concept once i attended the lab. He is a great TA. His analogies were extremely helpful, especially in the beginning when I was extremely lost.
  • I found the TA to be incredibly informative and helpful. He quickly and effectively answered all of my questions, normally before I even needed to ask them.
  • I liked how he used non computer lingo to explain the concepts. The lab helps me understand the assignments and other concepts gone over in class. It also really helps that Mike went over how to do the lab in class, so that we better understand.
  • I particularly liked Mike’s attitude. He made being in Lab interesting without going overboard. Thanks for understanding that some of us are taking this just because our major required it! (secondary education math!)
  • I think the lab for this is well done. In fact, maybe instead of 2 lectures a week, you could do 2 labs a week and one lecture a week.
  • I thought Mike was very down to earth and taught us in a way that was more “fun” so that it would be easier to remember. He also had office hours right after the lab so i went there and got help and kept them company.
  • It was very helpful to hear multiple examples in the lab. Often in lecture there will only be one example if any and it doesn’t always click. Mike did a good job of explaining the way programming assignments work in ways a non-CS major can understand.
  • Mike did a really good job of showing that he knows his stuff and teaching us.
  • Mike explains things in detail, which really helps me understand and want to program. He is also very available to help outside of class whether it be through emails or what-not.
  • Mike should be given a greater role in this class if at all possible.
  • Mike was a really good TA, he always had multiple examples in trying to explain concepts, and he always left some time during the labs to do one on one time to help with the labs or assignments.
  • Mike was excellent.
  • Mike was very clear in his teachings and really made sure people understood what he was talking about.
  • Mike was very good at instructing and presenting materials in the lab. He defined what we had to do in a very clear and understandable manner.
  • My lab was my favorite class to go to. I wish that it happened twice a week because sometimes I could use the extra help.
  • Our TA Mike is really helpful and his labs were really beneficial.
  • TA made information easy to understand and interesting. It was easy to learn from Mike and it never seemed to get boring. Great instructor.
  • The TA was funny and was good at communicating ideas through lame metaphors that were surprisingly effective.
  • Thanks a lot for being my TA this class. I wouldn’t make it without your help.
  • Thanks for being a great TA.
  • You were a great TA!!!!
  • Thanks for explaining the material so clearly each week. The labs are definitely giving me the help I need.
  • …I definitely enjoyed the Java Lab yesterday and I’m not as freaked out about this stuff anymore as I was when I registered for this class… You did a great presentation by the way and you need to spread your optimism approach to other TA’s/Professors.
  • “THANKS FOR ALL YOUR HELP! I could not have gotten through this class without it!”
  • “Have a great day, Mike! I’ll miss the lab. I can’t believe it’s over already…”
  • “Thank you for being like the best instructor I have (no joke)!”
  • “You’re a very good TA! Thanks for everything! Sniffle-this has been fun.”
  • “…it’s been good, you’ve done a great job, and after your stand-in teaching session, you could easily teach full classes (had full time teachers that did far worse than you).”
  • “I appreciate all the effort you put into being a TA. I don’t know how much of what you do is absolutely required, but it’s clear that you do more than the minimum and I appreciate that.”
  • “I enjoyed your lab and learned a lot from it.  Hope to have you as a TA in a future CSE class”
  • “…thanks for your time…and thanks a bunch for being such a great TA this past semester! Programming was a lot more enjoyable and understandable with your help!”
  • “I went to all of your exam reviews this semester and if it wasn’t for you, I don’t know that I would have received as high a grade as I did in the course. You have a very positive impact on the students in this course.”
  • “I was wondering if you were available next semester for help.  I’m taking CSE 205 and I am just getting ready in case I don’t understand the material because you are pretty much the best instructor I’ve ever had.  I would much rather learn from you than anyone else…  …Yea, I will give [other TAs] a chance of course.  No one will ever replace Mike Verdicchio though!  I gave you major “props” in our evaluations for the course, I wasn’t sure if you got to read them.  Anyway, thank you though.  If I need it, I would definitely prefer that you would be my tutor!”