22 June 1999 witnessed the inauguration of the first Educational Training Course for Graduate Teaching Assistants at CDTL. Scheduled for 61 participants, the course was conducted over a 5-day period from 9 am to 12.30 pm daily. With the primary aim of preparing Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) for teaching assignments, the course focused on teaching and learning principles and concepts, with emphasis on hands-on learning through workshop sessions.

Addressing the participants and describing them as “intelligent young people, willing to learn”, Professor Shih Choon Fong, Deputy Vice-Chancellor said, “Thirty years ago I was a teaching assistant in an American university; I would have benefited if there had been a programme like this.”

Led by the team of Deputy Director and Associate Directors from CDTL, the course focused on the themes: Teaching and Learning, Small Group Teaching, Presentation Skills, Student Monitoring and Feedback, Assessment and the NUS Integrated Virtual Learning Environment (IVLE).

Particularly noteworthy were the GTAs’ enthusiasm to learn and their willingness to speak their minds. In response to A/Prof K. P. Mohanan’s discussion on encouraging students to ask questions in class, one participant voiced his observation about the difficulty of dents are not accustomed to such a culture. He also noted that students here are too exam-oriented. On another occasion, a participant volunteered that it would be even more beneficial if the course were conducted on a full-day basis. Judging from these participants’ response, it seems that this group of ‘intelligent young people’ has what it takes to train critical minds, being critical thinkers themselves.

The same course was also scheduled for another group of over 60 GTAs from 29 June to 3 July. As DVC Prof Shih said, “This 5-day programme is only the beginning; improvement in teaching is an on-going lifelong task,” we wish every GTA great success in this path of improvement and lifelong learning.