Policies
Mission
Welcome to CS 370! This course is designed to help aspiring teachers hone their skills, become a part of the teaching community here at UC Berkeley, and expose them to the foundations of computer science pedagogy. Students in this class will receive first-hand experience through one-on-one tutoring and an enriched teaching knowledge through research-based pedagogical studies.
CS 370 has three key components that distinguish it from other pedagogical courses. First, we cover student interactivity and teaching in one-on-one settings. This is applicable to all levels of teachers - lab assistants, tutors, and TA's, since one-on-one interactions are a critical component of all teaching experiences. Next, we cover group teaching through in-class demonstrations, as mastering pacing and understanding the individualities of students in a group setting is key to being a successful TA. Last, we socratically discuss current issues in CS pedagogy, including atmosphere-related questions such as: underrepresentation, stigmas associated with computer science, the issue of prior experience, and how these factors heavily influence student learning.
bCourses
Visit the official CS 370 bCourses to get set up. If you don't have access, contact the instructors via email immediately.
It is your responsibility to stay up-to-date with bCourses and submit all your assignments on time.
Weekly duties
tl;dr - Tutoring sign-up's are due at the start of the week, Sunday midnight, for every incoming tutoring wave (Wave 1 = Week 3). Homework and tutoring journals are due at the end of the week, Saturday midnight, to receive full credit.Readings
All the readings are available on the main page. Each week, read at least one of the assigned readings and write about it in the appropriate thread on bCourses. This factors into your participation grade, as we'll be discussing the readings in class!
Homework
Homework is released weekly on bCourses and linked to via this website. Make sure to submit it via bCourses. Late work will receive full credit your first late assignment, and half credit thereafter for a fully-completed assignment, otherwise no credit shall be given.
Tutoring
This is the key commitment for CS 370. There is a global tutoring requirement of 36 hours, due by the end of the semester. (We recommend 3 hours / week * 12 weeks). The intricacies of this requirement are as follows:- If you hold any TA / GSI appointment, then you need to have 12 hours of tutoring by the end of the semester. Our recommendation is 1 hour / week of one-on-one tutoring.
- If you are any other form of course staff, then you need to have 36 hours of tutoring by the end of semester. Our recommendation is 3 hours / week of one-on-one tutoring.
- For 8-hour course tutors (including CSM), if you host two discussion sections a week, then you may subtract 24 hours of tutoring from the requirement.
- For any other course tutor appointments, take the duration of your discussion section and round it down, then subtract that * 12 / weeks worth of hours from your tutoring requirement. (e.g., One 1.5 hour section once a week will subtract 12 hours.)
- For EE 16A, due to ASE's having 6 hours / week of lab, you can deduct 12 hours (thus 2 hour / week responsibility).
- Importantly, there's tutoring offered via CS 370 itself. Students can request this one-on-one tutoring via the tutoring request form, to be used weekly. Every week, we will link all of these requests on Saturday evening on this course webpage for tutors to claim students. This will be in the form of a spreadsheet with the current week of students who have requested tutoring; you can claim any student who is available at a time convenient for you. After the appointment, be sure your student fills out the tutoring feedback form. If they don't, then you will not get credit for teaching them.
- A template email for contacting students in a friendly, professional manner will be available on bCourses for you to use and modify to arrange tutoring appointments. Be sure to do this in a timely manner, ideally arranging all of your appointments by the end of Sunday night.
- Note that lab sections (except EE 16A), OH, review sessions, and paid private tutoring do not contribute to the tutoring requirement. The reasoning is that these are course staff expectations, while we are focused on certifying you pedagogically and your growth as a teacher. This includes Academic Interns too.
Regardless of how you fulfill your tutoring requirement, you must also keep a tutoring journal featuring highlights and analysis of your teaching. The journals will be explained and posted via bCourses. Any time you spend teaching discussion, group tutoring, or one-on-one tutoring during the semester, you will be cataloguing it on bCourses and responding to at least 2 other tutors per week to share your experiences and tips in tackling positive or tricky scenarios.
If you have any questions about the CS 370 teaching requirement, feel free to ask us in-class or email the instructors. Later in the semester, you will be able to track this commitment and view student feedback automatically via the feedback viewer for tutors.. To maintain professionality, do not talk to your students about feedback they may have given you; it forces an uncomfortable situation and 370 teaching staff can provide you with more constructive ways on improving your feedback.
Tutoring Cancellations / No Shows
For variations in the amount of weekly tutoring you do, there is no need to contact the course staff. If a student cancels with 24 hour notice, simply contact a new student from the tutoring spreadsheet and arrange a new appointment. If a student does not show, mark this somehow on the tutoring spreadsheet where your name normally would go. (e.g., instead of writing "Christopher" in the first column, write "NO-SHOW" clearly.) Course staff will use this informaton for later, but there is no need to email us.
Exceptions
For exceptions or questions regarding course policy, contact the instructors. In-class attendance is mandatory except with an excused absence, per an e-mail to the course staff.
Grading Rubric
CS 370 is a three-unit, letter-graded class.
The course is not curved and we will not release the grading bins. We will not release your numerical performance ratings; these are for internal reference. Stellar performance may result in TA recommendations.
The rubric is as follows:
- [30%] Participation and citizenship: This accounts for the frequency and quality of your participation during class. A second large factor is your activity on bCourses. Lastly, this accounts for your attendance and timeliness submitting assignments. Participation is not graded lightly, as it is in most other classes.
- [30%] Homework and tutoring journals: Your homework grade accounts for the insightfulness of your responses, which should be relevant to the weekly readings and lecture. You should build off of class material in new ways, using your own experiences to support your claims. Your tutoring journals grade accounts for the insightfulness of your self-reflection, which should include an evaluation of how you plan to improve, and a clear application of ideas from class. It also accounts for the usefulness of the feedback you provide to your peers.
- [15%] Tutoring feedback: This accounts for your demeanor, supportiveness, and knowledge of the course material, as well as how clearly you communicate and whether you provide the right level of guidance.
- [10%] Midterm exam: This accounts for the in-class midterm exam.
- [10%] Final exam: This accounts for the in-class final exam.
- [5%] Final project: This accounts for the final project, which will be released along with the last homework.