ABSENCE OF INSTRUCTOR
ABSENCE OF STUDENTS
ADD/DROP
ANNOUNCEMENTS
ASCIT
ASSISTANTS/ES
ATTENDANCE
AUDITORS
AUDIO-VISUAL SERVICES
BULLETIN BOARD
CLASS PERIODS
COURSE CHAIRPERSONS
CONDUCT

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
COURSE ORGANIZATION
CREDIT/NO CREDIT
DESK COPIES/EXAMINATION COPIES
DUPLICATING & OFFICE MACHINES
FINAL EXAMS
FRENCH 704
GRADING

HARASSMENT
HOMEWORK
HONOR CODE

INFORMATION SHEETS
INSTRUCTIONAL TOOLKIT

INTERNATIONAL TAs
LANGUAGE LABORATORY
LEAVING CHARLOTTESVILLE
LISTSERVE
MAILBOXES
NEWSLETTER
OBSERVATION
OFFICE HOURS
ORIENTATION (FOR TA's)
PLACEMENT OF STUDENTS
POLICIES
RESPONSIBILITIES OF TAs
SEXUAL HARASSMENT
STAFF MEETINGS
SYLLABUS
TEACHING RESOURCE CENTER
TESTS & EXAMS
TEXTBOOKS
TOOLKIT
TUTORING
WAITING LISTS
WRITING/TUTORING SERVICE
WORK LOAD

   WHAT IS THE REQUIRED COURSES SEQUENCE?

The College of Arts and Sciences requires that students complete the equivalent of two years of language courses. Students who are enrolled in a school other than the College (the School of Architecture, for example) usually do not have a foreign language requirement to fulfill.

The Required Courses Sequence is the cycle of elementary- and intermediate-level courses (French 101, 102, 201, and 202, and 105 and 232) that students follow to fulfill the College's foreign language requirement.

Some students test out of the sequence before starting courses at UVa, and others begin at the level indicated by a combination of their placement score, and experience studying the language (see PLACEMENT). Many students begin in French 101. Students who have had more than two years of high school French may not take 101 for credit, except in unusual circumstances, and with written permission of the Director. Normally, students with over two years of high school French, who want to start from the beginning, take French 105.

The handbook is arranged alphabetically with links to more detailed information. Please contact the LPD if you would like to see specific information added to the Handbook, or if you would like to see some sections more clearly explained.
Note: The term "Instructor" is used generically in this document to mean "teacher." Most of the RCS instructors are TAs.

  ABSENCE OF INSTRUCTOR

Instructors find a partner with whom they can set up a reciprocal teaching exchange. Thereafter, an instructor who cannot conduct a class because of illness or some other serious reason requests that his/her "partner" do so on a reciprocal basis. The Language Program Director (LPD) is also notified of the absence and assured that the class will be taught.

Even if the substitute TA cannot teach the lesson planned for a given day, it is best to hold class. Students may work on skits, review grammar and vocabulary, discuss topics of interest, do an in-class reading or video activity -- anything that allows them to keep practicing French.

Prolonged or frequent absences are handled on an individual basis, normally in consultation with the Director. Absences to take or extend vacations are not permitted. Do not request this of the LPD or make any arrangements with other instructors without his/her knowledge.

In a last-minute emergency, please contact, or have a friend contact, the French Department office. A member of the office staff will post a message on your classroom door, and forward any message to the LPD. If possible, notify your students as well.

Please arrange a substitute for forseeable absences (professional conferences, qualifying exams, etc.) Be sure to teach for him or her in return.

  ABSENCE OF STUDENTS

Take attendance in every class. Then talk individually to any student who has missed more than one class. Find out the reason for the absence(s). Send an e-mail message to any student who is absent for three consecutive classes or who misses class often. NOTE:

• If, without official excuse, a student misses eight (8) classes of a French course that meets five (5) times a week, the instructor is expected to report the student to the Chairman and the Dean for withdrawal from the course.



• If, without official excuse, a student misses six (6) classes of a French course that meets three (3) times a week, the instructor is expected to report the student to the Chairman and the Dean for withdrawal from the course.



• If, without official excuse, a student misses four (4) classes of a French course that meets two (2) times a week, the instructor is expected to report the student to the Chairman and the Dean for withdrawal from the course.

See "dealing with excessive absences" for the fine print.

Students absent for participation in athletic events or other university related activities must inform the instructor well in advance before such absences and make up any work missed.

Students excused from attending classes for serious medical reasons are to make up work missed; they are expected to keep abreast of regular class work (unless illness prevents independent study) by following the syllabus. In recognition of the Honor System, we do not request excuses from doctors for absence due to illness. Extended absences will be handled on a case-by-case basis in consultation with the LPD and the student's Association Dean.

Students are excused from class for university sponsored events, religious holidays and death of family members. They must notify their instructors of their absence before the class meets.

  ADD-DROP

The College of Arts and Sciences sets strict deadlines for adding, dropping, and withdrawing from courses. See the departmental web pages for the logistics of adding and dropping in this department.

  ANNOUNCEMENTS

The chairperson, LPD, and other members of the Faculty frequently leave in mailboxes and send via e-mail (see LISTSERVE) announcements to be relayed to classes. Make such announcements during the last five minutes of class; at that time collect any information requested. Please respond immediately and respect indicated deadlines.

Announcements of general interest appear in the monthly Newsletter and/or on the bulletin board. (See BULLETIN BOARD, MAILBOXES, NEWSLETTER)

  ASCIT

Tapes, films, slides, transparencies, projectors, etc., are available in the Arts and Sciences Center for Instructional Technology. Instructors must give advance notice in order to borrow such materials or to bring a class to the lab. You may reserve materials on line at http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/ascit/loan.html. The Director of the facility establishes all regulations concerning its use.

Each course chairperson gives ASCIT a copy of the course syllabus 6 weeks before classes begin so that ASCIT will have tapes (or digitized materials) ready for students to use. Individual instructors may schedule any additional lab work, within reason, at their own discretion. Instructors are encouraged to bring their classes to the lab for monitored work sessions. Such meetings make the lab more approachable and meaningful for the students.

N.B. Do not give students lab assignments until after the lab opens officially, usually during the first full week of classes. In fact, it is better to do the first chapter's lab work a little bit at a time in class (see Bring the Lab to Class) during the first weeks of the semester. This allows instructors to guide their students on how to get the most out of lab exercises, and it spares students (and the lab staff) the confusion of dealing with the lab setting in the first hectic weeks of class. Do not assign lab work if the bookstore has run out of Workbooks to accompany your textbook.

Students will receive an orientation to the language lab the first time they use it. The language lab is also available for use during class time. Try to schedule one class meeting (for about 20-30 minutes) in the lab for each chapter.

  ASSISTANT/ES

See INTERNATIONAL TAs

  ATTENDANCE

Daily reports of attendance are required during the first two weeks of class. Check the enrollment lists at the department in the hall near Cabell 302 before teaching each day. Include in your tally all enrolled and all waitlisted students.

The chairperson and/or Director will adjust enrollments during this period. Follow their directives; give them any information requested immediately. Get all students' phone numbers and keep them up to date. Encourage students to be particularly careful about attending classes during the first weeks of the semester in order not to lose their places to other students. If they are absent during that period, they may be counted as having dropped the course.

Encourage regular attendance; remind students that their language skills and performance will not improve if they are not present for every class. Give them weekly attendance/participation grades. See PARTICIPATION.

  AUDITORS:

During the Fall and Spring Semesters, auditors are admitted only under the following conditions:

• they do not intend to repeat the course for credit


• they are not using the course to complete the foreign language requirement
  [Note: the College will not accept credit for audited courses toward fulfillment of the language area requirement]
  
  
• there are fewer than the authorized number of students enrolled in the class. If an exception to this seems advisable, the Director will make the final decision.

During Summer Term and the Summer Language Institute: we do not allow students to audit the SLI or summer courses (101-232).

  AUDIO-VISUAL SERVICES (see also ASCIT for more information)

The French department houses a collection of feature films, along with multiple copies of video tapes to accompany various textbooks, in 302 Cabell Hall. Please sign for these materials when you borrow them.

In addition to these videocassettes, you will find a collection of tapescripts, instructors manuals, and software in 302 Cabell.

Clemons Library has an outstanding collection of feature films from France and French-speaking countries.

  BULLETIN BOARD

Consult the main bulletin board in the Department mail room (355 Cabell Hall) for teaching assignments, positions available, meetings, conferences and other announcements of general interest.

  CLASS PERIODS

Meeting times for classes may not be changed without serious reason. The Director will make any decisions concerning such changes.

No class meetings may be canceled without the knowledge and consent of the Director.

Encourage students to be punctual for each class period. Try to be in class in class 2-5 minutes in advance to answer students' questions and to write the assignment and other necessary material on the board.

Dismiss classes promptly; students often must reach another class within ten to fifteen minutes.

  COURSE CHAIRPERSONS

TAs who serve as course chairpersons in 3-credit courses (201, 202, 232) teach only one course during the time they chair, unless there are very few course sections to manage.
TAs who serve as course chairpersons in 4-credit courses (101. 102, 105), where there are fewer staff members to organize, are relieved of their weekly tutoring hour.

See Responsibilities of Course Chairpersons

  CONDUCT

Students should be aware of the University of Virginia's Standards of Conduct. As the Undergraduate Record states: "The University reserves the right to suspend, enforce the withdrawal of, or expel a student who violates the University's Standards of Conduct." The University's Standards of Conduct Statement is posted at: http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/records/96-97ugradrec/ureg2.html#non26

Students whose conduct (distracting, disruptive, rude, or harassing behavior) obstructs teaching and/or learning, must be contacted at the onset by the instructor.

The student may not be aware that his/her conduct bothers the teacher or other students. Instructors should first meet with the student to explain what conduct is a problem and why. The teacher and student should then agree upon a way to improve conduct for the rest of the semester. This meeting should be followed-up by a brief written (e-mail) message to the student, documenting that the meeting took place, what was discussed, and what was decided. Save the message. If the problem persists, the instructor should write a follow-up message, copied to the LPD and the students' association dean. This message should contain a copy of the first message, and an offer to meet with the student and the LPD. If the problem persists after this second message has been sent , the student and instructor must meet with the LPD.

  CONFLICT OF INTEREST

See Sexual Harassment

  COURSE ORGANIZATION

The chairpersons are resposible for planning the syllabus, organizing exam committees, etc. They make every effort to distribute the work load evenly; please talk to them about any problems you have with a course.

   CREDIT/NO CREDIT

Students may not take RCS courses for the credit/no credit grade option without the permission of the Language Program Director.

   DESK COPIES/EXAMINATION COPIES

At the first meeting, the chairperson will distribute desk copies to the staff or, if copies are not available at that time, will explain the procedure to be followed.

Desk copies are requested when the book order is placed. Individual instructors do not request this of the publisher themselves.

Desk copy and examination copy are not synonymous. The former refers to an officially adopted required textbook. The latter refers to a text to be examined for possible adoption. Payment for, or return of the examination copies may be requested. The Department does not assume responsibility for requests for examination copies not authorized by the Director.

See TEXTBOOKS

  DUPLICATING AND OFFICE MACHINES

New graduate students will learn to use the photocopier in Cabell 355 during the orientation period. The paper necessary for making up and running off quizzes, exams, etc. is stored in Cabell 355. Graduate instructors should type and duplicate their own class materials. Please use paper sparingly. Post as much information as you can on TOOLKIT, and use projection devices (overhead computer, visual presenter) in class whenever possible. Film and pens for overhead projectors are also stored in Cabell 355.

  FINAL EXAMS

Please keep all copies of final exams. Students who wish to see their final exams may make do so during your office hours. Exams are kept on file to be consulted if students dispute their final grade in French.

   FRENCH 704

"Theories and Methods of Language Teaching" (FREN 704) is a required course for every TA and every Assistant/e during the first semester of teaching at UVa. Assistants/es may audit the course, but must attend regularly and do all assignments. TAs with prior experience teaching and previous coursework in language teaching must take 704 if they are new to this program.

   GRADING

The LPD, in consultation with the staff of the courses, establishes the grading procedure and criteria which are followed by the entire staff within each level. If the methods recommended do not seem acceptable, instructors may suggest alternatives to the chairperson. If a reasonable agreement cannot be reached, the chairperson and/or staff may consult the Director.

All grading practices are to be fair and uniform within each course level.

All chapter quizzes and exams must be accompanied by and Instructor's Copy with detailed grading criteria.

All final grades are filed as letters (B, B+, B- etc.). However, in order to compute these grades, instructors must keep numerical (85%, etc.) in their electronic or paper grade books.

To save time during the end-of-semester crunch, compute the average for each category (homework, quiz, etc.) the moment you have turned back the last piece of work for that category.

See TESTING
See GRADING PAPERS AND HOMEWORK

   HARASSMENT

See Sexual Harassment

  HOMEWORK

Each TA must collect homework (normally in the Workbook/Lab Manual) for each chapter. TAs are not required to assign all of the activities in the workbook for each chapter, but rather, they are encouraged to assign the homework they think will be most useful to the students.

Homework should not be "busy" work. The homework assigned provides practice immediately following the presentation of new material, or in preparation for the nest day's class. Homework done late will still be a useful study tool for the student, but it completely nullifies its role as preparation for class. Homework is due at the beginning of the class period for which it is assigned. Therefore, late homework will always be graded "0."

Likewise, homework must be returned to students in time to be used as a study guide for tests, exams, compositions. TAs who cannot keep up with the homework they are assigning should assign less homework, and/or correct some of it in class.

   HONOR CODE (updated March 2005)

All TAs should read carefully and announce to students on the first day of class the information posted on the UVa Honor Committee website: http://www.virginia.edu/honor/

See the LPD if you believe a student has committed an Honor violation.

Be sure to keep copies of any work you know or suspect to be in violation of the honor code.

We normally do not proctor exams, however, once a student in a course has violated the honor code in any way, trust has been broken. It is wise to proctor exams from that point on.

The most common Honor violations we see in French are:

• use of on-line translation programs



• plagiarism (from other students, native speakers, printed or posted materials,)



• copying answers from answer keys, rather than using the keys to correct homework
  
  
• having compositions revised by other students, tutors, friends or family

For more information on honor as it applies to French courses, please read, and direct your students to read A Guide to Compositions in French.

   INFORMATION SHEETS

The Administrative Coordinator will distribute Information Sheets to each TA before classes begin. It is very important that each instructor read these information sheets to ensure that students are enrolled in the right course.

   INSTRUCTIONAL TOOLKIT

Instructional Toolkit provides easy posting of class materials, announcements, and more. Instructors are encouraged to use Toolkit instead of distributing handouts.

Even if you shy away from technology, activate your toolkit account for the most basic features:

• daily updates of class roster



• a ready-made class e-mail list

   INTERNATIONAL TAs

The Office Manager will direct International TAs to the appropriate offices to deal with Visas, payroll, social security and other administrative matters.

Assistants/es must attend the orientation workshop in August, during which there are special sessions designed to help international TAs understand the peculiarities of teaching and administration at this university.

"Theories and Methods of Language Teaching" (FREN 704) is a required course for every TA and every Assistant/e during the first semester of teaching at UVa. Assistants/es may audit the course, but must attend regularly and do all assignments. TAs with prior experience teaching and previous coursework in language teaching must take 704 if they are new to this program.

   LANGUAGE LABORATORY

See ASCIT

   LEAVING CHARLOTTESVILLE

1. Give the Department office detailed information, in writing, on how you may be reached between semesters. Unexpected circumstances such as grade contestations, replacement of instructors due to illness, course scheduling changes, etc., occur frequently.



Turn in gradesheets and Departmental grade grids before leaving.


3. Save your final exams. If your TA appointment has ended, leave your final exams with the LPD.



4. Read your student evaluations and turn in the evaluation follow-up form before the next semester begins.

  LISTSERVE

The LPD will automatically subscribe all TAs to the listserve "Frenchta-talk@virginia.edu." This list is used to make announcements to all instructors currently teaching French 101-232 (and others who wish to subscribe).

The Administrative Coordinator will subscribe all graduate students to "fren-grads@virginia.edu." This list is used to make announcements to all graduate students, many of whom are not teaching.

  MAILBOXES

Mailboxes are located in Cabell 355. Check them daily--before teaching--more often during the first month of the semester. Also check the bulletin board for announcements of general interest (see ANNOUNCEMENTS).

Please note that more and more departmental, college, and university-wide memos are distributed by e-mail with no paper back-up.

  NEWSLETTER

A monthly Newsletter is distributed by e-mail. It contains announcements of general interest to Department members.

See past newsletters

  OBSERVATION

The LPD observes each new TA in fall and spring semester, then observes each TA when s/he begins teaching a new course. After the first observation, TAs may elect to videotape their classes for self-evaluation, and discussion with the LPD.

  OFFICE HOURS

Schedule at least two hours per week. Announce these hours in class, and indicate them on a sheet posted on the door of your office and on your schedule card on file in the department office. Include them and your office number on the syllabus. Because of the number of persons using the same office, hours must be staggered to accommodate everyone.

  ORIENTATION FOR NEW TA'S

An orientation workshop for new TAs is scheduled during the week before fall classes begin. Attendance and participation in the orientation/workshop is mandatory for all TAs teaching French at UVa for the first time, including those with teaching experience. See the most recent orientation schedule:
http://www.virginia.edu/french/resource/teachers/orientation

  PASS/FAIL

ISIS blocks the pass/fail option for all 101-232 classes because most students take these courses to fulfill college competency requirements. If students opt for pass fail they get no credit toward this requirement. Students who take foreign language courses pass fail and who need to get competency credit end up having to take extra courses. The pass grade cannot be converted to a letter grade after the fact.

The French department cannot override this block, however the teacher can turn in a grade change at the end of the semester provided the student does not need French for the A and S Foreign Language requirement, and provided the teacher approves this early in the semester (weeks 1-3).

If a student needs French for the FL competency requirement, pass fail is not an option.

  PLACEMENT OF STUDENTS

New students are placed in the required courses sequence according to the results of Advanced Placement (AP), the SAT II test in high school, or F-CAPE computerized placement test administered by the College of Arts and Sciences during registration and Summer Orientation. We encourage students to place themselves in a higher-level course than their scores indicate, especially if they know that standardized tests do not tend to reflect their abilities. STUDENTS MUST HOWEVEVER ACHEIVE THE POSTED SCORE TO TEST OUT OF FRENCH 202.

• To take a lower-level course than their placement indicates, students must have authorization from the Director.



• Students with more than two years of HS French may not take FREN 101. FREN 105 has been designed for such students, who wish to start over.



• For more information, Placement Scores and Course Descriptions are available on the RCS web site.

  POLICIES

One of the main responsibilities of the TA is to communicate and enforce course policies (attendance, assigning and grading of homework, test preparation, administration and grading, etc.). Course policies are not designed to be punitive. Rather, they were devised to assure of continuity of instruction and fair treatment of students in multi-sectioned courses.

  RESPONSIBILITIES OF TAs

When in doubt about responsibilities to their students, TAs should ask themselves what they expect of their students and assume they owe students the same: students and teachers should arrive on time and prepared for class; students should turn in coursework on time and teachers should return homework in a timely fashion; students should prepare carefully for tests and teachers should draft and grade tests carefully; students should treat TAs with same courtesy and respect they would any professor, and TAs should treat students fairly and with respect.

Because these are multi-sectioned courses, a certain amount of uniformity across sections is necessary.

All students take the same chapter quizzes, and oral and written final exams, on the same date. Therefore it is important to follow the syllabus.

Instructors may not waive or change course policies without the permission of the LPD

Instructors who deviate significantly from the philosophy, approaches, and techniques advocated in the Language Program do a disservice to students moving on to the next course in the sequence. For example, if an instructor explains grammar primarily in English, in 102, those students going on to 201 will be poorly prepared to follow a class conducted primarily in French. Following guidelines for sequenced presentation and practice of grammar and vocabulary will help students build from sentence-level to paragraph-level speaking. Using the strategy-building activities that accompany all the authentic texts (readings, songs and films) in your textbooks will help students develop the skills needed for more advanced courses requiring reading and listening comprehension, as well as interpretive and critical thinking skills. Likewise, using the process-writing approach to compositions, with self-editing guides, helpgful feedback, and the grading scale posted on the website, will prepare students for more challenging writing assignments.

The basic responsibilities of TAs include:

• Teaching classes according to the goals and approaches presented in orientation and French 704
  
  
• Fostering mutual respect in the classroom and in communications with students

• Showing courtesy and respect to fellow instructors and staff
  
  
• Holding office hours
and showing willingness to accommodate students whose schedules conflict with office hours


• Attending all required staff meetings



• TAs teaching at UVa for the first time must attend the Orientation Workshop, and must enroll in French 704, regardless of previous teaching experience.



• Checking mail and e-mail regularly i.e., daily Monday through Friday and as necessary under special circumstances, such as exam preparation, paying special attention to messages from the chair, the Director of Graduate Studies, the office staff, the LPD, the course chair, colleagues and students

• Upholding university policies
  
  
• Communicating departmental and university policies to students



• Upholding these policies



• Participation in creating quizzes and exams



• Participation in critiquing quizzes and exams created by other TAs



• Arriving to class, tutoring hours, and office hours on time



• Administering tests, assigning, grading, and returning work in a timely fashion



• Alerting students immediately if there are problems with conduct, attendance, or performance; following up on these warnings and alerting the LPD and the students' Association Dean



• Meeting deadlines established by the course chair, the department, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the University (for submission of materials such as syllabi, comments on test drafts, final grade reports, etc.)

  SEXUAL HARASSMENT

As students and as instructors, all TAs should be aware of the policy on sexual harassment.

All TAs in French must complete the online Preventing Sexual Harassment training program, offered by the Office of Equal Opportunity (EOP), before teaching their first class of the fall semester. Allow at least one hour for the online training and test.

Directions:

1) Begin the training program here:

http://training.newmedialearning.com/psh/uvirginia/index.htm

2) Click on: Continue

3) Click on: Faculty

4) Begin the training and follow prompts to continue or to read additional information.

5) At the end of the Preventing Sexual Harassment training program, there is a 15-question mastery test. Upon successfully completing this test, you will be advised how to print a Completion Certificate either to submit to your employer or for your personal records. NOTE: At the time the test is taken and passed, the certificate will be created. This certificate may be printed at that time; however, it may not be able to be saved, so please be sure you are connected to a printer.

TAs in French must print the certificate and turn it in to the  Departmental Business Manager (Maggie Stein) before teaching their first class of the semester.

6) Take the test

7) Once you complete the test, you will be prompted to enter your first name, last name, and User ID number (UVA ID number). After entering this information, select the following

Unit: VP/Provost

Office School: College of Arts and Sciences

Click on: Click here to create certificate and record test results.

Print your certificate.

8) Give your certificate to the French Department Business Manager, Maggie Stein, before you teach your first class at UVa.

  STAFF MEETINGS

The LPD will attempt to limit the number of required general staff meetings to one per semester.

There is a mandatory staff meeting each semester, in the afternoon, the day before classes begin.

The course chairperson schedules staff meetings, generally at an hour when no departmental courses meet. Regular attendance and participation is expected.

The course chair also schedules meetings to discuss exam preparation and course issues, as needed.

  SYLLABUS

The course chairperson draws up the syllabus which includes test dates, the date of the final, course policies, and the teaching schedule by either the week or day. Follow it as closely as possible. All tests must be given on the dates indicated.

On the first day of class give your students the syllabus, or direct them to your on-line syllabus. Include your office number and office hours. If students are expected to follow a regular lab program, give them a lab schedule. If all students within a given level are to follow the same lab syllabus, the chairperson draws it up; otherwise, the individual instructor does so.

  TEACHING RESOURCE CENTER (TRC)

The Teaching Resource Center serves the entire university, offering orientation programs for new faculty and TAs, workshops, guest speakers, and more. Visit the web site, watch for announcements of events, and read the TRC publication, "Teaching Concerns."

  TESTS AND EXAMS

See the following page on the RCS web site: http://www.virginia.edu/french/resource/teachers/admin/checklist.htm

  TEXTBOOKS

The LPD is responsible for textbook selection. The LPD may organize a textbook selection committee consisting of TAs and /or faculty members. All of the textbooks used in this program are written by respected authors with reputable foreign-language publishers.

Not all textbooks please all teachers all of the time. If there are serious problems with a textbook, please notify the LPD. Above all, teachers should not burden students with complaints about the textbook. They should indeed inform the LPD if students have problems with a textbook.

Supplementation of the textbook (distributing photocopies of grammar presentation, activities, etc.) is strongly discouraged. Not only is it a great waste of paper, but it complicates an already tight schedule and confuses and overwhelms the students. Our textbooks include more activities than we could possibly cover in a semester. Instead of adding to these, select the activities you like from the textbook, or revise them slightly to better suit the needs of your class.

If students have trouble understanding grammar, they probably need more guidance from the teacher and more practice--not more handouts. Handle this through revision of your interactive presentation (with plenty of examples and practice), rather than through revision of the course materials.

If you find interesting readings, activities etc. outside the textbook, use Toolkit or another web delivery tool, an overhead projector, or a visual presenter (Elmo) rather than photocopies.

Information on the textbooks we use, along with the Language Program Director's suggestions for keeping textbook costs down is located at:

http://www.virginia.edu/french/resource/placement/courses.htm

  TOOLKIT

See INSTRUCTIONAL TOOLKIT

  TUTORING

Instructors assist their own students during office hours. An instructor may tutor any student who is not in his/her own classes. The amount charged is at the discretion of the tutor. The office staff keep a list of available tutors.

The French Department offers free tutoring for undergraduates in French courses. See WRITING/TUTORING SERVICE.

  WAITING LISTS

See: Frequently Asked Questions About Waiting Lists and the Online Waiting List Request Form

  WRITING/TUTORING SERVICE

The writing/tutoring service is staffed by TAs who, to comply with College rules, need to work 1 hour in addition to teaching French 101, 102, or 105. At the beginning of the semester, a member of the office staff will ask tutors when they would like to schedule their weekly hour of tutoring, and will do his/her best to schedule a desirable room and time.

A sign-up sheet for students is located outside the French Department Office. Previous sign-up sheets are filed for reference in 302 Cabell.

Tutors and their students must fill out a tutoring log for each session. These are kept in a black binder in 355 Cabell.

Tutors are asked to observe the guidelines posted on the web and beside the sign-up sheet. These are distributed to all teachers at the beginning of each semester.

  WORK LOAD

A full-time TAship is defined as 6 contact hours/week: one section 101, 102, or 105 with an additional hour of tutoring each week; or two sections of 201, 202 or 232, 101G, or other 3-credit course.

TAs must keep two posted office hours per week, and must be available to make appointments with students who cannot attend those office hours.

Preparation and grading time varies from teacher to teacher. Full-time TAs should expect to 6-10 hours per week outside of class (preparing lessons, grading, office hours, test committees, etc.) .

Individual TAs who need help managing their workload should meet with the LPD to work on strategies for reducing the workload.

Course chairs should inform the LPD if the workload is generally too heavy.