For most Juniors, anticipating the coming Senior year comes with many thoughts, among them the possibility of being a Teacher’s Assistant. But for Juniors Mat Mosolf and Charlie Miller, waiting wasn’t an issue: They were given that opportunity as Juniors. Mat is currently “TA” ing for Mrs. Strassburg, and Charlie has previously “TA”ed for Mr. Boeckers. Both had different stories as to how they became a Teacher’s Assistant.
“After discussing it with my councilor, we both decided that I don’t want to take woods,” said Charlie. “After weighing my options, Mrs. Cox suggested that I should try my hand at being a TA. I said that I’d love to, and I knew exactly who it was going to be for. Señor Boeckers helped me through Spanish 1, and I couldn’t have asked for a better teacher. It was a lot of work, but it was worth it. The only stipulation was that next year I’m not allowed to TA.”
The story was a little different with Mat. “I’ve been having a blast. There’s almost no work, and Strassburg is a really fun teacher to TA for. I got to be a TA because there was an empty spot in my schedule and I really didn’t like any of the classes available. I spend my TA block usually just doing personal research on the computer or getting things prepared for class for her. Cox said I couldn’t be a TA next year, but I’m really hoping she’ll forget about that…..”
Being a Teacher’s Assistant is a large responsibility, but Charlie and Mat have handled it well. Those few Juniors who were given the chance to be a TA know it’s not customary for them to be given that chance, as it is usually seniors that are allowed to take a quarter and help their favorite teacher. So long as Juniors treat the experience as a privilege and respect the freedom that they’re given, there shouldn’t be any problems.
