Liggett, "After the Practicum," Ch. 6 in Rose and Weiser, _The WPA as Researcher_

Summary: Many writing programs that employ GTAs have a required practicum in which those TAs learn the program and some writing theory. Liggett uses this article to explore what happens to the GTAs after the practicum--how their teaching changes, from whom they seek advice, and what impact keeping a teaching journal has. She gives a fairly detailed description of her methodology and results and finds that most teachers changed their pedagogy slightly to put their personal stamp on the course, and that they used the theory they got in the practicum to guide them (although few continued to read in composition studies). GTAs rely on a wide variety of people to get advice, although they predominantly rely on their peers. Many students kept journals and found them helpful. Liggett ends the article with a list of the changes she will make to her practicum based on her research findings.

Response: I find this piece interesting on two main levels. First of all, it is useful to see the aftermath of the practicum. I had one as an MA student (when I was a TA), and I found it very helpful for many of the reasons Liggett lays out, especially in forming the peer-to-peer networks I relied on through the program. Secondly, I thought this article modeled a WPA engaged in reflective practice. It took guts for her to research how useful the practicum was and whether the things she taught had staying power, and it took more guts to change her program based on what she found. This is the key value I see in the piece: Liggett serves as a model for aspiring WPAs.

Uses: Mostly for modeling, but also as a snapshot of how GTAs operate (and how a WPA should) at a university.