Reply to Overcrowding/Overenrollment Issues at top tier schools

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The UCs have gotten the most flak but it is pretty easy to find issue with any mega large state school.  Take UFlorida.  [b]They don’t even guarantee on campus housing to freshman  and  offer a number of classes, including core business  major classes, as online classes.[/b]  The school actually offers a program to kids not offered regular admission where the entire first year of classes.

The big public classes do a decent job of educating at ton of in state  at a relatively low price, Florida schools are often free to students with strong grades.  But there are trade offs that often make the oos price unpalatable to some families.

I personally am not aware of similar complaints about Michigan other than it is difficult to be admitted to certain popular majors.  Unlike the others, Michigan has a very large percentage oos students so perhaps they have the money and local cost of living that prevents some of these issues.[/quote]

It's hard to believe OOS parents would opt to pay for this type of 'education' if you can even call it that. We all lived through online schooling during Covid. We all KNOW it is not comparable to being in class with peers. My DC goes to a private and while recorded sessions are an option to view later, Every. Single. Class. has been in person, and taught by a professor, never once in three years has it been a TA. [/quote]

What is the size of the school where your kid goes? Where do they attend that they don’t have TAs? Name the school.

Some kids need a lot of hand holding and personal attention. Everyone learns differently. Some folks prefer in person, some prefer online, independent book based learning. Some prefer independent research with little instruction to learn. To each his/her own. However, just because you prefer in person, doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone.

That said, it is NOT just an OOS issue. IMO. - It is a large university issue. Large private schools use TAs and large lecture formats too. Johns Hopkins has lecture classes of 400+ students and that typically meet 1x week with TAs for discussion.
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I've attended very large schools  (including UCLA) and TAs don't teach classes.  TAs only lead recitations and lab sections, as well as help with grading.

Many schools do use lecturers or adjuncts to teach classes.  These folks generally have lower credentials than tenure track professors, though they are often better teachers with more interest in undergrad education.  For example, my PhD advisor was a Nobel Laureate and god help any undergrads who had to take his course.  He was both uninterested in teaching and incapable of explaining things to non-experts in the field.  He's a fabulous scientist, but you'd be much better off with anyone else.  Seriously.[/quote]

TAs do teach classes.  USNWR reported on schools with the highest percentage of classes with TAs as the primary instructor.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/the-short-list-college/articles/2017-02-21/10-universities-where-tas-teach-the-most-classes[/quote]

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