2024 Autumn · How to Do Office Hours and Tutoring Well
Relevant computing-education research: SIGCSE 2023 Student Expectations of Tutors, SIGCSE 2024 Just-in-Time Teaching Tips to Support Computer Science Tutors.
Some intro-programming courses' attempts at AI tutoring (Harvard, UC Berkeley).
Situations that may arise in tutoring: what to do when stumped; a student lacks a prerequisite and it's hard to explain; suddenly remembering a previous wrong answer; how to avoid being inadvertently passive-aggressive / getting posted to the anonymous board — online, without tone or expression, it's easier to be misread. Recommended Nonviolent Communication.
Online vs. offline tutoring: why WeChat-group tutoring is unpopular (boundary issues, constant expectation of a reply); set clear QoS rules and follow them; whether the overseas office-hour system fits; in any case, make the tutoring method clearly known to students. Cites cs144's "round-trip time is too long" (programming question almost impossible to answer by email — come to office hours).
Why many students don't seek help when stuck: TAs themselves may also grind alone; discuss causes and improvements.
Planning tutoring across a semester: more complex than "doing each session well" — e.g. crowds before deadlines, highly repetitive questions, and being squeezed for time.
Can LLMs help with tutoring: how much of the "paste question to LLM, copy answer" ideal scenario applies? Think about which question types an LLM intrinsically struggles with — this also helps design better assignments.