September 2026 GTA Orientation
Date: Wednesday, September 9, 2026
Time: 9:00 am-3:30 pm
Location: Symons Campus, Peterborough
Registration: Please register by September 1.
View the program
All incoming GTAs are invited to attend an engaging day of interactive workshops focused on common challenges GTAs face as well as strategies for success. Lunch will be provided.
*Please note this GTA Orientation is optional (not required). It is, however, a requirement if you wish to complete the "Introduction to Graduate Teaching micro-credential." More details can be found here.
Workshops will include:
- Understanding the Art and Science of Teaching
- Indigenizing the Academy
- GTAs as Professionals
- A Panel Discussion with Experienced GTAs
- Choose Your Own Adventure Sessions
- Using Blackboard as a TA
- Tips for Leading Seminars and Labs
- Academic Integrity in the Age of AI
- Providing Helpful Feedback to Students
- Creating Inclusive Learning Environments
- Supporting Student Success: Library Resources for Graduate TAs
For more information on supports for GTAs, please visit the Trent Teaching Commons website. Should you have questions about our programming for GTAs, please don’t hesitate to reach out teachingcommons@trentu.ca.
GTA Professional Development Micro-Credential:
Responding to Difficult Classroom Situations
Friday, October 2, 2026
10am-4pm (lunch will be provided)
Location: Gathering Space, Enwayaang
Registration is required by Tuesday, September 25. Register here.
Whether intervening in conflicts between students during a heated discussion or conversing with a student who is disappointed in their mark, many GTAs find responding to unexpected or difficult situations in the classroom challenging.
The Trent Teaching Commons and Dr. Mara Heiber invite you to join us for a special professional development day designed to help GTAs create strategies for responding to challenging classroom situations. We will use interactive and dynamic conversations to anticipate and imagine responses to common classroom scenarios. Through these activities, participants will work collaboratively to develop a “cheat sheet,” an innovative tool designed by Dr. Heiber that involves identifying specific language GTAs can use to respond to unexpected and challenging classroom situations. Lunch will be provided and all participants who successfully complete the program will earn a provincially-recognized micro-credential.