Abstract
This article analyzes the use of undergraduate assistants as a strategy for staffing the basic communication course in small colleges while preserving faculty capacity to meet broader programmatic needs. It reviews literature across disciplines to identify recurrent considerations in employing student assistants, including selection criteria, training, laboratory activities, grading practices, and compensation. The analysis highlights pedagogical benefits associated with laboratory based instruction, particularly increased student participation, enhanced opportunities for practicing communication skills, and improved peer level feedback. It also addresses concerns about consistency and evaluation by describing an approach that standardizes laboratory activities while allowing individual assistants to shape group dynamics through their instructional style. The article further examines ethical and procedural questions related to student grading and explains how shared expectations and collaboratively developed assessment practices can maintain fairness and minimize grade appeals. Economic implications are also considered, with the argument that employing student assistants substantially reduces instructional costs and frees faculty to teach additional upper level courses. The discussion concludes that undergraduate assistants can provide an effective and financially viable means of strengthening the basic course while supporting departmental flexibility, provided that careful selection, structured guidance, and appropriate remuneration are established.
Recommended Citation
Lerstrom, Alan
(1985)
"Staffing the Basic Course and Still Having Flexibility to Meet Program Needs,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 54, Article 12.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol54/iss1/12
