What's the maximum if the TA sits out in the hall grading papers?
I've seen this at my former institution.

Dave Lane
CSO
Zyviva Labs

On 8/26/25 8:06 AM, Samuella Sigmann wrote:
> 1 TA/instructor to 24 students is the accepted best practice.
>
> There is no way that one person can safely monitor intro students in two
> adjoining laboratory rooms.
> Sammye
>
>
> On 8/25/2025 3:00 PM, Leach, Patricia wrote:
>>
>> Hello all,
>>
>> We have had an explosion in the number of freshmen who are taking
>> general chemistry this term, but funding has limited the number of TAs
>> and instructors we have per lab room. The way the department has had
>> to deal with this is to increase the number of students from 30 to 38
>> per section (limited by the Fire Marshall’s maximum occupancy of the
>> rooms). They work in groups of 3 (not ideal at all). We have adjoining
>> labs, so our shortage of instructors has been solved by having an
>> instructor supervise two sections being held concurrently in a set of
>> those labs. There is one TA per section.
>>
>> In the past we have had 30 students (10 groups) supervised by a
>> dedicated instructor (not working concurrent sections) and a TA, so
>> about 15 students per person supervising. Now we can have as many as
>> 38 students (13 groups) being supervised by one person at times, as
>> the instructor moves between sections. I feel this is not safe.
>>
>> What do people think is a safe ratio of supervising people to students
>> (or student groups)?
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Patricia Leach
>>
>> Lab Manager
>>
>> Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
>>
>> The University of Texas at Dallas <https://www.utdallas.edu/>;
>>
>> SLC 3.513
>>
>> Office: 972-883-6583
>>
>> Cell: 469-891-6426
>>
>> --- For more information about the DCHAS-L e-mail list, contact the
>> Divisional membership chair at membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
>
> --
>
> ******************************************************************************
>
> Samuella B. Sigmann, MS, NRCC-CHO
>
> ACS Committee on Chemical Safety
> <https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/about/governance/committees/chemical-safety.html>;, Chair 2022-2024
>
> ACS Fellow, 2023
>
> ACS Division of Chemical Health & Safety <https://dchas.org/>_, _Fellow
> & 2019 Chair,__
>
> Appalachian State University, Retired
>
> Phone: 336 877 5147
>
> Email: sigmannsb**At_Symbol_Here**retired.appstate.edu
> <mailto:sigmannsb**At_Symbol_Here**retired.appstate.edu>__
>
>
> --- For more information about the DCHAS-L e-mail list, contact the
> Divisional membership chair at membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
> <mailto:membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org>

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