A lot is said and written about teaching assistants being used ineffectively, but the issue is rarely discussed from the teaching assistant’s point of view.
From my six years’ experience as a teaching assistant (secondary and FE), I would like to make four observations from the TA’s perspective.
Firstly, TAs often move about during the day following a learner or group of learners. This means that you can go from a geography class to a maths class to a music lesson to an English class. If you work across the year groups then you can be dropped into any class, in any subject, throughout the day.
For example, sometimes, you might make an appearance in just one of a pupil’s history lessons, when they have two in a week. As a result, you have no sense of continuity regarding their studies and, as you enter the classroom at the same time as the student, no time to prep for the lesson. Usually, the teacher doesn’t acknowledge you and often you are not given the handout as it is being passed around.
How can anyone possibly be of use in this situation?
If you want to make proper use of your TA then assign them to a department - preferably a department of their choice, so it is a subject they feel confident in. This way they can get to know the teaching staff and gain a strong overview of the curriculum. If they are also included in departmental meetings then they will feel part of the team, and the (dare I say) animosity between teacher and TA will dwindle.
Give TAs a department to call home
As it stands, sometimes it feels as if teachers think you’re a bit thick because you do not know their subject as well as they do. Many TAs (myself included) have degrees and qualifications in other disciplines but the teacher never realises this; all they see is you floundering in their lessons because you have only had five seconds to assimilate what the lesson is about, ascertain how much the learner understands and simplify/translate this information into a form that that a specific student can understand, regardless of their learning difficulties.
Giving us a department to call home would go some way to stop this.
Secondly, TAs are like CCTV. We see every different teaching style. We know what works and what doesn’t work in the classroom from first-hand observation. We are an untapped wealth of knowledge about class management. If you are struggling with a student or a specific class then ask your TA if she has any tips that might work. Chances are that she or he sees the same class in other lessons where they behave perfectly well.
In essence, this is about respect: a teacher once complained to me about the behaviour of her students (she would arrive 10 minutes late as she dreaded the lessons, leaving me standing in a cramped corridor with 30 Year 9s). I tentatively suggested that she simplified her instructions (pure gobbledygook). She was incensed, and so rude that I made sure I was never in one of her lessons again.
Your TA can be your greatest ally in the classroom. If you need help with a student or students, or are wondering why they are being so difficult, get your TA on board and accept any hints gracefully. At worst, you will have another adult to help shoulder the burden.
Talk to your TA
Thirdly, TAs work from a different motive to teachers. They generally do the job because they simply like young people. My favourite students are rebellious teenagers - the sort of youngsters you would normally cross the road to avoid. I find I can build a rapport more easily with these students than any others. It’s an informal, friendly relationship that motivates the student to access the learning offered by the teacher. Often the support is intangible, and it is this aspect of the role that often makes TAs so invaluable in the classroom.
Finally, I would like to add this: being a teacher is challenging work. Successive governments have undermined the role and bombarded it with ludicrous amounts of bureaucracy. Standardised testing has led to alienation and an increase in mental health issues for children in all age ranges. We need to stand together in our schools, TAs and teachers, parents and students, dinner ladies and caretakers, to make things better.
For this to happen, we need to talk to each other. Talk to your teaching assistant, ask them their opinion, sit next to them in the staff room. You’ll be surprised what a difference it can make.
Lydia Masseron worked as TA for several years. She now works for an alternative education provider in Swindon. The views expressed are her own
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