To think they could of at least given me an interview?

[taken4afool]

I have been volunteering at a school for 2 years while I completed my level 2 & level 3 teaching assistants course.

I qualified a few months ago and would love to work in the school, I have been working in reception year. On my course I needed to work 1 day a week in placement, but to get as much experience as possible I had been working 3, the teacher has been very vocal about how much she values me and that she would be lost without me, she has even asked (at least once a month) if I was not doing anything on a certain, if I could come in to help (which I always did willingly).

It is such a good school and due to my own children, working there would be perfect as no other school around for miles and I do not drive.

Jobs coming up are very rare, well one came up and my teacher told me about it, (it was in her class) I applied and the closing date was last Friday, and I have heard nothing. The post said that if the candidate has heard nothing by today, assume you have been unsuccessful. The teacher said that she would be a reference, but stated that the headteacher will make her own decision.

I am gutted as I have given a lot of time to the school, I have always helped extra when needed, I get on very well with the team and always being asked to help out in other classes.

My confidence has taken a real battering and I feel very low, my dh left me 3 months ago, but every time I went into school that was all forgotten as I loved what I was doing and built up good relationships with staff and the children. No one even suspected anything was wrong as I came alive in the classroom.

I appreciate there might have been better candidates for the job, but after giving 2 years volunteering, if I was not selected for an interview, I would of thought at least someone could of said to me, thanks for your application but you have not been selected.

Guess I am waffling now, sorry

treadheavily of course many people apply at least in part because of the hours, but wanting/needing a school hours job does not make you the best candidate. I think that it comes down to whether an application comes across as "this job is perfect for me and fits round my needs" and "I am the perfect person for this role within your organisation and here are all the reasons why"

what I mean is, say 2 people with equivalent qualifications and experience apply for a job, their applications might still come over very differently if one is all "me me me" and one is all "you you you" IYKWIM

OP, for feeling disappointed about the job. I'd like to add a couple of things:

• sometimes lots of shitty ( sorry no better word) things happen at the same time. I your case having to deal with a difficult ex and feeling rejected. Please don't let this knock I your confidence. Be proud of the fact that you have completed the TA course and showing such involvement and commitment at the school.

• try and separate the fact that your dc go to this school from it being your workplace. I understand it would have been convenient for your family because of the school run but that is just one aspect, don't focus on it. You say there are no other schools nearby. Do you drive? Could you car pool with someone to a nearby town to be able to access more jobs / school?

• I agree that poor grammar / spelling would put employers off. Is this an area which you could work on and improve? It would stand you in good stead for future applications and employment. And generally boost your confidence.

• Yy to asking for feedback from ht but without sounding 'demanding', it's true they do not owe you anything.

However, as you volunteer there, I do think it would be very bad manners and questionable management by HT not to let you know that you haven't been short listed and why. At the very least they should want to keep you happy in your volunteering role...... Unless they'd rather not but then it's better to find out sooner than later so you can move onwards and up. This is not the only school. Try and approach other schools and work hard to improve yourself and make yourself stand out. You never know, something much better might come along and sooner than you think!!

Good luck with your plans.

Evans, I absolutely agree. And the OP is at a potential disavdvanage here because, as someone known to the staff, her spoken and written English is likely to already be 'known' regardless of the written quality of her application.

I agree.

I often see posts on here objecting to the fact that their child's teacher/TA doesn't speak/spell/write correctly. Maybe this head feels it's a priority.

Wow

... the OP is at a potential disavdvanage here because, as someone known to the staff, her spoken and written English is likely to already be 'known' regardless of the written quality of her application…

Extrapolating the OP's grasp of English, and suitability for the role, from a post that she probably dashed off whilst upset is rather unkind.

I'm prepared to bet that if and when the OP gets feedback (if indeed it does turn out that she hasn't got an interview), that the reasons are to do with having candidates that better demonstrated how they fit the person spec.

Also empirical evidence (our schools newsletter etc) suggests to me that most HTs are not that fussed about small grammatical slips.

Hope you get some constructive feedback OP, and better luck next time.

Thing is, it's not a small gramnatical slip but a glaring, fundamental misuse of grammar. Typos understandable but this would gave been a very odd typo to make. Agree that the tone has been unkind at times. AIBU gets like that though, elbows out territory! Had she posted in a work-related topic, she'd probably have had a kinder response.

I agree, Mary. I'm finding speculation about the OP's grammar/application outcome highly irritating. Nobody making these comments will have seen the job advert, person spec, job description, the OP's application, all the other applications, or observed the OP helping out in class.

Do the grammar fiends on this thread think that the OP's teaching assistant qualifications and two years' spent volunteering in class are less relevant than their perception of her grammar skills (based only on this thread)?

The job and OP's experience relate to a Reception class. Do the people banging on about grammar have similar expectations of e.g playgroup leaders working with 4-5 year olds?

Thing is this is regarding her job application. It's a competitive market so recruiters can afford to be choosy. Plus in education it really SHOULD matter whether a TA/teacher is fully literate & numerate. Yes, in the early years too, ideally.

Yes, actually, fascicle. I think anyone in charge of the education of children (or adults, for that matter) should be aware of such a basic grammatical error.

Until the OP asks for and receives feedback, there could be a dozen possible reasons why she didn't get an interview. One school I worked in had a similar situation, but the applicant didn't get an interview because although she was lovely, friendly and very good with the children, she lacked discretion.
So as a volunteer she was appreciated, she wasn't given anything or anyone confidential or sensitive to handle.

CarmineRose1978
Yes, actually, fascicle. I think anyone in charge of the education of children (or adults, for that matter) should be aware of such a basic grammatical error.

Do you have school aged children? If so, how do you ensure that the teachers and school(s) meet your grammar requirements? I am genuinely curious.

Usually parents do it by pointing errors out, writing letters and emails and correcting errors in anything they receive from school before they return it.
I know at least two parents that corrected errors on displays with a sharpie.
Not my displays.
I'm particular about that sort of thing and always check if I have doubts.

I don't have school aged children yet (8 months pregnant!). I have no idea as yet how I personally will ensure that teachers meet my grammar requirements, but I would hope that the hiring committees at the schools to which my children will go will discriminate against candidates who think "could of" is correct usage.

I will also ensure that I correct their grammar if they are being taught incorrectly. I was until recently a university lecturer, and I corrected the grammar of my students if necessary.

I'm not quite sure what your point is, though. I am aware that, just because I think all teachers and TAs should be literate, I can't ensure this. I don't see why that should have any bearing on my opinion.

Thank you for the kind replies, it is much appreciated.

Was not able to come back to the thread for while feeling quite low (thanks to ex)

I think I have it now that I made a basic grammatical error in the title and must remember in future to not post in AIBU while feeling low.

There was a delay and I received a letter in the post today, inviting me for an interview next Thursday. :) So all that upset and worry for nothing. I do not expect to get the job just because I volunteer, but it has given me a boost that I have got to the interview stage. I am up against 7 other candidates.

Whoo hoo - good news, good luck!

Oh good!

That's great news taken, fingers crossed for you that the interview goes well.

That is great, taken! Now - do not assume that thsoe interviewing you know ANYTHING about you. Answer the questions fully, don't be tempted to think/ say "Sure you already know I can do this!"

Great advice MelanieCheeks.

OP, over the next few days think up some really strong examples of times when you have taken the initiative to help the school, improve working practices etc. Shout from the rooftops about your experience. They will likely only be able to go on how you perform in the interview, so you can leave them in no doubt that you would be great at the job.

I interviewed a load of internal candidates recently and so many of them made the mistake of thinking that because I know them, I'd know that they would be good at the promoted job. In reality, I know them in the role they have at the moment but needed to see in the interview that they understood a promotion is a step up that they need to approach in a considered way.

Good luck!

Thank you for all your advice. :)

Great news, well done, let us know how it goes. Good luck!

So happy for you, OP. Knock 'em dead!

Excellent - good luck!

As someone with a good degree in English, I was pulled up on 'could of' when doing a written English exercise during my PGCE (in English ). I was brought in a working class household and immersed in colloquial spoken English. Grammar was never explicitly taught when I went through school. I didn't know word classes or basic literary terminology either. I taught myself when I became a teacher, and still check up on aspects if grammar and syntax.

Give the OP a break. It's a common and understandable mistake. The vast majority of us make them now and again, no matter how educated.

And don't pick my post apart for accuracy because it actually doesn't fucking matter as long as I can make a coherent point.

Oops. Just RTFT

All the very best for your interview, OP.