Should teacher and TA get the same?

[Crunchymum]

Parents contributed for a class gift (vouchers) for teacher and TA.

Organiser decided to give £260 to teacher and £140 . Was SBU?

I've organised our collection for those that want to do it and I've split it equally - myself and some other parents prefer the ta over the teacher but felt it would be rude and pa to split it unequally

I'm a teacher. I'd hope it would be split 50/50. I think most teachers would feel the same.

That said, it is rare these days to get a TA working full time with one class and not doing targeted intervention or working with a specific child- so there may be good reasons for the split.

Also, that is far too much for an end of year gift.

That's one of the reasons I don't take part in my kids class collections. I buy the teacher and the TAs the same, I have in the past bought the TAs a little more and certainly have put a wee bit more thought into their presents. My kids have always talked about their TAs more, I know with mine that although their teachers have been great it's the TAs that have made them feel happy, safe and confident.

50:50. I think the fact it's vouchers makes the 60:40 split more visible.

I know TA's who come in the same time as the teacher so they can discuss lessons,strategies or behaviour uninterupted or prepare resources even though they don't get paid until 9am. They are usually the ones dealing with accidents (toilet related) and vomit. If you're child is tired,upset or worried it is usually the TA who is there for a cuddle and reassurance and mops up any tears or grazed knees. More and more TA's are being used to teach a class if the teacher is in a meeting/ill or on a course.They also often stay after school clearing away,writing up interventions etc and the ones I know often go home then research different methods to help a child understand something they are struggling with and prepare resources.All for a quarter of a teachers salary. But opinion seems to be that a TA comes in at 9am , sticks work in books and goes home when the children do. All my colleagues believe that TA's are worth their weight in gold and not paid nearly enough.
Talk to your child, how often do they mention their TA? Do they talk about them fondly or mention how they helped them with a problem? If they do ,then yes it should be equal.

Oh my days, your child not you're child!!!

I am sure the teacher and TA will be most embarrassed at the size of this gift anyway. Sometimes I give equal gifts to both, sometimes I don't, it very much depends on how I have found the staff that year. I have been known to spend anything from £5-£15 on a teacher depending on how I feel about them. My gifts this year were minimal as I wasn't particularly impressed with any and one of my children had 4 different teachers over the course of the year. One of the teachers was excellent with one of my older children and that year I put a lot of thought and effort into their gift, this year I did not find them helpful at all.

That is why I don't like collections, I like to decide myself how much I want to spend.

I do always buy something though both at Christmas and end of year, as I do really appreciate their hard work even if I don't feel they have went over and above for my child that year - teachers rock.

Lol at the TA’s being able to walk in and put 5 mins before/after the kids though. 90% of TA’s I know can’t do that!

The split seems reasonable ... but that's £400! How big is the class? I don't understand how (and why!) you've got so much money.

It also doesn't work for each parent to have the same decision on split. For example, a very independent, academically and socially able child might not have had any contact with a TA all year. Their parent might have wanted to get a gift or card for the teacher only. But for a child with significant additional needs the TA could have been the lifeline that got them through the year. Their parent might have wanted to get something really significant for the TA and just a token or nothing for the class teacher. Circumstances are all different.

As a TA I planned all my own work on my own time. The teacher may suggest an activity or a target but I knew the curriculum and was involved in the daily, weekly and termly planning, attended the staff meetings etc again all out of 'school' hours and I never got paid extra for attending these. But if I didn't I didn't know what was expected of me and had less say in the plan for the class/school or know what was going on. It was the same for all the other Ta's.

I noticed 2 TAs at DS2 Yr6 Leaver's service having a little sob. And apparently one of them went into class to say goodbye yesterday and had a big sob! There's no teachers in the school who've been there for more than 2 years (inc SLT and admin) but most of the TAs have been there 5-10 years.
I can't imagine presenting them with less than a teacher.

It's a reception class. 30 kids.

I gave £10 each to teacher and TA. They have been bloody amazing so I was happy to give this (contributions were anonymous so there was no pressure)

I am sure they can accept as it's vouchers and not cash!!

TA is full time.

50/50 is fair

I strongly feel that TAs should get the same. The difference in responsibilities is reflected in their pay. The gifts we give reflect our thanks for the effort they put in with my dc.

The split seems reasonable ... but that's £400! How big is the class? I don't understand how (and why!) you've got so much money

30 kids in the class, so people must have given between £10-£20 each to cover two gifts. Doesn't seem excessive but I agree it looks a lot when added up!

All this end of term gift giving is getting way out of hand if you are giving this sort of money.
Whatever happened to a hand made card and a few flowers?

Wow I wish my husband got presents like this at the end of the year!!

I am still very grateful for all the chocolate and wine he gets though!!
I don't appreciate the children's home baking so much...

Those of you thinking the gift giving is getting out of hand (narrator: it WAS getting out of hand) might console themselves that as soon as your kids go to secondary school, staff there expect (and usually get) nothing in the way of gifts.

As a teacher I also think it should be 50:50. Yes I work longer hours, have more responsibility etc but the difference is reflected in my pay. This is a thank you gift not payment for the work done. Having said that in my school we have all lost our ta's next year due to funding so it will sadly no longer even be an issue :(

TA’s get paid a lot less but they also have far less responsibility. Having said that, the TA in my DD’s class has been absolutely invaluable to her throughout the year and will be getting an equal gift to the teacher.

I hate collections where the contribution for the teacher & TA is the same! I donate £10 for the teacher and £5 for the TA, to reflect the actual workload, level of responsibility & sacrifice made by the teacher during term time.

Pugwalls, I am quite shocked to hear that you hate to treat teacher and ta equally for gift. The responsibility and work load is reflected in pay. Especially in ks1, I felt like ta actually knew my child better than teacher, and spent so much more time being loco parents. I do appreciate teacher's hard work, but same for ta, who gives different kind of support and help.

Most of the whole class presents at my school split equally as both are FT in class and work as a team. It's also presented as a team effort to parents and pupils too, rather than a them and is automation like you have in some schools. For individual gifts, again teacher and TA appear to get the same gift.

I think it's much nicer, esp as the TA is often working just as hard during the day, and supporting the teacher outside of working hours despite being paid a fraction of the wage.

I've worked as both.

I gave the teachers and TAs the same gift (chocolates). The TAs in my son's class have cleaned up his puke, wiped his nose and changed his nappies this year.

Our class collection has always been divided like that too. Last year I wasn't sure why as the TA was absolutely amazing - I;m not sure what her qualifications were but she was just so skilled and experiences it was like having a second teacher and she was incredibly devoted too. This year I understand a little more. We all know the teacher way more than the TA (don't think I've ever spoken to her). The teacher has done parents evenings etc. and all that extra preparation that goes into lesson planning. I'd still be happy for it to be shared equally but it makes a little more sense.