To be sad that this woman was embarrassed about being a TA?

[jennymanara]

We were out tonight at a social event where most couples seemed to do well paid or high status jobs such as Dr or in the corporate world. I was chatting to one couple and the issue about jobs came up and she very embarrassed said she was a TA. Her job is really important and much more important than some of the others there doing work in corporate firms. It is a crazy world we live in where someone doing a valuable job is embarrassed about it because that job is underpaid.

finfintytint
I'm not being exploited thankyou very much! You must know a lot about being a TA, you seem so knowledgeable on the matter 🤔
It's a really important job and I'm proud to work in a school.

This is very interesting. In the great scheme of things who has the most important contribution to one's life and wellbeing - barrister, solicitor, teacher etc - I think it's the binmen - without these everyday heroes we would be reduced to savagery.

@Finfintytint

TAs are helpers essentially that put up with quite a lot of shite???

I’m a TA and we are certainly not ‘helpers’ in my school. More like unqualified teachers! We do intervention after intervention every single day. If you child is upset at school, it will be the TA that will comfort them and sort out the issue. If your child has lost something, it’s the TA who will find it. If your child is struggling with their reading/writing/times tables it will be the TA who works with them 1-2-1 to help them.

I know what people mean though there’s a trend in our region for as many cheap staff as possible so lots of young people training on the job for TA qualifications so basically working full time for free naively thinking there’ll be a paid job at the end, then of course there’s the young apprentice caretakers and office staff who again get replaced when their course ends

@Finfintytint this is untrue - I’m a teacher and my class wouldn’t run the same without my TA. They are there to assist you but it’s team work rather than them just being “helpers” and the fact that there are people with this view is really sad.

Lots of TAs around here are wildly overqualified for the role. Most of them do it because they have primary aged children and it fits in with their family life. Our kids are lucky enough to have their skills and care at minimum wage and we should appreciate them.

I am just going back to work after 18 years as a SAHM and I have to admit I am looking forward to having an answer to "what do you do?" that doesn't force my new friend to make forced statements of appreciation for how hard SAHMs work. We do, of course, and I think it's genuinely meant, but I always feel a little patronised anyway. I expect TAs get a similar response.

I'm a secondary teacher. TAs are incredible, and very underpaid for what they do.
Most primary classes have a TA, but most secondary classes do not - you have to have at least one child with an entitlement for support.
I think that we should have a TA in every class.

It was probably your Snotty attitude that embarrassed her!
How dare you ‘feel sorry for her’ patronising much? Yuk - vile thread.

It's not a very important job though. It should be valued but it's not highly skilled and pay is about right. They are helpers essentially that put up with quite a lot of shite

How bloody condescending! You obviously have ABSOLUTELY no idea of what TA's do. Some of them are highly qualified. And, like many professions, there are different levels to the job. Sure … they have to cope with a lot, so do nurses and police officers and paramedics etc etc etc ….

They are professionals working alongside other professionals such as teachers, social workers, librarians, educational psychologists ...

Perhaps teaching assistants should be renamed assistant teachers - I think it puts a slightly different spin on it

Well, this thread is a eye opener! I actually think we should all stop asking people 'what do you do?' Maybe people would then stop using their jobs as status symbols to look down on others. I'm going to start asking people what their hobbies are, or what their last altruistic act was, or if they know the lyrics to a whole pop song. That'll change the dynamics a bit

There are some amazing sounding TAs on this thread. I have to say the practice of some of the TAs at the school I volunteered at was appalling. But then so was the practice of some of the teachers.

*If your child is struggling with their reading/writing it will be the TA who supports them.'

This is not a criticism of TAs but of the system. It really shouldn't be that the children with the most difficulty are supported by the least qualified person in the room. No wonder my struggling son is not improving. I have seen the TA giving him his one to one support. Both TA and my son looked bored to tears. He needs a skilled educator who knows how to engage and inspire him.

Come on guys - it isn't a competition!

If you aren't proud of what you do, then do something else. Certainly, talk about something else.

I'm going to start asking people what their hobbies are, or what their last altruistic act was, or if they know the lyrics to a whole pop song.

I'm with you @dorisdog ! There are so many more interesting things about people than their job title! If you must talk about your job, talk about the child you helped, or the time you saved. Job titles are often so meaningless.

Hmm well whoever said TAs don’t have an important job, really. For children with special needs a Ta is not just a ‘helper’. They often have to deliver 1:1 specialist support to a class or a group. They are very different to old fashioned classroom assistants who would hear readers and out up displays and do photocopying. They may do those things as well, after school when the kids leave, but their role is a school is just as important as a teacher. In my school, an sen school, a class of 5 children can have 1 teacher and between 5-15 staff depending on the needs of the children. Some administer medication, change tracheostomies, take blood readings, administer oxygen, take sats readings, all whilst trying to make sure they are clean, dry and fed - sometimes through a tube or sometimes spoon fed, hoisting them in and out of wheelchairs for different activities, supporting them to sit, carrying out physio activities, carrying out communication tasks....... need I go on. Some need to physically restrain children, take hits and kicks from children, spat in, screamed at, again whilst making sure they are making educational progress. As a teacher I could not teach my lessons without my TAs. In a mainstream school the Ta is usually there to make sure children with special needs are given the support to complete tasks set by the teacher. TAs are very skilled. They often start a new job unskilled but they undergo a hell of a lot of training to do their job.

Most TAs are skilled educators. Aside from that children do reading daily with their teacher as a whole class. They also need to read individually and should be doing it at home. If not or they need extra on top TAs are ideal. In our school highly qualified TAs run additional reading intervention groups and hear children individually with a focus on targets which will vary.

Oooh this upsets me. I work in childcare, and have "raised" so many children over 27 years. I'm never ashamed of my job, but on many occasions when I've said what my job Is, people literally say, oh, really? And then the conversation stops.. we are professionals and have all studied for degrees or similar in childcare. But still we are not seen as professionals. Drives me flippin bonkers...

Finfintytint, maybe you should do a job swap with a TA and see how much they are just “helpers”. I’m not a TA but have several friends who are, one of them who is paid to be a TA but is also doubling up here job role (without being asked if that’s ok and without extra pay) to one to one a very badly behaved child, is regularly physically attacked by the child who has no clinical/mental disorder, just really naughty kid, but also has to do her role as a “helper” to the qualified teacher. My experience is that the children learn most from the TA’s sitting with them and breaking down what they are learning. They are important to education and deserve more for what they do! Next you’ll be saying NHS HCA’s are just professional arse wipers and not worth the money they get.....

"It's not a very important job though."

Are you fucking kidding?

If you ever see this lady again tell her from me that her job is extremely important! Without lovely people like her my son wouldn't be able to access mainstream school. I will forever be greatful to his TA's ♥️

It would be wonderful if TAs were ‘just helpers’ because they could photocopy, get lovely art resources ready, do lovely quality pieces of work with children, listen to children read and just float around ‘helping’ in general.

As it goes, they get abused physically and verbally, are the go between, cover classes for little or no extra pay and are mostly the ones that get children through primary Ed without being excluded.

Let’s compare that to other ‘important jobs’. I know which ones should be proud!!

Thanks T.As, you are fab!
From a teacher.

Very well said @AlexaShutUp near the beginning of the thread. How ignorant some people are

Well I ended up teaching today. Didn't sharpen any pencils though.

Thanks to all who acknowledge the reality of what it is to be a TA.
It’s not your fault you are used and abused for an underpaid role.
There are many valid reasons why over qualified women staff this role.
The patriarchy has a lot to answer for. An essentially unskilled, underpaid role is completely overused by many women because it suits family life.