To think Teaching Assistants are vastly underpaid for their role?

[altoran]

When the role of Teaching Assistant was created, the idea was that they would help with basic tasks like photocopying, wall displays, etc. It was a very basic role with no real responsibility.
Now Teaching Assistants have a lot of responsibility and are very involved in children's education, although under the supervision of a teacher. But they receive very little over minimim wage for this.
AIBU to think they are vastly underpaid?

I agree, and they are exploited. I also think it stinks that a teacher has to do a degree and an NQT year (or in-work equivalent of a degree) to teach, but a TA does not and gets stuck with covering for teachers when they are not there! Not fair on anyone. Can't believe schools get away with it.

I think its scandalous what TAs get paid. We are constantly short of TAs at my school and have a huge problem recruiting.

I think it's part of a wider problem that we undervalue female labour and rely on women needing these jobs or not needing to be breadwinners.

In our school all but one TA is female, all.the cleaners are female, about two thirds of the teachers are female, however 6 out of 7 members of the senior leadership team are men.

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland

Firforforty *shivawn

What qualifications are they required to have?

The same as a teacher there is no minimum standard.*

This is not true. You must have qualified teacher status to be a teacher in a maintained school in the UK.

But many state schools are academies.

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland

Amazed by all the people saying the TAs where they are are qualified teachers etc. At my local school they are predominantly mums of children at the school, with minimal qualifications. They are hard working and great with the kids but they certainly dont have qualifications or in particularly in demand skills that would enable them to earn vastly more elsewhere.

This is my experience over 25 years of teaching in a variety of schools; most of the TAs were the mums of past pupils. Many are/were absolutely excellent, others not very good at all-like in most other places of work, I expect.

There is always a massive amount of interest in any TA job that comes up though as it fits in with school hours, gives the holidays and requires no qualifications. Pay will probably not ever improve whilst there is a huge swathe of people wanting those working hours.

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland

Firforforty *shivawn

What qualifications are they required to have?

The same as a teacher there is no minimum standard.*

This is not true. You must have qualified teacher status to be a teacher in a maintained school in the UK.

But in an academy only the SENCO is legally required to have a teaching qualification. There are staff at my maintained school on unqualified teachers pay as they aren't qualified, they teach small groups intervention rather than core curriculum. I think our cover supervisors are unqualified teachers too, they can be teaching all day solo but will have a qualified teacher setting work for them.

YADNBU

Speaking as a secondary teacher.

That said lots of teachers leave to become TAs.

Yes! They are a vital. It very much depends on the school but I've certainly seen some that are pretty much underpaid teachers. The impact they have (and the reasons why they are needed) are not sufficiently recognised imo).

@Witchcraftandhokum

It's the same for any "non-teaching" role. I'm a pastoral lead, I manage teachers, I'm expected to cover lessons, I train teachers in certain aspects of their role, I attend parents evenings and celebration evenings. My salary is pro-rata'd to term time only, I'm not paid anywhere near a teachers salary, and I don't get their benefits.

The way support staff are treated in this country is atrocious.

You are a TA managing teachers? That sounds like the tail wagging the dog

We have classroom assistants not TAs . They come to work for 9 and leave at 3. Mostly on the dot. I think they are paid fairly for the work they do. During lockdown they were in school one day a week (rising to 2 for the last month or so ) with the rest of the week at home.

I volunteer in a primary school and basically do what the TA does. I have a degree and have taken LSA and SEND qualifications and have been doing it over a decade.

Originally it was admin work, display boards, photocopying, trimming work sheets or questions to stick into books and listening to children read. Now I do intervention work in the classroom, so just helping a small group of children engage with the work that has been set, guiding and encouraging.

The employed TAs are the ones doing intervention work with children with SEND or behavioural issues. TAs have had their fingers broken, been punched, kicked, spat at. As a volunteer I am nowhere near those children and you couldn't pay me enough to fear a 7 year old's physical aggression.

TAs are trained to safely remove children from classrooms, watch over children in "calm" rooms until SLT arrive. It can never happen from a safeguarding point of view but I wish parents could just observe a primary school for a week to see that this is never about "teaching" which is delivering a lesson, teachers and TAs do so much more than that as has been detailed above. I don't think either are paid anywhere near enough.

@wonderstuff

I think its scandalous what TAs get paid. We are constantly short of TAs at my school and have a huge problem recruiting.

I think it's part of a wider problem that we undervalue female labour and rely on women needing these jobs or not needing to be breadwinners.

In our school all but one TA is female, all.the cleaners are female, about two thirds of the teachers are female, however 6 out of 7 members of the senior leadership team are men.

Yep 😡

I'm a ta, I cover classes 3 afternoons a week, have been in every year group from nursery to yr 6. I love my job, I love cover teaching, I am degree level and my hourly wage is £9.57 for my norm hours and an extra 87p for the hours I cover a class. My hours are 8.45-3.15 yet I'm in at 8.15 every day and if I cover I mark, so I don't leave until that's done.

Totally agree, op. I've encountered some absolute gems along the way.

The posters saying about teachers..'there is no minimum standard'. Whilst schools technically can employ unqualified teachers, most schools want someone with QTS. That means a degree/post graduate qualification or on the job training.

It's not accurate to imply academies are stuffed with unqualified teachers. Go have a look on tes jobs you will see 99% of the teaching jobs require QTS. There is a minimum standard.

Part of the issues with how teachers are valued in this country is people not viewing it as a profession.

And back to the topic, yes TAs are underpaid. The secondary schools I've worked in used cover supervisors to cover lessons though rather than TAs. I think that's more common in primary schools? But they all do interventions, paperwork, create resources etc. They should be paid more.

I'm currently looking for a full time TA job. I'm currently a lunchtime supervisor. I have TA qualifications and a degree in education. Its most definitely a job you choose for the love not the money.

Teaching assistants are treated appallingly. Massively underpaid and overworked. Often doing the job of the teacher and being paid less than half of what the teacher gets. Often unpaid working.

There's no way I could do it.

I'm a TA and lunchtime supervisor and I am fortunate enough to be able to do it for the love of the job and not need a big salary.

I was a teacher for over 20 years. I am now a TA. I'm paid at the lowest level a TA can be in our school.
Currently I plan and deliver small group work in English and Maths. I run interventions and work with some very challenging children.
I frequently teach my class work planned by my CT as she is also the SENCO and is called to meetings etc.
I earn less than £14,500 a year. Officially I work 25 hours a week. I am not paid nearly enough for what I do and neither are my colleagues.
HOWEVER, in 'normal' times I arrive at work at about 8.45 am and leave at about 3.30pm. I take nothing home. If I have planning to do I do it in school.
I have far lower stress levels than I did as a teacher and I have time and energy to look after my family. I genuinely love my job.

During lockdown they were in school one day a week (rising to 2 for the last month or so ) with the rest of the week at home.

I'm sure they were thrilled to bits about that perk

Our school has amazing TAs, they're definitely worth their weight in gold, my eldest does targeted 1-2-1 work for his SEN with his.

The same as a teacher there is no minimum standard
Rubbish @Fitforforty . Teachers in the state sector have to have a degree and postgrad teaching qualification.

Obvs or a degree which rolled in the qualified teacher status like a BEd, but those aren’t so common now.

I have voted not unreasonable! I know some amazing teaching assistants and feel they are underpaid for sure

There are some some amazing TAs for sure who are worth far more. However in my years teaching in secondary there are also a large number number of terrible ones who certainly are not worth more.

@NameyNameyNameChangey

Yes. Same with nursery workers and care assistants. But, to be fair, teachers and nurses are underpaid too. The support staff are more underpaid. Everybody should get a rise, IMO.

All very female dominated jobs, as a pp has pointed out. Part of the systemic undervaluing of this kind of work, which is done mainly by women.