....to think my daughter's class has a right to a qualified teacher?

[pokemeinthemorning]

So we had a message tonight on the system to explain what is happening in my daughter's year 5 class. Apparently, their teacher will now be teaching another class because one teacher left two weeks ago and they have said they have 'dispensed of any supply staff'. Basically the TA will be teaching the class for the foreseeable future.
I know there are many dedicated and wonderful TA's who could make great teachers BUT we are not qualified to teach classes on a regular basis.
On questioning my daughter I found out that from the start of this year she has her teacher in class 2 days a week and the rest is taken on by the TA. We were not told about this.
As a TA myself, I know that they often cover classes but this is on a regular basis for a prolonged period of time.

I feel that this is very unfair and they should at least be employing supply teachers in the meantime.

In an ideal world yes..... But most school budgets won't have enough for long term supply.

Sorry about the errors. Writing in panic mode.

• TAs

Then why have they not recruited since September?
Clearly there are not enough teachers for the classes.

YANBU but there is a massive teacher retention crisis, covid has sucked the cover teacher budget dry and there is a limited supply of cover teachers as well.

What do you expect the school to do, especially when so many people are claiming that its all business as usual in schools?

They may have tried to recruit. You don't know if the teacher has left or is long term sick. There's a huge retention crisis in teaching.

@pokemeinthemorning

Then why have they not recruited since September? Clearly there are not enough teachers for the classes.

Even if they recruit it would be a term till the teacher arrives.

There were NO primary supply teachers available in my county one day last week when we were trying to get cover, not one.

Is this specific TA qualified or training as a teacher?
My DS's 1:1 is a qualified primary teacher, she decided to "change direction" to work with SN children in the last few years before she retired.
My DD didn't have a qualified teacher last year. They couldn't find one. So they had a student teacher who was almost qualified. She is now officially a teacher and teaching one of the classes.

I would also question your assertion that consistent teaching by a good TA, supervised by a qualified teacher, is worse than a string of supply teachers.

You are not being unreasonable, the school should cut its budget elsewhere, your child should be taught by a teacher and the if the school have budgeting issues they should be cutting elsewhere, not teaching staff. Is it an academy / free school? This is the problem when schools don’t have proper oversight and accountability in place. This would never happen in a million years in my LA maintained school.

YANBU and this constant underfunding of education is one of the things that makes me most angry about the Tories.

Other countries have made huge amounts of money available for school budgets to help with these problems - very low amounts in the UK.

UK children are being let down badly now. I don't know what you can do, clearly it is a legal option.

also at the very least, while the school work on recruiting, the class should share a teacher and TA with another class, so a teacher has oversight of what is being covered and how it is being taught

the school should cut its budget elsewhere

Where precisely?

School budgets have been completely fucked by the Tories.

@nohouseyet

also at the very least, while the school work on recruiting, the class should share a teacher and TA with another class, so a teacher has oversight of what is being covered and how it is being taught

Oh I see this is actually the case

@spanieleyes

There were NO primary supply teachers available in my county one day last week when we were trying to get cover, not one.

We've had at least five days since half term where this has been the case. There are not enough supply teachers available. Recruitment takes a term minimum. Often TAs know as much or more than the class teacher and can happily deliver lessons to a high standard. It's only one year of formal training (school or uni based) that separates a 'qualified' teacher from a TA. And that 'qualified' teacher might be three months into their NQT (ECT now) whereas the TA might have been doing the job ten years.

I have no idea if she is qualified. I am a L3 TA myself but wouldn't be happy teaching on a long term basis.

It's a LA maintained school not a free or an academy.

@rrhuth

the school should cut its budget elsewhere

Where precisely?

School budgets have been completely fucked by the Tories.

Oh I totally agree with you! Tories are 100% to blame. In terms of where to cut, if there is any non-teaching management in the school they need to get their asses back in the classroom PDQ. Non-teaching management who are qualified teachers is a luxury that cannot be afforded when children are being taught regularly by TAs.

Several of the TAs at my kids school are former teachers so are fully qualified. So we dont get told much about changes like this.

@pokemeinthemorning

I have no idea if she is qualified. I am a L3 TA myself but wouldn't be happy teaching on a long term basis.

It's a LA maintained school not a free or an academy.

Gosh! Well then I’d suggest a very very strongly worded letter to the LA. They should be supporting the schools, a) keeping oversight of their budgeting and b) divvying out more money when it is needed. They will have to find it from elsewhere- send in an advisory teacher to cover, for example.

You’ve got every right to remove your daughter and put her in another school that can somehow magic up qualified staff from nowhere.

And to the PP above who talks absolute rot about ‘non-teaching management’ being a ‘luxury’?! How the hell do you think the place works without managers being able to manage? Nonsense.

I think children should have qualified teachers. We keep hearing how 'quality first' teaching has the biggest impact on children's progress.

Sadly many children dont get this because of the retention crisis. I doubt the school wants it to be like this.

I understand that many TAs are former teachers but they must be paid much less as a TA. If they are paid less then surely the responsibility shouldn't be the same.

Echoing what others have said, they might be trying to recruit but there's such a shortfall in people joining the profession that it's not easy filling places.

At the very least the school should explain why your DD's class teacher has been moved to the other class – why isn't the TA assigned to that one, if that's the class where the teacher's left?

It makes my blood boil to think of qualified teachers sitting in offices raking in huge salaries in education management while the goods aren’t being delivered on the shop floor. Grr!

@parrotonmyshoulder

You’ve got every right to remove your daughter and put her in another school that can somehow magic up qualified staff from nowhere.

And to the PP above who talks absolute rot about ‘non-teaching management’ being a ‘luxury’?! How the hell do you think the place works without managers being able to manage? Nonsense.

I know loads of teaching Heads.

Parrot, and that is what I will do.
The schools I work in in the area all have supply teachers and many on very short notice.