Supply teacher taking TA roles?

[thenaturallets]

I am a qualified teacher on supply, would you take TA roles if offered to you?

No, I wouldn’t on principle; the pay is crap.

Please try not to: it is bad enough that a lot of agencies ask tbat TAs have a degree, and then pay them peanuts. It devalues everyone in the profession imo. Next, we'll have TAs working as teachers, being paid on TA rates. Oh yeah, it has already started.

I wouldn't but some people do and find it less stressful.

No. I've been doing it for years and I never have, or cover supervisor either. There's plenty of work, terrifyingly too much really.

And you can end up on less than minimum wage.

Only if they paid teacher rate.

Why are you not able to take a teacher role?

I'm guessing because work is slim. Schools have no money to pay for supply teachers unless there's absolutely no other choice 🤷🏼‍♀️

only if paid as a teacher. I do a little supply at the moment and have once showed up to be told I would be working as a TA for the day as they were short that day. I was paid as a teacher. It was in many ways more challenging than teaching and have a very valuable insight

I would be surprised- there are lots of united teacher vacancies

@NorthernDrizzle just my experience, I cannot remember the last time we had a supply teacher in my school. I'm primary and we have HLTAs that cover the lessons. It's honestly years since one has crossed the threshold! Pay for supply teachers is now rubbish. I'd did supply years ago and was a paid a decent wage, it's now all agency work and teachers get a small proportion.

Ha ha, I was about to reply that it already happens! The primary I used to work in had TAs teaching all the time (I believe they still do). When I first worked there the TAs that covered teachers got paid more when they did cover. By the time I left, the school had been taken over by a MAT and TAs were just expected to cover lessons on TA pay. TAs were even given classes of their own, not cover!

Some of my favourite teachers to work with were ones who had been TAs before being teachers. It made it so much easier that they understood what being a TA was like. I think most teachers (who haven't experienced it) would benefit from some time working as a TA during training.