Teachers and TAs!

[NeedYourOpinion]

Do you enjoy your job? Is it a massive mistake as a career move?

I was a TA for a few years when my kids were young. It was great because I got to spend the school holidays with them and didn’t have to worry about childcare.

I enjoyed the job mostly but some of the kids could be really badly behaved and that could be stressful.

Pay is crap for TA posts.

I left teaching in 2018. I did love my job for many years but it sucked me dry of all the energy and enthusiasm I once had. The relentless paperwork, assessment and demands on time are not really compatible with any kind of work/life balance.
I'm now working for myself as a private tutor and loving it.

Primary Teacher for 21 years, left 1.5 years ago. Best decision I ever made for both myself and my own family. Teaching nowadays is truly horrific and completely relentless

There are a lot of variables that might make a difference. The age, stage and subject of secondary affect workload and enjoyment.

I’ve been teaching over 20 years and still relatively enjoy it. I also have extra responsibility so more free periods (but lots of extra workload). I wouldn’t like to go back to a full time teacher timetable. I’m hoping to be able to continue to do this until I can drop a day or two towards my late 50s (I’m currently early to mid 50s). That said, I think I am fortunate in the school I work in. We’re not an academy and I hear horror stories from colleagues who’ve come to us from an academy.

Wow these replies aren’t very positive! So it’s isn’t a great career option then?!
@BestBefore2000 what do you do now?

You only need to look at the sheer number of members of groups like “life after teaching” on Facebook to get your answer. It’s shit. However, i guess it works for some people. If you’re considering it, could you arrange some work experience? Though nothing prepares you for the amount of work and stress that goes on behind the scenes of the classroom.

And I think TAs are increasingly being asked to do more and more, still for very little pay.

I love it. Secondary teacher in.a small.private school. I'd also say it's one of the few guaranteed ways for graduates to get a decent job with career progression and relative security right now. Two.of my young colleagues are buying their first homes, on their own at 24/25. We're not in the SE which helps but how many other young grads can do that at the moment.

Its hugely school dependent, management, colleagues, demographic of kids etc but it can be amazing. I had a great day yesterday..6 lessons, all stuff I've taught dozens of times so no.real prep beyond some photocopying, lovely kids, interesting conversations and questions..all good.

I have been teaching for 12 years in a secondary school and love it!

I teach an 80% timetable though as otherwise it would eat too much into family life.

It’s a lot.

The main stressor is (some) parents, so TAs are relatively protected from that.

(Edit: secondary SENDCo so much more parental contact and less teaching, perhaps).

In primary you don’t get to teach what you’ve already taught, well not without rewriting the plan to adapt to your current class. That’s only my experience, though!

I'm finding it sustainable but then again I'm in a very specific situation with my subject. For almost everyone no, it's not a realistic career choice.

I do love my job, but you need to find the right school. I’m a secondary teacher. I have worked in some very difficult schools before. I’m very lucky to have landed in a school with good behaviour overall and nice pupils.

However, I also upped my hours to full time this year, and that I do not love. I’m constantly exhausted. I wish I was part time again!

I was a TA for several years. I had the TA qualifications achieved over several years whilst working as a Nursery Nurse. I worked mostly with SEN pupils but was increasingly expected to do cover for teachers (without any extra pay). I was getting poor feedback as some children I supported were not improving fast enough in their learning. These were children with severe learning difficulties who were never going to meaningfully progress.
I had chairs thrown at me, was kicked and spat at. For not much more than minimum wage. And in Spring term had the anxious wait to find out if my contract would be renewed for the following year.
I left to work in Early Years in a private school. After that I was a Support Worker for adults with learning difficulties in Supported Housing. Although still minimum wage it was the job that I enjoyed most and I did that until I retired aged 61.

I'm a TA and I love it. I do think you have to be in a school where you agree with how the school is run. I had a job in one particular school for a year that I didn't love, largely because I felt the behaviour management was lacking consequences and was ineffective which I found really frustrating as it wasn't within my control to change it. Now I'm back in a school where behaviour is managed well I'm back to loving my job again.

I had a great day yesterday..6 lessons, all stuff I've taught dozens of times so no.real prep beyond some photocopying, lovely kids, interesting conversations and questions..all good.

Assessment of pupils to inform next steps? Gaps in learning? Adaptive teaching?

(cannot be just a few work sheets!)

Or are you teasing….

I love it most of the time - head of department.
everyone has off times, it goes up and down.

you need to talk to someone about how it really works in practice

I work in a non-teaching role in a school. The teachers I work with who care and do their job well work and ridiculous amount of hours. They are in school at least 8-5 and work several hours more at home most nights, at least one day at the weekend and also tend to come in during the holidays. That isn’t everyone, but it absolutely is not the hours people say it is. Behaviour and SEN needs are often extreme and expectations are high. The hardest bit is the demands of the parents.

TAs are working incredibly hard for terrible money. You would usually be a 1:1, dealing with very challenging behaviour and not being well rewarded for your efforts.

if you are lucky enough to be in a great school and have good colleagues, maybe it’s worth it. I’m not so sure though. Go in with your eyes open.

I'm a TA in a junior school. I'm currently in a year 5 class. On the whole, it's pretty satisfying.

However...

the pay is dreadful and we are expected to do more and more for less and less.

there's no induction as such. And you are very much a commodity. You might find yourself starting your new TA job on the Monday, receive zero induction and then be covering the class in the teacher's absence by Wednesday.

as more schools are "onboarded" by academies, everything becomes more corporate and restrictive and you may find yourself using nonsense words like "onboarded"!

behaviour is getting ridiculous and it's frustrating when you've just been sworn at by a child and you see them living their best life, ankle deep in Lego in the head's office.

The plus points are that there are so many absolutely wonderful children who want to learn and if experience a "lightbulb moment", you will be on a high for hours. You will end up with a box full of drawings, notes, craft projects and cards from the children that will bring you so much joy. Not a day goes by without a child making me laugh and you may very well be an important constant in the life of child you desperately needs you.

I have been a TA and and LSA, primary and secondary school. For me, the primary TA job was not enjoyable. I think that was more to do with the teacher I worked with and the school on general than the job itself. I wouldn't be against doing something similar again, but maybe in early years. I was a Y6 TA and found it a challenging age to work with!

I really enjoyed being a secondary school LSA, but I was in an amazing school with generally brilliant behaviour. I was mainly with bottom set but even then it was not too bad. My only criticism of that job and the reason I left was that it could get a little boring and the pay was terrible.

I am now non-teaching staff in a different secondary school, but I work in an office. I love it. Still get to interact with some of the kids but not as intense as I am not asking them to do something diabolical like...working...in lessons 😨.

If you really like working with young people and care about them, I do think it can be a good career move. Despite what a lot of people say elsewhere, the teachers I work with now mainly say they love their jobs.

I'm a teacher at a big comprehensive school, and absolutely love it. Been teaching for 5 years now, wouldn't do anything else. It comes down to having the right school, I think. Mine is rough as hell, but I get on with everyone I work with and the kids are mostly amazing.

@NeedYourOpinion I'm now an EOTAS Tutor (education other than at school). I 1-1 f2f in homes and care homes; all of my learners have an EHCP and cannot currently access an educational setting.
Being a teacher just wasn't working with a 4 yo of my own. I left at 7 am to get in and left school at just gone 5, but then of course work to in the evenings at at weekends. Couldn't attend any of my own daughter's events at school course. Apart from the school holidays, I would say teaching (especially primary) is one of the least own child-friendly jobs you can have.
I love my job now but it's incredibly challenging financially as no pay at all school holidays and no sick pay. I'm not sure it's going to be financially viable for that reason in the long-term, but for now I am absolutely loving what I do.
Re TAs. The pay is appalling for what they do. They genuinely are invaluable but incredibly put upon and often expected now to teach small groups etc. Obviously it's not full-time hours so a ft minimum wage job pays more.

Been teaching for over 20 years; having had various responsibilities, I now cope with tge job of teaching by doing it part-time with no extra responsibilities. Since I am a very much shortage subject, I can get a job anywhere so I don't kill myself anymore. School appreciates my expertise. I would say don't be a primary school TA - they have to teach lessons which at least secondary ones don't have to do that!

Worst move I ever made and I ignored people who advised me not to. Do not do it.