what are the rules on TA covering classes - regular, one afternoon a week

[pecans]

My dd's class is taken by a TA for one afternoon a week. I like the TA but when I told my mum (ex-head) she thought that was appalling because the dc weren't being taught.

Are schools allowed to use a TA to cover PPA time?

I am HLTA and I cover ppa and cover whenever ct is off. At my school it is up to the ct to decide if they want to plan for ppa most choose to do this as they know the continuity of the week will be followed.

I'm supply teaching at the moment, I'm not useless, honestly

I do planning and assessment and marking and I get to know the children quite well, quite quickly - I don't care any less about them because I'm a supply teacher.

The TAs at the school I do most of my work in are excellent. All of them. No class would suffer from spending an afternoon in their care, in cooperation with the class teacher whose PPA they were covering.

Strangely bigoted and ill-founded views some people have!

Exactly Greensleeves-you are only asked to do regular PPA cover if you are good! The supply teachers that I have worked with are very experienced and have worked in the same schools for years and know all the children.

Yes; on what evidence does she say that they are not being taught? Sounds a bit outmoded as a view.

The teachers who cover PPA in my school previously taught there and left when they had families etc so know the school, staff and children very well.

Yes; on what evidence does she say that they are not being taught? Sounds a bit outmoded as a view.

My mum thinks that the TA and the teacher are very different when it comes to taking a class, I think - that a teacher's lessons are targeted and much more valuable than a TA's.

It may be an outmoded view - she is retired - but she was incredibly successful and much-admired as a head. And now that she has said that, i do find myself wondering whether dd learns anything during the TA's afternoon. The TA is definitely not an ex-teacher - she was a full-time mum who has taken up a TA job quite late in life.

Mrz's description of ex-teachers covering PPA sounds perfect - and does make me feel that dd's experience might not be very good.

Is every afternoon in school valuable or does a weekly afternoon of downtime not matter in the grand scheme of things?

It really depends what the /tA is doing when she covers

I spent a period of time planning for a TA to cover my PPA until I chucked my toys out of the pram and told the Head it was more hassle than it was worth and I'd rather ditch the PPA altogether and teach the blardy lesson myself. Would have been quicker and easier and more effective.

It made the HT realise she was actually breaking the law, and she then changed the provision and I got "proper" release time.

I think that you are missing the point with the term 'supply teachers'. I was a supply teacher and I did the cover in the same school, every week for two years paid on supply rates. No one is suggesting that you phone up and book an unknown supply teacher for cover on the day! I would agree with clam- it defeats the object if you have to do the planning yourself- much easier to actually teach it yourself.
People will insist on talking about supply teachers in such disparaging terms! Often they know the children better than the regular teachers- when I was doing it I had known, and taught, the year 6 children since they were in Reception. All the supply teachers that I worked with were mature, highly experienced teachers who were regulars in the same schools. They just didn't want full time work. I didn't work for an agency and I only worked for a few schools- that was the norm where I was doing it and the schools only used an agency as a last resort, once they had phoned through all their list of regulars.

pecans you said that your DD doesn't like the afternoon that the TA teaches. Have you asked her why?
DS1 has a HLTA cover PPA. Her lessons are Religious Studies and Spanish. DS hates Religious Studies - but not the HLTA.
Could it be that it is the lesson topic and not the TA that your DD doesn't like?
In our school, the TAs have a minimum NVQ3 - regardless as to whether they are "full-time mum who has taken up a TA job quite late in life."
Many of our TAs have had amazing careers before hand and can add their experiences to the mix. Ultimately though, it is their ability in school that counts.
In my mum's time at school, TAs needed no more than basic qualifications, so perhaps your mum too has more recollections from this time?

She doesn't like the afternoon because she says the TA is strict and it isn't much fun. She isn't strict I don't think - she's just lovely at breakfast club - but there are quite a few rowdy boys and I would imagine she is extra-firm in order to keep them in line... which also makes me think that maybe dd doesn't learn much in these afternoons and that maybe she is finding that frustrating.

And I'm absolutely not disparaging her as a TA - I am wondering whether she has the skills to stand in for a teacher, and whether the school should be deploying like that.

Good point about the more basics qualifications in the old days - but I guess my mum wouldn't see an NVQ as equivalent to full-on teaching training anyway.

I guess there is nothing I can do about it anyway - but was just interested in whether it was allowed or advisable. Am still not sure, but there have been some interesting comments here.

Probably the TA is being pressurised to do it-I don't think they ought to for the pay.

I don't think a TA or a teacher being strict should be an issue. There are huge differences between different teachers, not just between TAs and teachers, when it comes to how strict a teacher/TA is. So long as she/he is being fair and consistent, a bit of strictness shouldn't be a problem. I am probably more strict than some of the teachers/TAs I work with. However others will also be more strict than me.

I teach ICT for 2 of the classes I do PPA for. I plan all the ICT for y2. I deliver it and assess it for 2 of the 3 classes. In the other Y2 class I teach RE - this has been planned by a different teacher. We share planning between the teaching staff. I also do a half session of RE for one fo the first two classes in my time. In foundation stage I follow rough plans that the class teacher leaves as she finds that most useful because of the way our foundation stage works. They are not full detailed plans - just a list of routines for the afternoon, plus a some numeracy ideas and a focus activity. This is HLTA work in my school. I get PPA time for this.

I also, along with our other TAs, plan for, deliver and assess a phonics group every day. That is TA level 3 work in my school. There is no official planning time allocated for this though. We do have plans to follow but we need to decide what resources, which sounds, etc. to do.

And I plan, deliver and assess an early morning group which is a group focusing on lower middle abilities literacy skills - and both child and parent attends. This happens 3 days a week, and runs for just under a year. I get paid TA level 3 for this, although get no planning time as such for this.

I am a level 3 TA and have cover PPA cover every week. I also have to print and make the resources that go with the lesson. I get no extra money to do this. It is simply in my job description.

Miamacel, why did you feel the need to respond to a 10-year-old thread to share this information?

LetItGoToRuin, I've seen lots of revived random zombie thread this morning. I think someone is bored.

I didn’t realise it was 10 year old. This is the first time I have used this site. I’m a new mum and was looking for support, as I’m due to go back soon. I guess this isn’t the site it thought it was

Miamacel, If you need specific advice, I think it's better to start your own thread. While it's nice and helpful to read old threads, people posting there must have moved on. And a lot things must have changed since years ago.
Primary education is a great place for support, as well as other boards.

Its a bone of contention at our state primary. The HT teaches part time and 4 afternoons a week the class is taught by a TA who also happens to be the chair of governors' wife...

Thank you for this more helpful reply. Just to clarify. I typed my question in google and this thread came up, didn’t think to check the date. Like I said I’m new to this. Not a bored zombie 😂

Apologies, @Miamacel. Just an unfortunate coincidence, there's a thread going on about people reviving random zombie threads on site stuff atm.

Did you have a question Miamacel?

Well my question to Google was: Should Level3 TAs be used to cover timetabled PPA sessions?

@Miamacel

Well my question to Google was: Should Level3 TAs be used to cover timetabled PPA sessions?

My head has virtually new TAs (I doubt they have any qualifications at all) covering PPA. The budget is so crap, that’s all it will fund. Some schools nearby finish at midday on a Friday to allow PPA to go ahead then as it’s the only way they can afford it.