Teacher sickness covered by a TA

[Dinnertime22]

The TA has covered the class for the last three days while the teacher has been off sick. Has this changed as I recall a cover teacher was normally drafted in? Is the common practice?

Get used to it. Schools have to cut corners wherever they can these days.

Well said @FyodorsFriend, I don’t have a degree but I do have A levels and an NVQ in supporting children in education plus my HLTA qualification. I know all of the children in my school as it is small and cover PPA from reception to year 6, without TA support. I have a lesson plan from the teacher but don’t teach English or maths though I could and have from their planning. I agree that I am a short term cover solution.

I have NEVER seen a HLTA who was not previously a very experienced TA and have proven capabilities in taking while groups/classes without a teacher. Not in the HT’s interest to appoint someone inexperienced.

*whole

In many schools unqualified teachers are teaching classes as they train to become teachers. Salaried routes into teaching are like that.

So is the PGCE in some areas. Trainees go in to schools not having been taught how to teach and learn through trial and error. Some are brilliant, some are terrible. Most are average.

I have NEVER seen a HLTA who was not previously a very experienced TA and have proven capabilities in taking while groups/classes without a teacher. Not in the HT’s interest to appoint someone inexperienced.

Well, I have seen it lots of times.

If a head can’t afford the cost of supply and they haven’t got any experienced TAs who are brilliant at taking classes...they have to use whoever they have.

Schools have no money! At least the TA knows them and is invested. There are some amazing TAs my DS TA last year did more day to day reading writing etc they know them best! Teachers are underpaid and overworked and TAs are not rewarded enough.
Prefer my DS TA taught him than a sub.

In terms of qualifications I have exactly the same as the teacher I work with, I agree that I am more invested in our children than a supply teacher and I know the routines and structure of our day better. But when I am asked to cover we are a person down, all the interventions and support groups I run are cancelled, the children who would normally get more support or challenge do not get that and from a purely selfish point of view I am not paid enough to do a teacher's job. If I wanted that I would use my own qualifications and apply for such a role. The whole situation just makes me very sad.

The only answer to this is more money. Teachers are human - they can’t help being ill, having to go to funerals etc etc. And at that point someone else has to teach the class. In an ideal world that would be a cover supervisor who knows the school and the children. But often that’s not possible.

I'm a teacher in an SEN school and I would much prefer my TAs covered my absence than a stranger / supply teacher. My TAs know my kids inside out and provided I give them my plans will just crack on as normal. It's pretty common place now to use TA cover as insurance doesn't kick in for quite a while

I think the day will come when there are very few qualified teachers within a school. A few higher paid teachers will prepare lessons for the entire school and they will be delivered by a much lower paid TA.
Surely the only thing stopping this is the unions, whose power is being eroded.

The lesson would have been planned by teacher, there are other teachers on site. The TA will know the children, know the standards the children are capable of and that the normal teacher requires.
And above all it saves the school money.

I think the day will come when there are very few qualified teachers within a school. A few higher paid teachers will prepare lessons for the entire school and they will be delivered by a much lower paid TA.

I remember saying about ten years ago that something like this would end up happening on the TES forum.

I bet it’ll be crap though!

I had to cover in ppa time last week and was told id have a normal free kept free to make up for it. It wasnt. So two covers in one week.

Our schools have been told they can't have a deficit budget next year. I am really scared for the future of the schools

Of course the Head could teach for a few days! I know Heads who do this and did it back in the good old Labour Government days! We had crap budgets then in a Tory shire! Posters here obviously were rolling in money for years when we had budgets slashed.

I would say Head or a good TA or HLTA is preferable to a random supply teacher who knows no one. Some schools have their own supply teachers. Some insurance policies don’t come into effect for 2 weeks. The insurance is way more expensive if it comes in after 3 days.

Dc are doing Christmas things right now. I would think a Ta for a few days wouldn’t make much difference to learning.

All heads should HAVE to teach regularly, in my opinion.

In the last school I taught at, there were never supply teachers employed and nor were TAs ever used for whole class teaching. Senior management covered all supply internally. It was brilliant as they had the authority, knowledge of the school systems and children, experience and it kept their practice current. A huge benefit was that when they devised policies etc they knew what teaching in that school was like. A lot of non teaching SLT are completely removed from the classroom as it's so long since they've actually taught!

It’s very good for non teaching SLT to do this! Completely agree. I can’t see why there is so much angst about using staff from within school. I know Deputy heads who don’t have a class so they step in. It’s a far better solution than an unknown supply teacher.

Some members of SLT in some schools don't teach, given the opportunity, or moan wholeheartedly when they do and have a pile of books to mark. 🙄

My Deputy Head took over my class after my first week of absence. She had them in the morning to teach the core subjects and then an HLTA took over in the afternoon.

Another issue with a TA covering is that they themselves do not then have a TA. So they have less support than the teacher they work with.

That’s even more reason for cover to be non teaching SLT. It’s a great way for SLT to get to know DC!

I taught in a special school and for short periods of absence it was infinitely preferable to have the lead TA in the class cover for the teacher. Our kids were incredibly complex, with entirely individual and detailed behaviour plans. The best teacher in the world wouldn't be preferable to a TA who knows those kids inside out through working with them every minute of every day. In fact a new teacher coming in for a day could ruin months of work with a child.

I have NEVER seen a HLTA who was not previously a very experienced TA and have proven capabilities in taking while groups/classes without a teacher. Not in the HT’s interest to appoint someone inexperienced
That's the norm in the school's I've worked with. Where schools have experienced TAs/HLTAs/Cover Supervisors it makes sense for the school to have the best internal cover capacity they can.
I'm always happy when our cover supervisors cover my lessons for a few days illness rather than supply. I know when our cover supervisors cover they'll set the work I've set, will use the seating plan (with photos), will manage behaviour reliably, will leave me detailed notes on the class, they know school systems and the students know I'll be asking after them. With supply some are excellent, but others are quite happy to be a body in a room, throw the work out and do sweet f all for an hour.

I've also seen situations where by Tom, Dick and Harry can be an HLTA, but given there's no requirement for the main class teacher to be qualified, have a relevant degree or even have experience in a relevant professional field I think people are naive if they think "HLTA = Bad and glorified finger painter who listens to reading / Teacher = always qualified and appropriately experienced". The reality is a bit more complex.

TA’s are not necessary though @TildaTurnip I have been teaching for 12 years and I have never had a TA.