Secondary school teachers advice please

[Sws79]

My son has not made any progress in maths since he started in year 7, he's now year 9 and still working at the same level 4b. I've just discovered he's being taught by a teaching assistant for his year 10 gave year. Is this normal/acceptable. Can someone less than a teacher take GCSE maths? Feels like they've written him off

No, it's not acceptable that your DS doesn't have a qualified maths teacher for Y10, definitely not that they are not a qualified teacher at all. Are you sure it's a TA and not a maths teacher who has been working as a TA but will be paid as a teacher for those classes?

That said, there aren't enough maths teachers in the country to go around so it's possible. Youcould ask the school what they are putting in place to lessen the impact, e.g. catch-up tutoring.

As for the level 4b, it's unclear what this refers to. Is that a target, or a 'working at' level (if a target this could well stay the same). How has it been arrived at? Do they expect him to pass maths?

It depends what 4b means. Unlikely he was working at that level in year 7, so I expect that 4b was his reduction in year 7, and he must have made the corresponding progress for that still to be his prediction in year 9

As to being taught by a TA, that in itself means nothing. The TA could be a qualified teacher, could have higher maths qualifications than the teacher, could be giving additional support alongside the teacher, could be delivering the specification planned and overseen by the teacher, or all of the above.

either way, as a PP has said, the country has run out of maths teachers, so there won’t be much the school can do about it. Typically, vacancies for maths or science teachers attract exactly 0 applicants.

• prediction, not reduction! Sorry. Auto correct

there aren't enough maths teachers in the country to go around so it's possible
As noblegiraffe says, it's entirely possible that this is the case. Even maintained schools can decide that someone without QTS is suitable to teach classes on their own. It's not right, but it's certainly possible.

I’ve worked in many schools (inc a lot of outstanding ones) and it’s been normal to have an unqualified teach cover some classes- sometimes they will be allocated to a certain class. I don’t agree this is right but it does happen.

Agree with others that he has made progress- otherwise he would be at 2 or 3. Is he predicted similar grades in other subjects?

Does the 4b refer to old NC levels, or does it refer to GCSE grade four? If it’s the latter, then it would have been a target in year seven, and he is still on target for that.
As for a TA teaching, no that’s not really ok.

Are you sure he’ll be taught by a TA the whole time? At my school there is specialist HLTA who does small group intervention classes for some lessons. She’s excellent, so if this is the case it could be good thing.

Should say it's Wales, I'm not really sure about the levels, but it's the same level expected of year 6. He achieved 4b at end of year 7 and is still achieving 4b in year 9. The TA is his exclusive teacher, although it is a small class, and was last year also. I thought it would have changed for year 10

I think you need to contact the school and ask

Why he hasn’t made any progress in 3 years?

What do the school plan to do about it?

Is he expected to pass his GCSEs?

And why doesn’t he have a qualified teacher?

All entirely reasonable questions.

Maybe ask for a meeting with the head of maths.