Is this normal behaviour? What should the school do..

[SarfEast1cated]

Am doing my PGCE and am currently dong a placement in a rather tough school. I am observing only but the CT has been away for the last two days so it's been me and a selection of TA's. It's been really stressful. Loads of erratic disruptive behavior, mostly spilling over from lunchtime fights between boys in the top two years.
I have no idea if fights at lunchtime are just normal behaviour at junior schools, but in my previous placement school there didn't seem to be any. In my DDs school there aren't any either. Here they are a daily occurrence.
Is it practical for a school to have a no hitting policy? How do most schools deal with it?
Have any of you worked in schools like this and managed to stop this, or is this just standard behaviour?

It is not standard behaviour and we would internally isolate for fighting. I would talk to your uni mentor.

Very relieved to hear that superram.

As a PGCE student, should you be covering classes on your own? The school are using you as free cover. Please talk to your uni mentor, it'd not ok for you to be covering an absence.

When I was on PGCE we could cover if a teacher was away, BUT only if there was a named person (usually deputy head or someone) who would take over if we couldn't manage.

You can't be left without a safety net, and as you're not employed or qualified you could decide you can't cope so it's in the school's best interests too. Contact your uni if you are worried, if you're only supposed to be observing, you're also losing that valuable opportunity if you're teaching instead.

Ah, Sorry that wasn't very clear, the school have higher level TAs who cover staff absences, so it was the HLTA and I that was in charge and I assisted. The behaviour is just as bad when the CT is there though, and I have been realising that I would hate to work in a school with that level of disruption and aggression. The class are described as 'difficult'. I would be really interested to know if other schools have so many lunchtime fights, and if not, how have they managed it!
The policy is for behaviour is that there are 3 warnings and then the child gets sent out. So days become a stream of comings and goings, with the boys just enjoying the change of scenery, and that drama that goes with it. The policy just doesn't seem to be working...