I am hoping there is someone out there who can give me some advice. I have been working as a TA in a secondary school for nearly 5 years, full time (that is, the maximum hours you can do as a TA is 30 p/w during term time only). I earn around £7.05 an hour, and as is common knowledge, our salaries are frozen for the foreseeable future. When I began working here, I said to myself that I would stick it out for at least 5 years, because my past work history has been quite patchy, with lots of different unskilled work, and some TEFL abroad, I wanted to prove that I could stay in one place for longer than 2 years.
I love my job, it is interesting, challenging and fulfilling. It has also fitted in really well with my other roles; as a LP to an amazing lovely DS (7), and also part time Open University student. I am currently in my 4th year of 6, working my way to a BA (Hons) Modern Language studies (Spanish and French).
My Query is twofold. Firstly, our SENCO retired at Christmas. She was a very strong scary character, quite militant in the union, champion of SEN inclusion and TAs in general. We always felt like we had our backs covered. She built up a very strong and large department (in numbers, there are more of us than the science department), which consistently rates much higher in OFSTED reports than nearly all of the other departments. Our school is well known to be inclusive and parents of SEN children, particularly Downs Syndrome, often go out of their way to have their kids here. In a rural environment, where schools are far apart, it takes a lot of effort to sent kids out of catchment. Until now, we have felt protected from the general fall out of the recession and cuts. Unfortunately, there are rumours afoot of imminent changes, and the general atmosphere at school is tense to say the least. We are worried that our department is vulnerable at the moment to some severe cuts and managerial politics.
I am considering looking for another job to start in September, that perhaps pays a bit more. Any ideas of the kind of sector I should be looking at with my set of skills?
Initially, my plan was to get the degree, and apply for a PGCE to become a language teacher. However, my experience of the state run school system, and the lack of respect afforded to the teaching profession by parents, children and successive governments, I have been put off. I no longer feel cut out to cope with the general attitude of a minority of unteachable, disruptive and disengaged students who can make the class atmosphere unbearable. In my role as a TA, I can be friendly and get on with a lot of difficult youngsters, but as a teacher I would not cope with the constant interruption, rudeness and general refusal to work. It has taken me a long time to voice these feelings, because I really loved working as an English Teacher in the past, and I also love working with the majority of well-behaved, fun loving and polite young people, of all abilities. My sole aim for a long time was to become a fully fledged teacher.
So, now I have come to this conclusion, I don't know what to do. I want to get my degree, whatever, but what sort of jobs could I apply for when I graduate?