TA to Teacher?

[TAmum3]

I’ve been a TA for 7yrs since DS started primary school. He’s now in Y7. DD is in Y5.
Before this, I did a handful of random jobs from office work to hospitality.

Money has become quite tight - DH and I are no longer entitled to any benefits help, as we are just over the threshold. I earn £13,000 pa.

At a time where a lot of my colleagues are striking over pay, work conditions etc, I’m wondering if it’s worth putting some effort in to getting my degree and doing my teacher training?

DH thinks as the DC are getting older, now is the time to get out and find a career that can bring in some more money, and that getting in to a huge amount of debt for a degree is silly, however all I know (and am good at) is working with children!

Although teachers aren’t on huge amounts, it would be at least double what I’m on now. I also don’t feel DC are old enough to be left alone in school holidays so would then need to factor in childcare…

Am I mad to want to become a teacher? What other options are out there?! TIA

I am a teacher. It is not easy at the moment but lots of jobs are difficult so that shouldn't stop you. You also know what the job involves because you already work in a school. I think though I would look at the pay scale and think about what you would be earning for the first five years or so versus how much the job would require of you. It may be school holiday friendly but it is also not family friendly in term time.

I understand that your children are a bit older now, however if you are looking for any kind of sensible work/life balance I'd recommend looking elsewhere. Yes - the holidays are good however not really all that enjoyable when you are frazzled the rest of the year.

I did it for 17 years and am so glad I left - I'd NEVER recommend teaching to anyone.

I'm.a teacher. Been teaching 28 years. I don't have children. I don't think it is a job that fits in with family life. Things will change at home as you will have to work much longer hours than you have to now. It might be too much of a compromise. If your husband has the easier job and sorts most of life admin and parenting then it might be ok,but if you plan to do this it will be too much in my opinion. I like my job,the nonsense admin is a pain,but essentially I don't want to work so hard.

Long term getting into teaching may work well for you but if you don't have a degree at all that's 3 years of uni with an even lower income before you qualify as a minimum. By that time your DS will be in year 10 and your DD will be y7 right? So how much longer will you need the holidays for at that point?

Don't get me wrong if you want to be a teacher you should but don't just do it for the holidays because a) you'll be unlikely to qualify anyway and b) the benefits of the holidays won't be needed as much by the time you qualify.

The debt isn't a big deal though, for the first few years of teaching it will be only very small deductions from your pay. The pension deductions are the real killer so unless you opt out of that, your take home pay as a teacher will be less than you think.

Btw holiday childcare is not just your responsibility - perhaps your DH would be more supportive if you told him in another job he'd have to split holiday childcare with you?

I’m a teacher. And have 2 children, 4 and 2. It’s slightly different because I’ve been teaching for 10+ years, but I don’t think it’s a terrible idea. It will be hard for the training year and another 1-2 years after that. But there are still schools where you can have a reasonable work life balance (in secondary at least, I don’t know about primary). My kids are in childcare until 5, I maybe work 1 evening a week, don’t work weekends and work a bit in the holidays. I love being a teacher.

The pay is better. The work life balance is far, far worse.

Find another career but not teaching.

Could you reduce your hours to lower your income and then get back your entitlement to benefits again?

Allowing you to pursue a part time course in something that may lead to better pay in future?

Not sure how these things work but teaching doesn’t seem to be an easy life. You’re expected to work on etc. The pay doesn’t reflect these long hours.

Thanks all! Teaching definitely doesn’t seem an easy option (and as much as my teaching colleagues all say I’d be a brilliant teacher, they also think I’m mad to want to get in to it!).
Unfortunately, DH doesn’t do any kids/ home/ life stuff bar cooking our dinner occasionally as he has his own company which is quite demanding. So this all falls to me, and will continue to for the foreseeable.
I just don’t see myself working in an office or similar, with actual adults 😂. I love working with kids, if only it was a better paid vocation 😞

Will the school support you to train and specialise eg in ADHD or similar? I know someone who did this ie did all sorts of training, specialised and got a couple of years experience under her belt before going to work for a private practice supporting parents of ND children. She earns a lot more now and has more flexibility in her life.

I was ready to say go for it. The pay is shit but that applies to lots of jobs, the actual teaching is brilliant. There are a few of us TA turned teachers at my school and it’s a good place to come from, you sort of know what you’re getting yourself in for and you clearly can work with kids.
The work-load is the killer, I wouldn’t be able to do my job properly if my husband didn’t do the bulk of the pick ups/cooking/running around to clubs. That’s the bit you need to figure out.

I’ve just left - doubled my salary and can ‘buy back’ 4 weeks holiday - so I get 5 weeks and 10 bank holidays and can buy 4 weeks - so not far off on holidays -

Worth considering a change of career - wish I’d done it years ago.

I'd say go for it too.
You have been working in school for long enough to know the reality, so if you still want to do it, go for it.

Do you already have a degree though? As otherwise it will be a long haul. (Still worth it though)

It sounds like you have a calling to be a teacher, and good for you. I would look into and speak to some teacher training providers. There are a number of routes into it. Do you have a degree already? I've had friends who've become a teacher through on the job training which was paid. Also, my husband is a head teacher at a special school, from what I've seen his staff are encouraged to have a better work life balance than in many main stream schools, so maybe another area to look at.

I've done both - please be aware, many people earn LESS per hour as a teacher than as a TA - if you have time and space to look around, definitely go for something better paid - my graduate children are walking into jobs better paid than me, after 30 years teaching

Would you have any interest in occupational therapy or speach and language therapy and focussing on children? You still need a degree.

Obviously, you would earn far more as a teacher but, if you don't have a degree, you would be looking at 3 years on a much lower income, running up debt, before qualifying and earning more. There are paid, school based routes in, but you generally need a degree already.

Could you discuss things with SLT at your current school? Perhaps they could pay for you to train as a HLTA and pay you as an unqualified teacher to cover PPA? Or develop a specialism in SEN or ELSA? If you work in Early Years, there are more flexible routes to teaching that age, I think.

Actually, I've just checked & Edge Hill University still has a part-time BA QTS course that you can do alongside working as a TA. I don't know whereabouts you are but other unis may offer it too. Could be an option?

In terms of an alternative - have you considered jobs in Children’s Services? E.g. an Attendance Intervention Officer / Family Support Worker / Intensive Worker?