[senco-forum] TA Training?

Hello Hazel
  I agree with you.  I think all TAs should have good training.  It has always bothered me (to put it mildly) that schools put those with the least training in educational matters to work with those with the most need!
  I put training as a high priority in my school.  We have in-house training for a whole day once a year.  All my TAs have literacy and numeracy qualifications at Level 2 now.  However, I really would like all my TAs to have specific TA qualificalifications.
  I am currently dealing with the practicalities of this, chiefly financial.  We simply cannot afford to pay nearly £600 per TA for the courses on offer in local colleges.  Plus my TAs work all day and I need to have them in school.  We can't afford for them to be in college for part of the day and, similarly, we can't afford to pay them for the time they take to do the course.  
  I'm currently investigating ways to deliver what I think our pupils need in the way of trained staff and my staff need to feel that they are professionally trained as well as doing a professional job.
  Amanda
  Secondary SENCO
  Cornwall

Hazed2 at aol.com wrote:

I have been reading the posts with interest!

After having a varied teaching career, including many years as a SENCO I now 
teach at the local college parttime...dare I say it...NVQ3 City and Guilds 
Teaching Assistants!

I hope that my students , I only accept "mature" people, i.e. those that 
have either some experience of life, families etc, are an asset to any school 
and also clearly know their role. The course is quite intensive with 6 hours a 
week in school and a weekly class and they have to produce a portfolio which 
looks at the school and curriculum etc in depth. I hope that I bring 
experience to the course and I think that this is the important part...that they are 
taught by teachers not just tutors in a college with other background 
experience.

I think it is necessary for ALL teaching assistants, whether they have been 
there for years or not, to achieve this qualification. If they have the 
experience then the course will prove a doddle !!As teacher sw ehave to improve 
and constantly train so why not the TAs?

This year I have over 60 students , some are actually PGCE students who have 
changed their mind, 2 are speech therapists ,others have backgrounds as 
volunteer mums , dental hygienists, bank clerks,long distance coach driver,ex- 
professional footballer (is this where they end up ???) etc etc ...what a wealth 
of expertise to go into schools!

I am thinking of holding a seminar to explain to local SENCOs etc the value 
of TAs training, that way it might help to alleviate many of the problems 
that we are all discussing here.

Hope this gives food for thought.

Hazel Edwards
Barrow-in-Furness

Amanda
Secondary SENCO
Cornwall