Tuesday, December 11, 2007

In England, teachers are replaced by unqualifed teaching assistants

As Supply Teachers are being replaced by Teaching Assistants to save money, are they doomed to the scrap heap? TES Reader Michael LeFevre asks if schools are ripping off staff and forcing resignations. Source: TES.


Coming back to a new half term after being out of work for a few weeks, I was looking forward to returning the classroom. The second week started and none of the agencies I am signed up with have come to me with any work; so I did the logical thing and contacted the agencies letting them know I was still alive and eager for work, but what I was told threw me.

Thanks to new legislation, schools are now allowed to use Higher Level Teaching Assistants (HTLA) as supply cover for up to two days. As a result, there was very little supply work available for qualified supply teachers, as schools could now use the cheaper option. I was offered work as a Teaching Assistant and after an entire summer of not working, anything was better than nothing, so I took it.

When I got to the school, all the staff knew straight away that I was a qualified teacher. One of the staff told me the head was in her element as she got a qualified teacher at an assistant’s rate. I got on well at the school. The children and the staff were brilliant. However, one day when the class teacher was out, I thought this would be my chance. Since I was qualified, the teaching assistants looked to me to plan and lead the lessons for the day.


"With schools always looking to save money wherever possible, the cheaper option of using non-qualified staff as supply cover will always seem more attractive and, better yet for schools, is when they get the double bonus of having qualified teachers working at the TA’s rate as supply teachers become more and more desperate for supply work."

While I hoped to get the full teacher’s rate, I was informed that the assistants run the class when the teacher isn’t there and I was still there as a TA and would be paid that rate. I still lead the teaching that day, as I was eager to show what I could do as a teacher.

The rest of the half term was spent working as a TA, save for the very last two days where I finally got work as a qualified teacher. The agencies all say that they are getting fewer calls from schools as many schools use the HTLAs to cover teachers’ absences. One agency has said that even the schools that used to throw a lot of business their way have been very quiet on the business front.

In light of everything, the major question is, does this mean the end of supply teaching? With schools always looking to save money wherever possible, the cheaper option of using non-qualified staff as supply cover will always seem more attractive and, better yet for schools, is when they get the double bonus of having qualified teachers working at the TA’s rate as supply teachers become more and more desperate for supply work.

This is not fair to pupils or supply teachers. However, the worst result will be supply teachers giving up and leaving the profession altogether.

It is easy to say that supply teachers should just get “proper” jobs, but speaking from first hand experience, there aren’t many jobs out there and supply teaching has been my only alternative to unemployment.

Therefore, something needs be done, either by the unions or supply teachers themselves to ensure that supply teachers do not become consigned to the teaching scrap heap.