As a SEN Teaching Assistant recruitment agency in London we see first-hand the integral part teaching assistants play in delivering SEN support in primary and secondary schools. It is surprising therefore the little mention they received in the recently published review of SEN support. Here we have a look at how Teaching Assistants should be at the heart of reforms if SEN support is to be improved across the system
How Are Teaching Assistants Used in schools?
As a Teaching Assistant Jobs agency, the majority of positions we fill are placing experienced SEN Assistants into roles to work 1:1 with children with additional needs, usually as part of an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). Increasingly the role of general classroom assistant has become rarer, as have requests for teaching assistants to work with groups of children on SEN support.
This is consistent with research over the last 2 decades starting with the DISS project in 2005/2006 , which suggests a trend towards deployment of teaching assistants to support pupils with EHCPs at the expense of those on SEN Support.
In response to this, the review of SEN support suggests a move away from the current system where it is necessary for parents to get an EHCP in order to get the support their child needs. They envisage that the reforms will result in the needs of more children and young people being met through “ordinarily available provision” without the need to obtain an EHCP.
This sounds a sensible way forward, although there is no mention as to whether the role of teaching assistants will change in line with this, which is remarkable considering teaching assistant hours make up a large part of EHCPs and they are often responsible for delivering most of the support on the plan.
Is 1:1 a good idea?
From our experience of successful placements as a SEN Teaching Assistant recruitment agency, we would say that if the right person is deployed and there is good communication between the teaching assistant, class teacher, SENCO and parents then absolutely 1:1 will have a very positive impact.
We have seen that inclusion can be effective but only where the level of differentiation is not too wide. Teaching Assistants have not been trained how to teach, so it is not surprising that research suggests that too much time spent 1:1 with a teaching assistant has a negative effect on a child’s learning compared to the progress of children with similar needs who have not been taken away from the class teacher.
The guidance from Making Best Use of TAs warns of the separation effect, whereby the Teaching Assistant becomes the primary educator for the child at the expense of time spent with the teacher, who is qualified and trained in how teaching and learning works.
1:1 is most effective where the level of differentiation can be bridged by the Teaching Assistant without having to take the child away from the lesson.
What needs to change?
Part of the problem with the current system is that teachers are not given a lot of training about how to work with SEN pupils or how to work with teaching assistants, which perhaps should have changed alongside the push for inclusion of SEN pupils in mainstream provision.
We have found that teachers who are confident teaching SEN children and deploying teaching assistants effectively have developed these skills naturally rather than through any training they have received. Generally these teachers have an interest in SEN teaching and often seek a career change in that direction.
But the vast majority of teachers are not prepared for teaching a cohort of SEN children in their class and instructing a team of teaching assistants; this was not part of their teacher training or CPD.
Coupled with this, there is vast inconsistency as to how SEN teaching assistants are recruited to deliver the support, which would also help explain why the impact of 1:1 teaching assistants is so varied.
Where Teaching Assistants are deployed into 1:1 roles with no training and no proper instruction, the DISS project found that often the focus is on task completion. Pupils are not given sufficient time to consider the problems and develop their understanding, rather they are spoon fed the answers.
The impact of teaching assistants can be optimised if firstly the person recruited for the job is experienced and skilled in SEN support work and secondly time is put aside each day for the teachers to discuss with the teaching assistant about the lesson objectives.
Why schools should use a SEN Teaching Assistant Recruitment Agency?
When recruiting for SEN support roles, some schools look to train up existing staff, others recruit university graduates with good academic background but little or no experience and others instruct a SEN Teaching Assistant Recruitment Agency.
Worryingly the DISS project evidenced that Teaching Assistants were often introduced into SEN roles with no prior training or preparation. Whilst there are no entry qualifications for teaching assistant roles, we have found that schools often consider a university degree as sufficient academic background to be deployed into SEN 1:1 roles without any further training.
The upshot is that many vulnerable children and young people are receiving 1:1 support from teaching assistants who are not prepared or trained in how to deliver that support.
Where schools use a specialist SEN Teaching Assistant Recruitment Agency like Key Skills Education, they gain access to a large pool of experienced SEN professionals who already have the training to work with children and young people with complex learning difficulties.
Experienced Teaching Assistants can bring to the role techniques and strategies that they have developed in previous roles. They know when to use their own initiative and when to seek instruction from the teacher or SENCO. They are also experienced in working with the multi-agencies available to the school. The prior experience and training maximises the impact that the Teaching Assistant can have with immediate effect.
Summary
There is evidence to suggest that teaching assistants are doing a great job in schools reducing workload for teachers and making it easier to teach the class by supporting children with additional needs.
However, in many schools the deployment of teaching assistants into 1:1 roles is not improving the outcomes of the most vulnerable pupils.
If this is to be improved, schools need to look at a minimum standard of experience and training required for teaching assistants to work 1:1 with SEN pupils and there needs to be some structure as to how teaching assistants work with the class teacher and SENCO to deliver the support.
