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Teaching on the cheap?

Half of teaching assistants at secondary level report covering up to two hours of lessons a week; 1 in 10 cover more than 11 hours. And many are not just covering but are teaching with little to no support. Joanna Parry explains
Image: Adobe Stock

“My role has become increasingly one of cover for absent teachers in my department. Last year about 50% of my time was spent doing this.”  Secondary higher level teaching assistant

“I have been given a teaching timetable. Some was to cover maternity leave, some to fill a gap where a teacher had left, and no one had been recruited to fill the space.” Secondary cover supervisor

“The pupils are missing out on the teaching they deserve. The pupils effectively suffer by not having access to qualified teachers. Their parents are completely unaware of the situation.” Secondary teaching assistant

 

Teaching assistants covering lessons for teachers is nothing new.

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