“You will no doubt be aware that the DfE plans for the status and professionalism of teaching assistants to be enshrined in a new set of standards established by an independent review. We welcome this news and agree with Schools Minister David Laws who said: ‘Good teaching assistants are essential to driving up standards in the classroom and helping students fulfil their full potential.’”
In March 2015, having produced a draft version, the review panel were asked to reflect on additional evidence and supporting materials (particularly the report published by the Education Endowment Foundation at the end of February), and to consider how the standards can be presented in a way that will best promote and support professional development.
The DfE website currently states quite simply:
‘This consultation was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government’.
So whilst no news is forthcoming, we are clearly not in a position to offer workshops or conferences to look at and explore changes. In the meantime, it is very much business as usual as we continue to receive strong numbers of applications for HLTA preparation and assessment across the country.
National Early Years Teacher Day is back on Wednesday, April 17th and it's a fantastic opportunity to shower our incredible Early Years Teachers with appreciation for the magic they bring to young lives.
We recognise the vital role Mentors play in the success of the Early Career Framework. To celebrate their dedication and contributions to the programme, we have launched 'Mentor of the Month'. This months winner is Mark Richards from the Marches School.
