ABSTRACT
All teaching assistants, whether they are foreign language assistants or are employed to help pupils with special needs, need to be managed well and their role must be clear. This chapter looks at their work in relation to: helping with the care and support of individual pupils; helping with the care and support of a group of pupils; supporting learning activities; and assisting with classroom resources and records. Support staff may be called by different names in different authorities. They may be called teaching assistants (TAs), special support assistants, pupil assistants, statement support assistants or learning support assistants (LSAs). Their role is to help teachers and to work with other professionals such as speech and language therapists and parents to support children's learning. TAs may be employed to assist with paperwork, filing and resource management, and consequently reduce teacher workloads. Communication is vital for harmonious working relationships in any department but there are particular issues within the MFL department.
