It's official - TAs' main job is teaching

Teaching assistants' main job is teaching children rather than assisting teachers, says a major government study.
And children get six times more direct attention from TAs than from teachers.
Classroom based support staff are in a "direct pedagogical role" for much of the time, supporting and interacting with pupils. They spend more time doing this than assisting teachers, or the school, say the researchers from London's Institute of Education.
With teachers, pupils were most often one of a crowd, in "audience mode"as they listened to the teacher talking. But with teaching assistants they were six times more likely to be the focus of attention, with more active and sustained interactions. The amount of individual attention children get from TAs varies with their level of need, but they all received more from TAs than teachers.
Teaching assistants in primary schools work mostly with groups of children, while secondary TAs were more likely to work one to one with pupils.
The research confirmed that more and more TAs are working unpaid overtime. They were "coping with work in excess of their paid time as they became more drawn into lesson planning, preparation and feedback."
The growth in TAs' teaching role was happening in individual schools mainly for practical rather than deliberate educational reasons.
Although many were positive about their jobs, these new responsibilities were often not matched with better pay, more paid hours, inclusion in meetings and decision making, or opportunities for training, say the researchers.
Deployment and Impact of Support Staff in Schools and the Impact of the National Agreement (Strand 2 , wave 1)

Eyesight link to reading difficulties

One child in every classroom may experience difficulty reading due to an undiagnosed eye condition, research has suggested.

The little-detected condition is known as ‘visual stress’.

Children with the condition are sensitive to light, and words on a page would appear to them as blurry.

Although conventional eye tests would not detect the condition, it can be easily corrected with tinted contact glasses, or by placing transparent coloured sheets of plastic over the text.

Around 800 children aged seven and eight were involved in the research project carried out by Professor Arnold Wilkins at the University of Essex.

Watching bullying "is fun"

Four out of ten children say that if they saw another child being bullied they would stay and watch, according to a survey by led by Children’s Rights Director for England, Roger Morgan.

Another three out ten children said they would film it on their mobile phone, and two out of ten said they would encourage the bullies to carry on.

Fun and excitement was the reason most often given for watching bullying, with around half that number saying they were too scared to do anything about it.

Cyberbullying had also affected a significant number of children.

Four out of ten children said they had experienced cyberbullying through their mobiles, emails, or on social networking sites.

Altogether, 319 children were surveyed, from the age of six upwards.

Children on Bullying

More culture on the timetable

Children will get five hours a week of cultural activity, under new government plans.

They will be able to take part in workshops with individual artists, writers and actors through an expansion of the Creative Partnerships programme. More trips to museums and galleries, exhibitions and concerts are also expected.

Helping children to develop their creativity can lead them to do better academically, the government said.

Funding of £135 million will be provided for into the initiative, which will also offer children a chance to get involved in arts and culture in and outside of the school day.

Read the announcement.

English children "most tested"

Primary school children in England are tested more heavily than most other developed countries.

A ‘testing culture’ means pupils face more testing, in more subjects, from an earlier age, a report by the Cambridge-based Primary Review found.

Comparisons were made with 22 other countries, including the Netherlands, France and Japan.

Children who start school early were also discovered to be at a disadvantage.

Those beginning at the age of four sometimes found the experience stressful. They performed less well all the way through education, and achieved lower grades at GCSE.

Primary schools in England were also found to be larger than in other countries, with an average of 224 pupils.

The Structure and Content of English Primary Education: international perspectives

Crackdown likely on video games

Violent video games will probably be subject to stricter classifications, making more of them illegal for sale to younger children.

Television psychologist Dr Tanya Byron is currently leading a government investigation into the effects of video games on children.

Parents are also likely to be advised to make sure children only play computer games in the living room, so they can keep an eye on the games' content.

The findings are due to be released next month.

Ofsted to visit every term

Some schools are to get more frequent visits from Ofsted in a bid to improve standards, Chief Inspector of Education Christine Gilbert has said.

Schools previously rated satisfactory or inadequate will be inspected annually or even each term from September 2009.

The changes will see inspectors arrived unannounced at schools.

In contrast, better-performing schools will only be subject to checks every six years.

Speaking at a conference in London for head teachers, Ms Gilbert said that primary schools whose pupils leave without an adequate grasp of literacy and numeracy may be penalised.

The plans reflect the government’s concern at the significant numbers of primary pupils who fail to attain basic standards in English and maths.

New child safety guidance

Everyone working with children should be alert and ready to report risks to their safety, a new government action plan on childhood says.

People working with children should know how find out what other authorities the child is coming into contact with, and how to go about sharing information with them.

More than 1,000 people, most of them children, gave their views for the Staying Safe action plan.

It was produced in response to concerns that childhood is being blighted by threats such as the risk of street violence and by children not being able to play freely outside.

The action plan states that “children should not be wrapped up in cotton wool” and a balance must be found between protecting them and allowing them the freedom to develop and enjoy their childhoods.

Guidelines will also be sent to schools so that they can plan school trips without fearing health and safety repercussions.

The main input from children was that they want to feel safer when they are out with their friends and want safe, well-lit places to go.

Staying Safe Action Plan

Behind at five means a life time of struggling

Children who struggle with English and maths as early as at the age of five, and who are not picked up at school, are likely to suffer disadvantage throughout their lives.

More than 17,100 people born in one week in 1970 were tracked for research, conducted by the National Research Centre for Adult Literacy and Numeracy at the University of London’s Institute of Education.

Children who had problems learning aged five tended to fall even further behind by the age of ten.

They were more likely to leave school early, to be unemployed and have fewer job opportunities.

At home, they were more likely to become parents at a younger age, live in crowded accommodation, and be less likely to have internet access or own a computer.

Family background was also found to be a decisive factor.

Co-author of the report, Professor John Bynner, said: “If a child’s parents are interested in their education and take simple steps like reading to them at home, then they are less likely to have problems with the basics.”

"Children are already tested at school and teachers usually know if they are struggling with English or maths," he said.

"If these children don't get extra help they are likely to leave primary school without the basics, and there's little chance that they will catch up or engage with future learning opportunities."

The research bolsters the government’s moves towards “personalised learning” - providing intensive support for primary school children struggling in English and maths.

Illuminating Disadvantage

Dyslexia summit

Dyslexia should not limit any child’s success, Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond said.

He was outlining plans at a dyslexia summit to ensure children with dyslexia are spotted and helped at school.

Formula One champion Sir Jackie Stewart, who was diagnosed with dyslexia at the age of 42, was also present to give his support to the plans.

Dyslexia is associated with difficulties in reading, writing and spelling, and is accompanied by poor working memory, sequencing and organisational problems.

It is estimated that as many as 10 per cent of Scotland’s population are dyslexic to some degree.

TV parenting programmes "harming children"

Child protection charity the NSPCC has issued a warning about the welfare of children on reality TV shows about parenting.
After a TV nanny on the Channel 4 series Bringing Up Baby advised parents to resist cuddling a crying baby, the charity is to set up a panel of experts to advise TV companies on how to look after the safety and well being of children in parenting programmes.
The NSPCC says it is worried that "the rapid growth in reality parenting TV is exposing young children to potential harm.
"Recent programmes have shown the promotion of limited cuddling, infants left to cry alone for long periods, babies being subjected to strict, inflexible routines regardless of their distress, and a complete disregard to the wealth of research that shows the importance of early, sensitive care for health and well being."
The charity is also concerned about the BBC3 series The Baby Borrowers in which it says babies are left in the care of inexperienced teenagers, and both babies and teenagers are put in "stressful situations designed to provoke for the purposes of entertainment".
NSPCC boss Mary Marsh says a group of professional experts is needed to advise on standards for parenting programmes.