Parents recognise teaching assistants' impact

April 07 2010

The majority of parents believe that teaching assistants have a positive impact on their children's education, a new report by the Training and Development Agency (TDA) has said.

According to the report, 78 per cent of parents feel that support staff are a good influence, while three-quarters say they have noticed a hike in the number of job positions in schools in recent years.

The TDA research also suggested that the presence of a TA in a classroom can provide additional help to pupils who need it, allowing teachers to focus on other students.

Graham Holley, chief executive at the TDA, said support staff are "the unsung heroes of the school workforce," adding that schools need to make sure that they are using them "effectively".

In other news, a survey conducted by Avonline has found that almost half of UK parents (45 per cent) say that home internet access is a more beneficial tool for children's learning than a personal tutor.

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