School support staff have described how they teach themselves GCSE subjects on YouTube before taking classes for qualified teachers while they also work beyond their hours and aren’t paid for meal breaks. The teaching assistants, who work in schools around Wales, say their workloads have increased as hard pressed schools struggle to find, keep, and pay for adequate staffing levels.
One higher level teaching assistant (HLTA), who works in Wales’ largest local education authority of Cardiff, said :“I have taught multiple subjects at GCSE level with little to no support from mainstream teachers. I have used BBC Bitesize, YouTube, and Twinkl to teach myself before teaching pupils.”
Another HLTA working in Conwy said: “I regularly cover planning, preparation, and assessment sessions for teachers. I am usually expected to plan and prepare for these lessons myself.” Others described teaching all week rather than supporting teachers.
