Making the most of your Educational Support Assistant

Making the most of your Educational Support Assistant

Session Objectives

To understand the role of an ESA in your
classroom, the benefits they bring, and how to effectively collaborate with them before, during, and after lessons.

Why you will have an ESA in your classroom
These students will have an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP)

-Help students with learning disabilities, autism, ADHD, or other special needs.

-Assist students who have trouble controlling their behaviour or interacting with others.

-Provide extra help with schoolwork to keep students on track.

-Support students emotionally, helping them deal with stress and anxiety.

​Provide one-on-one or small group support to students with physical, emotional, or learning needs.

​​Support

​Assist teachers in delivering lessons and managing classroom behavior.

​​Assist

Promote an inclusive environment, ensuring all students feel valued and supported

Promote

​The Role of an ESA in your Classroom

Spend 5 minutes sharing your positive experiences of having an ESA in your classroom.

​

​Group Discussion

The Benefits of having an ESA in your classroom

• Enhanced individual support for students.

• Improved classroom management.

• Administrative relief for teachers.

• Promotion of inclusive education.

• Increased flexibility in teaching methods

CASE STUDY

The Impact of an ESA in a Travel and Tourism Classroom ​

Open Ended

What stood out to you most after reading the case study

​

​What are the main impacts of the ESA and teacher working collaboratively to support Alex?

• Improved Confidence and Participation

• Enhanced Understanding of Concepts

• Academic Achievement

• Career Progression

• Personalised Learning

• Positive Classroom Environment

• Professional Growth

·       Discuss and identify additional support needs

·       Reviewing student needs and prepare resources

·       Define roles and responsibilities

·       Agree behaviour management strategies

·       Establishing a communication plan.

​

​Before the lesson

Open Ended

How can teachers and ESAs support each other during lessons?

• Communicate clearly.

• Providing encouragement and feedback.

• Collaborate and be flexible.

• Treating the ESA as an integral part of the team.

​During the lesson

• Review student progress

• Evaluate effectiveness of the lesson

• Plan next steps

• Update records

​After the lesson

Do you have any questions?

Multiple Choice

What is one of the primary roles of an ESA in the classroom?

• Grading student assignments

• Providing essential support to students with diverse needs

• Leading the class in all lessons

• Tidying the classroom for the teacher

Multiple Choice

What is important for effective support during lessons?

• Clear communication and defined roles

• Independent work without collaboration

• Focusing solely on administrative tasks

• Ignoring feedback from students

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is a benefit to teachers that have an ESA supporting their learners?

• Promotion of an inclusive education

• Increased work load

• Behaviour management issues

• Someone to natter to whilst students are working

Multiple Choice

What is a crucial part of post-lesson reflection?

• Planning the next school event

• Conducting sports activities

• Reviewing student progress and evaluating lesson effectiveness

• Preparing for the next holiday

Multiple Choice

What is a key activity during pre-lesson collaboration between teachers and ESAs?

• Mark students work

• Contact parents

• Have lunch

• Review student needs and support needed

Thank you for attending.

Further Reading

·       "Maximising the Impact of Teaching Assistants in Primary Schools: A Practical Guide for School Leaders" by Rob Webster, Paula Bosanquet, Sally Franklin, and Matthew Parker: Although focused on primary schools, this book offers practical strategies that can be adapted for FE settings to improve the deployment and effectiveness of teaching assistants.

·       "The Essential FE Toolkit" series by Bloomsbury Publishing: This series includes various volumes written by FE experts, covering topics such as assessment, teaching strategies, and inclusion, which can help lecturers understand how to better utilize support staff in their classrooms.

·       "A Toolkit for the Effective Teaching Assistant": This book provides guidance on working with colleagues, supporting pupils, and enhancing learning, with chapters on behaviour management and inclusion that are relevant to FE lecturers.