We hear you!

We were recently at the National Education Summit in Brisbane, where we got to meet some of you - teacher aides, educators, and school leaders! It was interesting to hear the shared common concerns and insights across conversations that highlighted the same message: you have bright, committed teacher aides in your schools who are feeling like they’re left until last when it comes to professional learning. So - this post is simple: we hear you! We are going to explore these key challenges and give you ideas on what may help.

“Professional learning out there is not targeted to teacher aides” 

Many of the teacher aides and educators we met said they don't have access to training tailored to their role - and when PD exists, it’s often geared toward teachers, not teacher aides. 

What’s available for Teacher Aides: 

• Australian Teacher Aide offers free monthly live webinars, recorded webinars for members, a Professional Development Library available through school or individual membership, and access to many more resources to support professional growth!  
• ATA also provide a Professional Development Planner and CPD record tools to help schools plan and track tailored learning for education support staff.  

“Where do we find the time?” 

Across many schools, teacher aides are left to their own devices when it comes to participating in professional learning. Now, we love a teacher aide with high self-efficacy, however, there are a few things schools can do to ensure TAs have time for professional growth. 

Suggested strategies: 

• Schools can allocate structured time for PD - such as during staff meetings, assembly time, or designated in‑service days. A line manager, or head of TA department can outline and set clear expectations for the professional learning during this allocated time. 
• ATA’s live webinars are interactive and also recorded - so TAs with a membership can revisit them at convenient times and still earn PD hours.  

 “What exactly is the ATAPS framework? How can we use it in our school?” 

It was fantastic to meet those lead educators who had done their research and sought us out at the NES conference. They shared their joy and support of the ATAPS framework and thought it was “...such a great framework for TAs.”  

Understanding ATAPS: 

• The Australian Teaching Assistant Professional Standards (ATAPS) is a professional growth framework for teaching assistants in all schools. This evidence‑based framework is organised across three domains: Professional Knowledge, Professional Practice, and Professional Engagement, with four professional growth stages: Developing, Proficient, Accomplished, Advanced.  
• ATAPS allows teacher aides to reflect on their practice, set professional growth goals, and use shared language that aligns with the teacher standards. ATAPS also help to clarify the role and responsibilities of a teacher aide for better teamwork with teachers.  
• ATA offers ATAPS facilitator training for leaders who are interested in implementing the ATAPS framework at their school. The facilitator training includes 6 hours online training (over two days), as well as resources to support implementation in schools. School leaders completing this training gain access to resources, printables, implementation timelines, templates and much more! 

“So what does ATA do?” 

Our favourite question from the Education Summit was “So, what does ATA do?” It’s a great feeling knowing that you’re about to provide a solution to schools who are desperate to value, up-skill and acknowledge their hard-working TAs. This is what we told them... 

What ATA does: 

• ATA is an Australian based professional learning organisation, dedicated to empowering educators to help students succeed.  
• We offer monthly live web events (at no cost), an expanding professional development library, and our commitment to an awesome member experience  
• We offer all levels of membership – from free, individual and school memberships, right up to corporate and large group memberships. We have something for everyone! 

We all know teacher aides who work tirelessly to support learning, teaching and wellbeing in our Australian classrooms. These TAs deserve professional recognition, clarity, and professional growth opportunities. Meeting and hearing from them at the NES was fantastic – and their key message is simple: we want to learn and contribute more - but we need the structure, time, and tools to do so effectively. 

ATA has heard you. Through our live web events, online professional development, ATAPS framework, PD planner, webinars, planning tools and membership support, ATA offers practical pathways to address each of these key themes.  

We hear you! ATA are here for you! 

Take a moment to consider the barriers stopping you from providing professional learning for TAs at your school. Consider exploring what ATA has to offer to enhance and support your TAs today!