The educational experiences of pupils with a Statement for special educational needs in mainstream primary schools: results from a systematic observation study

Teaching Assistants in Inclusive Classrooms: A Systematic Analysis of the International Research

“…Although TAs reported that they worked with all students (Angelides et al, 2009;Howard & Ford, 2007;Liston et al, 2009;Logan, 2006), and educated classmates about how to be supportive of peers with disabilities (Dolva et al, 2011), Webster & Blatchford (2013 observed TAs interactions in inclusive classrooms and found that TAs rarely worked with students without disabilities.…”

“…For instance, Giangreco and Broer (2005) found that the majority of TAs surveyed reported that they make teaching and curricular decisions without consulting teachers. Providing individualized and small group instruction to students with disabilities and managing student behaviours appeared to be the major instructional roles of TAs (Cameron, 2014;Carter et al, 2008;Gibson et al, 2014;Fisher & Pleasants, 2012;Harris & Aprile, 2015;Hughes & Valle-Riestra, 2008;Patterson, 2006;Webster & Blatchford 2013). For example, Webster et al (2010) analyzed the timelogs of TAs, which showed that TAs typically spent more than 50% of the school day performing individualized and small group direct pedagogical roles with students with disabilities, and Suter and Giangreco (2008) and Giangreco, Suter and Hurley (2013) reported that their TAs spent approximately 75% of their time delivering instruction and providing behavioural supports, respectively.…”

“…Observational studies reveal that: (a) TAs frequently taught students with disabilities separately in individual and small groups, which led to students with disabilities rarely being included in whole class instruction, spending less time in the classroom, and having fewer interactions with their teachers and classmates (Cameron, 2014;Webster & Blatchford, 2013;; (b) students with disabilities who received the services of TAs were less likely to be independent, support the learning of their classmates, and socialize with classmates than students with disabilities who do not receive the services of TAs (Symes & Humphrey, 2012); and (c) TA proximity had a significantly negative impact on the number of interactions students with disabilities had with their peers (Malmgrem & Causton-Theoharis, 2006). …”

“…The most frequently used data collection strategies were interviews (n=35/57%), observations (n=22/36%), surveys (n=19/31%), standardized assessment (n=12/20%), artifacts (n=5/8%), audio recordings (n=4/7%), journal/diaries (n=2/3%), timelogs (n=1/2%), and case studies (n=1/2%), with 31 (51%) of the studies using multiple data collection strategies. Nine of the studies were based on larger data sets (Radford, Blatchford & Webster, 2011;Rubie-Davies, Blatchford, Webster, Koutsoubou, & Bassett, 2010;Rutherford, 2011;2012;Symes & Humphrey, 2011;2012;Webster & Blatchford, 2013;Webster, Blatchford, Bassett, Brown, Martin, & Russell, 2010) and one article reported on two studies (Vadasy, Sanders, & Peyton, 2006a). The number of participants in the studies ranged from 3 to 1867, with 49 (80%) studies composed of TAs, 31 (51%) studies composed of students, 29 (48%) studies composed of teachers (i.e., general education, mainstream, special education, and head teachers), 13 (21%) studies composed of administrators (i.e., school principals, line managers), and 7 (11%) studies composed of parents/carers.…”

Scaffolding learning for independence: Clarifying teacher and teaching assistant roles for children with special educational needs

“…There is evidence, through a purposive 'listening to the teacher' method, that TAs can build and use a repertoire of heuristic scaffolding questions in mathematics lessons (Radford et al, 2014). Webster et al (2013a) demonstrate how informal training and on-going support from teachers are essential components of enabling TAs' to develop their questioning skills. The aim, for both the teacher and the TA, is to engage in high level discussions around relevant strategies.…”