brandy
07-Feb-11, 19:01
recived this today.. have signed it.. and trying to help get as many signatures as possible!!
help spread the word!
The parent council of Brora Primary School sent this to go out to all Councillors today (if your parent council has not already done something similar could we please urge to do so. We copied our letter to all Highland MSPs and local press (list below).
Please also encourage all your parents to sign the online petition - http://www.gopetition.com/petition/42573.html in fact anyone you can think of. We need to try and equal the impact that the Traditional School of Music campaign is getting.
Good luck and thanks
Dear Councillors
Proposal to remove provision of Classroom Assistants in the Primary Sector
I write on behalf of the parent council of Brora Primary School to express our extreme concern about the proposal to remove the provision of Classroom Assistants in the primary sector. We wish to make clear the benefits, recognised by HMIE, which our children and the education sector as a whole receive as a result of the excellent work done by Classroom Assistants, they do not just do “chores” to free up teacher time.
We consider them to be a very valuable, a very effective and a relatively cheap resource.
Specifically we wish to make the following points.
The savings measure statement for the cessation of provision of Classroom Assistant states that there is no direct impact on the Programme for the Highland Council. This is incorrect. The removal of Classroom Assistants will definitely impact on item 1.6 of the Programme – THC’s ability to “continue to raise levels of attainment and numeracy for pupils in pre-school, primary, etc”.
This week’s edition of the Teacher’s professional journal (TESS) leads with “class assistants play a key role in managing behaviour" and goes on to state "its finding that Classroom Assistants make an important contribution to classroom behaviour will be embarrassing for those authorities who are targeting them in budget cuts."
Much is being made by THC of the consultation process which took place with regard to budget cuts. At no point was the proposal to cease provision of Classroom Assistants consulted upon with the public. It is being rushed through with a derisory amount of time being available for public response.
Classroom Assistants work on:
o Early Intervention - identifying and helping pupils who are struggling at an early stage thus reducing the likelihood that they will need Learning Support at a later stage;
o Highland Literacy Programme - is this now to be abandoned?
o delivery of the Curriculum for Excellence - many teachers believe that this will be impossible to deliver without the help of Classroom Assistants;
o Active Learning - learning through structured play;
o Hop-on Reading – one to one reading support;
o Co-operative learning – learning how to learn together;
o Inclusive education;
o First aid cover; and
o Break time supervision; there are already a number of issues arising within those schools where break times are not supervised.
A lot of the work set out above results in children with low level issues being identified and assisted at the earliest possible point. Removal of Classroom Assistants will make this early assistance less likely and is likely to result in an increase in the numbers of children requiring Learning Support at a later date.
We have heard comments that we all survived in an education system without Classroom Assistants. However, what we remember from our own education is very far removed from the way in which children are taught now. Don’t let us abandon the tools which teachers have been given to help our children fulfil their educational potential, a return to the sink or swim environment in which I remember being taught will be of benefit to no one.
We understand that the Highland Council is legally obliged to produce a balanced budget and with regard to potential areas for savings, even at this short notice we are able to suggest the following:
With regard to school transport, if parents decide not to enrol their child in the school in whose catchment area they reside but to an alternative English medium school they, rightly, become responsible for the transport of that child to school. We understand that this is not the case where the parents make a choice to opt for a Gaelic medium school. We further understand that the current cost of transporting children by taxi to Gaelic medium schools is in excess of £135,000 per year. This would cover the salaries of a large number of the Classroom Assistants whose jobs are currently threatened.
Whilst we understand that efforts will be made to re-deploy Classroom Assistants this is clearly not going to be feasible for many of the staff involved. Unemployment is high across our region and those who end up being made redundant must surely face the prospect of a delayed return to the work force. Has the cost impact of their claims for benefit payment of rent and council tax been taken into account in arriving at the estimated savings?
In summary, those who are bright and are doing well will probably continue to do so, despite your proposed actions; those who have an identifiable learning difficulty will hopefully continue to receive Learning Support. However, by removing Classroom Assistants you will be denying the majority of pupils that fall in the middle of those two extremes the opportunity to receive early assistance and to fulfil their educational potential. You also risk increasing the numbers of children whose early problems, by not being addressed, develop in to a need for full blown Learning Support.
A monetary saving now at the price of greater monetary spending on Learning Support in the future and a generation of children educationally unfit to take advantage of the opportunities around them.
help spread the word!
The parent council of Brora Primary School sent this to go out to all Councillors today (if your parent council has not already done something similar could we please urge to do so. We copied our letter to all Highland MSPs and local press (list below).
Please also encourage all your parents to sign the online petition - http://www.gopetition.com/petition/42573.html in fact anyone you can think of. We need to try and equal the impact that the Traditional School of Music campaign is getting.
Good luck and thanks
Dear Councillors
Proposal to remove provision of Classroom Assistants in the Primary Sector
I write on behalf of the parent council of Brora Primary School to express our extreme concern about the proposal to remove the provision of Classroom Assistants in the primary sector. We wish to make clear the benefits, recognised by HMIE, which our children and the education sector as a whole receive as a result of the excellent work done by Classroom Assistants, they do not just do “chores” to free up teacher time.
We consider them to be a very valuable, a very effective and a relatively cheap resource.
Specifically we wish to make the following points.
The savings measure statement for the cessation of provision of Classroom Assistant states that there is no direct impact on the Programme for the Highland Council. This is incorrect. The removal of Classroom Assistants will definitely impact on item 1.6 of the Programme – THC’s ability to “continue to raise levels of attainment and numeracy for pupils in pre-school, primary, etc”.
This week’s edition of the Teacher’s professional journal (TESS) leads with “class assistants play a key role in managing behaviour" and goes on to state "its finding that Classroom Assistants make an important contribution to classroom behaviour will be embarrassing for those authorities who are targeting them in budget cuts."
Much is being made by THC of the consultation process which took place with regard to budget cuts. At no point was the proposal to cease provision of Classroom Assistants consulted upon with the public. It is being rushed through with a derisory amount of time being available for public response.
Classroom Assistants work on:
o Early Intervention - identifying and helping pupils who are struggling at an early stage thus reducing the likelihood that they will need Learning Support at a later stage;
o Highland Literacy Programme - is this now to be abandoned?
o delivery of the Curriculum for Excellence - many teachers believe that this will be impossible to deliver without the help of Classroom Assistants;
o Active Learning - learning through structured play;
o Hop-on Reading – one to one reading support;
o Co-operative learning – learning how to learn together;
o Inclusive education;
o First aid cover; and
o Break time supervision; there are already a number of issues arising within those schools where break times are not supervised.
A lot of the work set out above results in children with low level issues being identified and assisted at the earliest possible point. Removal of Classroom Assistants will make this early assistance less likely and is likely to result in an increase in the numbers of children requiring Learning Support at a later date.
We have heard comments that we all survived in an education system without Classroom Assistants. However, what we remember from our own education is very far removed from the way in which children are taught now. Don’t let us abandon the tools which teachers have been given to help our children fulfil their educational potential, a return to the sink or swim environment in which I remember being taught will be of benefit to no one.
We understand that the Highland Council is legally obliged to produce a balanced budget and with regard to potential areas for savings, even at this short notice we are able to suggest the following:
With regard to school transport, if parents decide not to enrol their child in the school in whose catchment area they reside but to an alternative English medium school they, rightly, become responsible for the transport of that child to school. We understand that this is not the case where the parents make a choice to opt for a Gaelic medium school. We further understand that the current cost of transporting children by taxi to Gaelic medium schools is in excess of £135,000 per year. This would cover the salaries of a large number of the Classroom Assistants whose jobs are currently threatened.
Whilst we understand that efforts will be made to re-deploy Classroom Assistants this is clearly not going to be feasible for many of the staff involved. Unemployment is high across our region and those who end up being made redundant must surely face the prospect of a delayed return to the work force. Has the cost impact of their claims for benefit payment of rent and council tax been taken into account in arriving at the estimated savings?
In summary, those who are bright and are doing well will probably continue to do so, despite your proposed actions; those who have an identifiable learning difficulty will hopefully continue to receive Learning Support. However, by removing Classroom Assistants you will be denying the majority of pupils that fall in the middle of those two extremes the opportunity to receive early assistance and to fulfil their educational potential. You also risk increasing the numbers of children whose early problems, by not being addressed, develop in to a need for full blown Learning Support.
A monetary saving now at the price of greater monetary spending on Learning Support in the future and a generation of children educationally unfit to take advantage of the opportunities around them.