Assistant teacher program/Forum/Employing assistant teachers in the same grade
What are the advantages and disadvantages of employing assistant teachers in the same grade?
[edit | edit source]Advantages
[edit | edit source]Assistant teachers employed in the same grade can increase the motivation effect for their peers to want the same qualification and the subject matter is more demanding and can constitute a more interesting intellectual challenge for the assistant teachers.
Disadvantages
[edit | edit source]Peers in the same grade may show much less respect for the office of an assistant teacher and the assistant teachers may be much more motivated to disregard their office among their peers.
Employing assistant teachers in the same grade
[edit | edit source]Teaching students in the same grade as the assistant appears to be more challenging than teaching pupils who are several years younger than the assistant. One could subsequently allow assistant teachers to teach in their own grade as a next step in qualification, after success with younger pupils. A mixed age group of assistant teachers from different grades could provide mutual support if working in tandem, to hande older or difficult pupils with authority issues. Employing assistant teachers from the outset in their own grades is not recommended because the inexperienced assistants will have a dual challenge of dealing with content, and facing peers with whom they have undoubtedly developed relationships outside the setting. Assistant teachers as peers may create a situation that is even more difficult instead of easier to control. There are exceptions: the student director of an orchestra or band has, by virtue of the title the post carries, the authority to direct peers. The same can be said for the leadership training given to athletes in key roles, such as quarterback. These assistant teachers could be successful in working even in situations where they are younger than the pupils. They've already gained the necessary experience in group management.