Are there too many teachers’ assistants?

The number of teacher’s assistants earning credit in School Service has been problematic for years. It has slightly improved, but there still needs to be a reduction because the current number is extreme.

In 2013 there were 530 students serving as TAs in one, or in some cases two, of their periods. This time last year, there were 441 TAs, 89 less than the previous year. Currently, this semester there are 416 student TAs, ten whom presently are unplaced. This number is higher than last semester, where there were roughly 375 student TAs.

The minimal amount of elective classes has continuously been an issue, due to its correlation to the excess number of TAs. There are only a select few semester long elective classes, including Psychology, P.E., Sports and Leisure, and On Your Own. These electives aren’t offered every period and because of the complications that take place when rearranging schedules, many students are simply assigned to School Service, where they frequently wind up not having much to do.

One of the major concerns is that students are choosing to TA in order to escape challenging classes they are struggling in.

“The biggest reason we have so many TAs is that kids flounder in their year long academic classes and need a way out and the only thing we can do is have them TA, because they are no other electives provided,” said counselor Susan Elliott.

The district has to value and approve any new electives before they are provided. As of right now, no new elective classes are being added.

Having a study hall, where students can be more productive during a free period, was considered. The proposal was never finalized because in order to have a study hall there would have to specifically be a teacher, supervising at all times. This is problematic since, the supervisor, someone with a licensed credential to teach, would be getting paid a teacher’s salary for practically babysitting students.

For the majority of students, being a TA acts as a break in their schedule, so most of them don’t mind.

In contrast, many teachers and administrators yearn for a major decline of TAs.

“When we have student TAs we feel that we’re not providing the maximum education for these students,” stated Assistant Principal Jesse Hansen.

TAs are considered necessary and helpful in the front office, house office, and library, but in many other classes TAs are just wasting their valuable time and education.

“For the kids that are truly struggling I feel that we should have an alternate support program for them, so they can stay in their class instead of being a TA,” said Elliott, who feels that this approach would significantly decrease the number of TAs there are now.