To make the most of your time in your school, we recommend that you do the following. Ask your mentor teacher, who will probably be a teacher in the languages department and should be your first point of contact.
You should have time to discuss your role and responsibilities with your mentor teacher on the first day.
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you should get a timetable during your first week in your school(s) |
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your timetable has to fit in with the rest of the school timetable, but your teachers will try to arrange for you to have a day off where possible. |
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your timetable may be made up of codes. Make sure that you understand what all the codes represent. If you have any problems with your timetable, discuss them with your mentor teacher. |
Before you teach your first class, ask if you can observe some lessons. This will allow you to experience classroom management techniques by teachers you will be working with and help you to get to know your students. Try to note the following: -
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how the teacher starts/ends the class |
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how much the target language (the language being taught) is used |
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the teacher's attitude to student errors and error correction |
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how the teacher controls behaviour, lateness and lack of effort |
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how the teacher speaks to students – do they have foreign names? |
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how the teacher tries to involve all the students in an activity. |
You may want to observe classes in other subjects to get to know more people in your school and learn how other subjects are taught.
Your school should provide you with a ‘Statement of Employment’ or contract within two months of your start date by law. A copy of this can be downloaded from our page for Schools (link) and amended to include your details.
An amount of (currently) around £45 – a bit more in the London area and in Scotland – is deducted from an assistant’s monthly salary. All assistants have the right to a National Insurance (NI) number to enable the contributions they pay to be registered in the system.
Assistants need to apply for their NI number as soon as possible on starting their job. The school or Local Authority should contact the NI Fast Path team on 0845 641 5047/8/9. Postal applications for NI numbers will then be sent to the school or Local Authority as appropriate, with guidance on completing the form. When the assistant has completed the form, he/she must return it to the address given, together with a photocopy of their passport or identity card and (for non-EU nationals) visa. The assistant will then be allocated an NI number within 3-4 weeks.
Assistants who already have an NI number because they have worked in the UK in the past, should use it again as it is valid for life.
See our page on Money Matters for more information about National Insurance.
You must complete form P46 as soon as possible after you arrive in the UK. Ask at your school if they have this form. You can also get it from the local Inland Revenue (tax) office. This form give the UK tax office information about who you are, your salary in the UK and whether you should pay tax or not.
See our page on Money Matters for more information about income tax.
Check when you can or cannot use the Internet in your school and do not overuse it, especially for personal use. Ask if you can agree a fixed time each week to use the Internet. Do not access unsuitable sites on school computers as disciplinary action may be taken against you.
Don't forget to look after yourself and take the same care of yourself that you would do at home. When you first move to a new country you can be quite vulnerable. Our personal safety leaflet provides some useful advice.
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