Introduction to the Australian Teaching Assistant Professional Standards

Written by Kim Nuske, Teacher & ATAPS Facilitator, Australian Teacher Aide

What role does the teaching assistant play in a student’s academic journey? Research shows that teachers are not trained to work with teaching assistants, and the lack of role clarity is one of the biggest concerns about teaching assistants (Jackson. C., et al. 2021). As educators strive for excellence, it’s time we redefine the expectations for teaching assistants to ensure they have the right tools to help students succeed.

Teaching assistants play a vital role in the modern classroom, whether it is providing individual student support, supporting the implementation of inclusive practices, or assisting in the delivery of curriculum. It goes without saying that we need our teaching assistants, and we need to intentionally support and plan for their professional growth, to better the support they offer to teachers and students.

The newly published, Australian Teaching Assistant Professional Standards (ATAPS) framework is designed to:

be meaningful and relevant to teaching assistants in all school settings
support the performance and professional growth of teaching assistants
contribute to role clarity
facilitate teachers and teaching assistants working together more effectively, for better student outcomes.

ATAPS is an evidence-based framework that supports the performance and professional growth of teaching assistants in all Australian Schools while aligning with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, creating a shared language to talk about performance and professional growth.

The ATAPS framework is organised into three interrelated domains that describe the Professional Knowledge, Professional Practice, and Professional Engagement, required by teaching assistants working in a school setting, enabling them to reflect on their practice, set goals, and plan professional learning to improve their knowledge and practice.

There are four Professional Growth Stages: Developing, Proficient, Accomplished, and Advanced. Within each stage, the Professional Growth Expectations identify the progressive professional knowledge, practice and engagement of teaching assistants. They also act as benchmarks that can be used by teaching assistants to inform their professional growth and set aspirational goals.

ATAPS provides all stakeholders with a shared language to talk explicitly about what teaching assistants know, understand and can do.

ATAPS enable teaching assistants to:

understand the expectations of their role
reflect on their strengths, current knowledge and skills, and areas for improvement
set goals to improve their professional knowledge, practice, and engagement
identify and participate in targeted professional learning that meets their professional growth needs
use a shared language to engage effectively with colleagues

ATAPS enable teachers to:

set clear expectations for the teaching assistants they work with
make the best use of the teaching assistant's knowledge, skills, and dispositions
assist teaching assistants to reflect on their strengths, current knowledge and skills, and areas for improvement
guide teaching assistants to set goals to improve their practice
use a shared language to communicate and engage effectively with teaching assistants

ATAPS enable school leaders to:

define the job role of teaching assistants
effectively deploy teaching assistants
implement a whole school approach to performance and professional growth
build the expertise of teaching teams and improve outcomes for all students
embed practices to support he AITSL Guidelines for the 'Optimal Deployment of Teaching Assistants in Australian Classrooms'

ATAPS enable jurisdictions to:

implement sector wide performance and professional growth processes for teaching assistants
have consistent national benchmarks within all sectors
support the National Teacher Workforce Action Plan
implement national and international research guidelines on the effective deployment, preparedness and practice of teaching assistants.

School leaders from the ATAPS Pilot Program shared their insight into using the ATAPS framework for the first time with their teams of teaching assistants. Here is what they're saying:

Anna Kinnane (Project Manager) –Formerly of St Joseph's Nudgee College, QLD

"St Joseph's Nudgee College is in the process of Implementing a Performance and Professional Growth process. The current framework includes performance expectations for all teaching and support staff across 17 departments. When published, the intention is to use the ATAPS as performance expectations for all teacher aides employed at the College."

Ros Sullivan (Deputy Principal) - The Sycamore School, NSW

"As a school we recognise that whilst our teacher development is guided by the AITSL Teaching Standards and our Teacher Performance and Development Framework, we do not have a similar framework for our ESOs. The implementation of ATAPS will allow us to raise the status of our ESOs, facilitate their reflective practices, target their professional development needs, acknowledge their experience levels, and support their career aspirations."

Lynsey Price (Leader of Learning Inclusion) - St Francis of Assisi Primary School, VIC

"The standards will help LSO staff to move away from being general classroom helpers into a more focused and targeted role which in turn will improve outcomes for students. The standards also give teachers a better idea about the skills and knowledge our LSO team possesses."

Jay Morris (Head of Learning Support) - Ocean Reef Senior High School, WA

"When EAs have clear standards to follow, it ensures consistency in their approach and helps them understand what excellence looks like in their profession. This, in turn, benefits students as they receive consistent and high-quality support, regardless of the classroom or school they are in."

To support the implementation and use of ATAPS, Australian Teacher Aide has published a variety of resources to support schools and teaching assistants using ATAPS in their schools. To explore and download these resources, explore the ATAPS Resources on the Australian Teacher Aide website.

As thought leaders and major contributors to the education sector, the Australian Teacher Aide team is excited to be sponsoring and presenting at the National Education Summit in both Brisbane and Melbourne this year, where we will share the result of years of research and development that has culminated in the publication and acceptance of the Australian Teaching Assistant Professional Standards (ATAPS).