Perspective Chapter: Learning to Work Smarter with Teaching Assistants to Develop a Dyslexia-Friendly School

Abstract

Schools now widely rely on the deployment of teaching assistants (TAs) to support the inclusion of students with learning differences, including students with dyslexia. However, research findings forthe effectiveness of their deployment has been mixed. This chapter therefore seeks to draw upon research evidence of best practice to aid teachers in maximising the quality of their collaborative work with TAs, where TAs are working in-class or in teaching structured programmes of literacy support with individual or small groups of students. This chapter take a critical stance, framed by the social model of disability, advocating a whole-school approach to managing TAs’ deployment and recommending a rethinking of joint working practices with teachers, so that they are both fully involved with supporting students with dyslexia and other learning challenges in the classroom. It also warns of the double-edged nature of the \'paradox of the expert\', where classroom teachers maybe working alongside dyslexia specialist-qualified TAs