: Teaching Assistants or Teaching and Learning Practitioner? The term Teaching Assistant no longer reflects the reality of the role. Today’s TAs do far more than ​“assist”.…

Rachel Wiseman is an experienced teaching and learning practitioner at St Mary’s RC Primary School situated in East Lancashire in the North West of England. The school has above average location deprivation with a high proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals. She is responsible for delivering maths lessons within KS2 and is also highly skilled in supporting teaching and learning across school. In this blog, Gill Fearns, Director of Lancashire Research School, reviews the evidence from the EEF (2021) Effective Professional Development Guidance Report EEF-Effective-Professional-Development-Guidance-Report.pdf
and draws on an interview with Rachel on how professional development has strengthened her knowledge and skills.



In many schools, the term Teaching Assistant no longer reflects the reality of the role. Today’s TAs do far more than ​“assist” — they shape explanations, scaffold thinking, model strategies, and drive high‑quality learning. As evidence‑informed practice has strengthened across the sector, so too has our understanding of the pivotal contribution these colleagues make to teaching and learning. It is time our language caught up.


Renaming the role to Teaching and Learning Practitioner recognises the expertise, judgement, and pedagogical skill that these professionals bring to the classroom. It signals a shift from support to partnership. Most importantly, it acknowledges what the evidence makes clear: when adults in the classroom share a strong, aligned approach to instruction, pupils benefit (EEF, 2025 Deployment of Teaching Assistants). Updating the terminology is not tokenistic — it is a step towards valuing, developing, and empowering a workforce that plays a central role in improving outcomes for children.


Developing Practitioners, Not Assistants: The Role of High‑Quality PD

Recommendation 2 of the EEF’s Effective Professional Development report emphasises that high‑quality PD must do more than simply share new ideas — it must build knowledge, motivate staff, develop teaching techniques, and embed practice. These four strands work together to create lasting improvements in classroom teaching.


The report explains that effective PD is built from a set of 14 evidence‑informed mechanisms, described as ​“the core building blocks of a programme… observable, can be replicated, and could not be removed without making that PD less effective.” These mechanisms are grouped into four essential functions:

The EEF’s review found that the more mechanisms a PD programme includes — and implements well — the greater its likely impact on pupil attainment. In other words, effective PD is not about the format, but about whether it activates the right mechanisms in the right way.


For schools, this means designing or selecting PD that is:

• structured, not superficial

• grounded in evidence

• focused on changing practice, not just sharing information

• built around mechanisms that support learning, motivation, skill development, and sustained implementation

What does this mean for a Teaching and Learning Practitioner within the classroom?


Case Study – Rachel Wiseman: How High‑Quality Professional Development transformed my KS2 Maths Practice


When I first started whole‑class maths teaching in KS2, I felt confident with routines and relationships, but less confident with the precision of my instructional techniques. I knew how to help pupils, but I wasn’t always sure I was helping them in the right way. That changed when our Maths Lead designed a professional development programme built around the mechanisms in the EEF’s Effective Professional Development
guidance. It has completely reshaped how I teach.


Building Knowledge: Understanding the ​‘Why’ Behind the Maths


The first part of the PD focused on strengthening my subject knowledge and helping me manage the cognitive load of new ideas. The maths lead broke concepts into small, meaningful steps and revisited key ideas each session. This meant I wasn’t just learning what to do — I was learning why certain representations, questions, and explanations mattered.


I found this incredibly empowering. Revisiting prior learning helped me connect new strategies to what I already knew, and the careful structuring of content meant I never felt overwhelmed. I could feel my understanding deepening week by week.


Motivation: Feeling Credible, Capable, and Supported


One of the most powerful aspects of the PD was how motivating it was. Early on, we set clear, specific goals for my practice — goals I genuinely cared about, like improving the way I scaffold mathematical talk or how I modelled worked examples.



The Maths Lead acted as a credible source, grounding everything in evidence. Knowing the strategies were research‑informed made me more confident to try them. And every time I made progress, however small, she acknowledged it. That affirmation kept me going and helped me see myself as a developing practitioner, not just a support role.

Developing Teaching Techniques: From Knowing to Doing

This was the part of the PD that changed my practice the most.

The Maths Lead didn’t just tell me about effective techniques — she modelled them. I watched her demonstrate high‑quality explanations, live worked examples, and the use of representations to expose mathematical structure. Then I had the chance to rehearse these techniques in a safe, supportive environment.


We used short, focused practice cycles:

• I practised a technique

• She monitored what I was doing

• She gave precise, actionable feedback

• I tried again

This cycle helped me refine my questioning, improve my modelling, and become more deliberate in how I scaffolded learning. It was the first time I’d experienced PD that truly developed my teaching, not just my understanding.

Embedding Practice: Making New Habits Stick

The final part of the PD focused on helping me embed these techniques into everyday teaching.

I was given prompts and cues — simple reminders I could use during lessons to keep new strategies front of mind. I monitored my own progress, and the Maths Lead checked in regularly to help me stay on track.

Most importantly, I had repeated opportunities to use the techniques in context. The more I used them, the more natural they became. Over time, they stopped feeling like ​“new strategies” and started feeling like part of who I am as a practitioner.

The Impact: A More Skilled, More Confident Educator


The difference in my practice and in the pupils’ learning has been remarkable.

I now:

• model concepts with clarity and precision

• use representations purposefully to expose structure

• scaffold thinking without creating dependency

• support mathematical talk with confidence

• adapt explanations based on what pupils show me

The pupils are more engaged, more articulate, and more independent. And I feel like a genuine partner in teaching and learning — not just an assistant, but an educator whose practice is grounded in evidence and strengthened through high‑quality professional development.


For further guidance and support, please see:

Education Endowment Foundation (2021) Effective Professional Development: Guidance Report. Available at:EEF-Effective-Professional-Development-Guidance-Report.pdf

Education Endowment Foundation (2025) Deployment of Teaching Assistants: Guidance Report. Available at: Deployment of Teaching Assistants | EEF

Education Endowment Foundation (2021), ​‘Effective Professional Development’, Evidence into Action, 30 November 2021. [Podcast]. Available at:New episode of ​‘Evidence into Action’ – ​‘Effective Professional… | EEF

Fraser, S. (2024). Leading Exceptional CPD: How to Create a Culture of Growth in Your School. Bloomsbury Publishing.