support staff

Paid adult support

This page contains the findings of systematic reviews undertaken by review groups linked to the EPPI-Centre. Systematic reviews of both quantitative and qualitative studies have investigated the effect of paid adult support in classrooms. One review used the term 'paid adult support'; another used the term 'teaching assistants' (TAs).

Impact of paid adult support on the participation and learning of pupils in mainstream schools

To date, no systematic review of international literature has been conducted that has focused on the key question of whether and how support staff in classrooms have an impact on pupils' learning and participation in schools and classrooms. Put simply, is there evidence that pupils learn and participate more effectively in mainstream schools when support staff are present in classrooms? This systematic review was published by EPPI-Centre in 2003.

Systematic literature review on the perceptions of ways in which support staff work to support pupils’ social and academic engagement in primary classrooms (1988–2003)

This systematic review was published by EPPI-Centre in 2011.Systematic reviews aim to find as much as possible of the research relevant to the particular research questions, and use explicit methods to identify what can reliably be said on the basis of these studies.