Teaching assistant at a primary school

This diploma thesis is based on the role of the teaching assistant in the first stage of primary school, focusing on how teaching assistants perceive the nature of their work and how they evaluate their cooperation with teachers, pupils, and teachers. The aim of the thesis was to find out how teaching assistants understand their professional position and how they assess their collaboration with other participants in this environment within everyday pedagogical practice. This thesis is divided into two parts. The theoretical section defines the legislative framework of the teaching assistant profession and presents its brief development within the Czech educational system. It describes the qualification and personal requirements of the role, as well as the description of the job, training, motivation, and risks associated with this profession. Then it focuses on the cooperation of teaching assistants with teachers, parents, pupils and educational counselling staff, and briefly addresses aspects of classroom climate and its significance for successful teaching. The empirical section is based on qualitative research employing semi-structured interviews with four teaching assistants, four first-grade teachers, and the deputy headteacher at a private primary school in Prague. The data was analyzed using...