300+ TOP Learning Support Assistant Interview Questions [LATEST]

1. What Is Learning Support Assistant?

A Learning Support Assistant (LSA), often referred to as a Teaching Assistant (TA), is provided to support teachers and pupils in the classroom. Learning support assistants work in primary and secondary schools, in mainstream schools, mainstream schools with SEN units and special schools.

2. List The Main Qualities Of Learning Support Assistant?

The main qualities and skills in a Learning Support Assistant include:

•  Excellent communication skills
•  Enthusiasm for the role
•  Experience working with children
•  Excellent organizational skills
•  Patience and responsibility
•  Flexibility and creativity
•  Ability to manage children or those with learning disabilities
•  Good knowledge of teaching standards, child protection and the  school rules

3. What Characteristics Are Important For A Learning Support Assistant?

This depends on the age and type of students you are dealing with. But in general, teacher assistants have outstanding interpersonal and communication skills and a talent for children and/or adolescents. Smaller children require a different “language” than adolescents. Cultural sensitivity and patience is also important.

4. What Specific Responsibilities Did You Have As A Learning Support Assistant?

Learning support assistants typically help maintain order in class and during recess, and promote good student behavior. The more challenging task is to maintain student motivation and establish positive interactions among the students

5. How Would You Handle A Crowd Of Students?

The teaching assistant is quite near to the students themselves when it comes to age. Therefore, the interviewer will first have to assess whether you can or cannot handle a crowd of students. Again, focus on your ability to work with your previous employer. If you have led any youth groups or have any counselor/teaching experience, draw on that.

6. Do You Have Experience Attending To Student’s Personal Needs?

With very young children or special care children, assistants attend to personal needs. They help the children take medications regularly and attend to student’s personal hygiene (including taking them to the bathroom). They assist with eating and facilitate mobility, if necessary. Assisting with medication requires following LEA (Local Education Agency/Authority ) and school policies.

7. How Would You Communicate With Parents?

Communication is another important trait for a teacher today. While it was quite an important aspect a few years ago, it is the most important aspect today. You could tell them about the steps that you undertook to enhance effective communication with parents of your students, or what you suggested to your school or college to implement. No educator is able to properly guide a child through the path of life without being in close contact with the child’s parents, who place their full confidence in the teacher.

8. What Is The Idea Of Teaching The State Standards?

The philosophy about state standards is one of the most important in the country. The three types of standards in the country are the local, national, and state standards.

9. What Are Your Learning Support Assistant Education?

Any job in this world requires either a skill set or an academic degree or both. Ensure that you answer this question in a factual and concise manner. The answers that you provide may be referenced and checked; present accordingly.

10. What Do You Think Is The Most Important Aspect That A Kindergarten Works On?

Education is not just teaching the written word, but it is also molding an entire generation into forward thinking, practical individuals. Also, values are the most important aspects that one can give to the young generation.

11. How Would You Handle A Particular Situation In The Kindergarten Classroom?

This question is more or less aimed at finding out whether you can think on your feet and how child-appropriate your course of action or thought is. Describe how you handle children wanting the same toy. Or what you would do if one child ruins his classmates art project or kicks and hits.

Detail how each child is spoken to, how you focus your attention on the injured party.

12. What Is The Most Important Aspect That A Learning Support Assistant To The Child?

you should be careful and answer the question with an answer that would send across the point that you focus on the discipline and values that a learning support assistant can impart to children. This is the time to arouse in the children interest in learning and socializing appropriately, while introducing them to rules and regulations.

13. What Is A Primary Caregiver To A Child?

This is a term used instead of ‘mother’ or ‘father’, as many children today are raised by one parent or another person entirely, be it relative or friend. This term avoids calling attention to each child’s state. If there are children in the class whose primary caregiver is not the mother, sensitivity and forethought will allow you to tell all kinds of stories without upsetting or embarrassing children.

14. What Are Your Duties As A Learning Support Assistant?

Some of the duties of learning support assistant are:

•  Helping teachers prepare for lessons by, for example, putting   out equipment before a lesson starts or photocopying papers.
•  Listening to children reading and reporting back to the teacher   should any issues arise.
•  Helping children who need extra help in literacy or numeracy.
•  A teaching assistant is there to support a teacher in the   classroom.

15. What Would You Do If A Child Complained They Were Bored?

This question may be best answered with the SAR technique. Try to remember a similar situation when a bored child was amused in a stimulating, educational and non-disruptive way.

16. What Is Your Philosophy About Discipline?

Teaching methods have changed over time and it is necessary for you as a professional to give the relevant information that proves that you have enhanced your teaching abilities and procedures. The discipline philosophy for a teacher is one of the most evolved philosophies today and you should ensure that the change is exuded to the interviewer. You need to show the interviewer that you have the capability to solve most problems yourself. In fact, you should give the idea that you do not make a major issue out of every situation, unless there is an urgent need to do so. But you should also send across the message that no untoward incident that is waiting to happen will occur while you are on duty.

17. How Would You Support This School’s Program Of Extra-curricular Provision?

Any interviewee can expect to answer a number of questions about the school, so learning a bit about the place beforehand is vital. Prior to the interview, find out as much as possible about the school’s extracurricular activities, offset results, what type of backgrounds the children come from, etc. so that the answer provided is well-informed.

18. What Makes A Good Lesson?

While learning support assistants do not make the lessons, they do provide invaluable help to prepare them and a successful candidate for an assistant teaching job is one interested in the role of a teacher and prepared to support them 100%.

19. What Does Safeguarding Mean?

Safeguarding legislation and government guidance says that safeguarding means:

•  Protecting children from maltreatment.
•  Preventing impairment of children’s health or development.
•  Ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the Provision of safe and effective care.
•  Taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes.

20. Why Did You Select A Learning Support Assistant Career?

Being a learning support assistant is not an easy job. And not everyone can be a learning support assistant. There has to be some aspects in yourself that made you desire such a position and that will make you the perfect candidate for a learning support assistant job position.

One of the most important aspects is that you should have a natural love for kids and enjoy helping them and being surrounded by them. There is no place for irritability, intolerance or impatience in the job and life of a learning support assistant. These are the concepts that you should bring out in the interview answers, with perhaps a brief, revealing anecdote or two.