Professional Documents
Culture Documents
2 Background of Paraprofessionals
2 Background of Paraprofessionals
1940 1990
The top 7 in-
school •Talking out of Turn •Drug Abuse
problems
identified by •Chewing Gum •Alcohol Abuse
US teachers in
•Making Noise •Pregnancy
1940 vs.
problems •Suicide
identified in a
•Running the Halls
1990 survey •Cutting in Line •Rape
•Littering •Assault
More Changes
The role of the paraprofessional is becoming even more important
as our nation’s schools are impacted by the changes in society.
Schools are faced with the following:
* culturally and linguistically diverse student population
* violence
* alcohol and other drug use
* teen pregnancy
* school reform and restructuring
* funding cuts and reallocations
* federal and state legislation
* range of skills, abilities, interest, and aptitudes of students
* poverty
* availability of qualified providers
* collaboration between service providers
* transition from preschool to school, school to independent living
More Changes
Consider the following:
The population in the United States is changing with the influx
of immigrants from Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, Vietnam, and others.
Students come to school from other cultures and speaking
another language. The school determines whether to provide
bilingual education or provide English as a second language.
This presidential administration recognizes the need to secure
schools from violence. Students are reported to bring weapons
to school, are members of gangs engaged in criminal and violent
activities, and assault other students and even teachers. Metal
detectors can be found in some schools as well as full time police
officers.
Even more changes
Alcohol and other drug use and abuse among students is
another problem area. Students not only are using drugs, but
are also involved in selling them.
The major education law that we are all familiar with is IDEA
- the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which was
reauthorized in 1997 (PL 105-17).
IDEA
What is the relationship between Section 504
and IDEA?
It is a matter of inclusiveness. Let us begin with
Section 504 Eligible Students (students who need
accommodations / adaptations who are not eligible
under IDEA). IDEA Eligible Students (students who
qualify for special educational services)
IDEA
As you can see, all students eligible for services under IDEA
are also eligible for Section 504 services. Students are
qualified under one or more of 13 IDEA disabling conditions.
Under Section 504, special accommodations to the student’s
program are required due to substantial mental or physical
impairments that limit one or more of the student’s major
life activities. Examples of student’s eligible under Section
504 but perhaps not under IDEA are: communicable
diseases, asthma, allergies, diabetes, ADD, behavioral
difficulties, drug/alcohol addiction (e.g., child with broken
dominate arm qualifies temporarily under Section 504 but
not IDEA, child with HIV).
Section 504 / IDEA
TEAM APPROACH
In this section, emphasis is placed on the importance of
the paraprofessional in assisting the teacher in meeting
the instructional needs of students. Topics include:
•What Teachers and Paraprofessionals Need to Know
•Building Teamwork
•Topics to Discuss at the Beginning of the Year
•Human Development
•Small Group Instruction
•Information Specific to Early Childhood
What Supervising Teachers Need to
Make Sure Paraprofessionals Know
* communication
* cooperation
* collaboration
* confrontation of problems
* compromise
* consensus
These may be referred to as the
* coordination
“Ten C’s of Teamwork.”
* consistency
* caring
* commitment
What does each of the “Ten C’s
of Teamwork Mean?
Communication: Everyone knows that communication is
essential is all human organizations. The statement, “I think
we have a communication problem here,” is frequently heard
when problems emerge among people working together.
Teamwork includes communication because all members of
the team must be willing to share their information, their
ideas, and their points of view with all other members of the
team. Communication requires skills in both sharing and
receiving. Teams work hard to insure that all members have
the information they need to do their jobs.
Cooperation: The word cooperate means “to operate
together”. When team members are cooperative, they look
for ways of supporting and complementing the
contributions of others.
II. ASK:
Who is involved
How are they involved
What behaviors/attitudes of the different individuals
need to be changed
III. LIST:
Areas of mutual agreement concerning problems
Areas of disagreement
The barriers of finding a solution
IV. DEVELOP:
A desired goal(s) or outcome
A solution(s) by brainstorming various ideas
A list of resources, information or assistance that will help
you achieve the goal
V. IMPLEMENT:
The solution for a specific time period and evaluate the
effectiveness of the solution
If necessary select and implement another alternative
Basic Principles of
Human Development
4. Inclusion
1. Confidentiality Policies