1:1 para alternatives
dependence on para
pros
cons
roles/responsibilities
100
Teachers and special educators in work together in the same class. To maintain a naturally occurring number of students special needs, it may be necessary to share a special educator across 3 or 4 classes.
What is Co-Teaching.
100
Student with a disability is hesitant to participate without paraprofessional direction, prompting or cueing.
What is Unnecessary Dependence.
100
Engaging in follow-up instruction, tutoring, or homework help.
What is Follow-Up
100
Student with a disability and paraprofessional are seated together at the back or side of the room, separated from the class.
What is Separation from Classmates.
100
Assisting teachers/providers with building and maintaining effective instructional teams.
What is Working Together.
200
Hire teachers who are certified in general and special education to provide enhanced personnel capacity for all students.
What is Dually Certified Teachers
200
Student with a disability and paraprofessional do most everything together, to the exclusion of others (i.e., teachers, peers).
What is Insular Relationships.
200
Doing clerical tasks that free teachers to spend more time instructing students.
What is Clerical Tasks.
200
Paraprofessionals are not necessarily skilled in providing competent instruction; some do the work for the students they support.
What is Competent Instruction.
200
Assisting teachers/providers with maintaining learner-centered supportive environments.
What is Student Centered Learning
300
Encourage peer support strategies that provide natural ways to support students with disabilities and may also benefit students without disabilities.
What is Peer Supports.
300
Teachers tend to be less involved when a student with a disability has a paraprofessional because individual attention is already available.
What is Interference with Teacher Engagement.
300
Assisting students with needs in bathroom use, eating, dressing and movement.
What is Personal Care Needs.
300
Paraprofessional can create physical or symbolic barriers that interfere with interactions between a student with disabilities and classmates.
What is Interfere with Peer Interactions.
300
Supporting teachers/providers with planning and organizing learning experiences.
What is Support Learning Experiences.
400
Special Educator conditions can be improved by reducing caseload size, the grade range covered, and the number of teachers with whom special educators interact. Explore changes in class size, increase availability of special educator and related supports, schedule coordinated meeting times, and provide access to adaptive materials, to improve conditions for teachers.
What is Improve Conditions for General and Special Educators.
400
Student with a disability is treated as the gender of the paraprofessional (e.g., male student taken into the female bathroom).
What is Loss of Gender Identity.
400
Providing supervision in group settings (eg. cafeteria, playground, bus boarding).
What is Supervision.
400
Some students report that because they are constantly being watched by adults, their behavior is scrutinized differently; minor infractions that might not be noticed or addressed when done by other students result in consequences for them.
What is Feelings of Persecution.
400
Assisting teachers/providers with engaging students in learning and assisting in instruction.
What is Engaging/Assisting Student Learning
500
Establishing a small pool of skilled paraprofessionals (or one floating position for small schools) allows for their temporary assignments to address specific short term needs.
What is Paraprofessional Pools.
500
Paraprofessionals do so much for the students with disabilities that they do not exercise choices that are typical for other students.
What is Loss of Personal Control.
500
Facilitating social skills, peer interactions, and positive behavior support plans.
What is Social and Behavior Support.
500
Student with a disability expresses embarrassment/discomfort about having a paraprofessional; makes him or her stand out in negative ways.
What is Feeling Stigmatized.
500
Assisting teachers/providers with assessing learner needs, progress and achievement.
What is Assessing.
M
e
n
u