paraprofessional sfueling change

Presenter: Dr. Ashleigh MolloyPresenter: Dr. Ashleigh MolloyDirectorDirector

Transformation Education InstituteTransformation Education Institute

[email protected]@transedinstitute.orgwww.transedinstitute.orgwww.transedinstitute.org

NRC Paraprofessional Conference

Hartford, Connecticut 2008

Session ObjectivesSession Objectives

• Validation of a paras role in fuelling change.

• To learn strategies that promote student success.

• Identification of the significant role paras serve in facilitating inclusion

• Present current research on learning styles.

• Provide a healthy presentation based on the release of endorphins

www.transedinstitute.orgwww.transedinstitute.org

What are Paraprofessionals?(My Take)

What are Paraprofessionals?(My Take)

• Paras are like… BAYER ASPIRIN They work miracles.

• Paras are like… FORD They have better ideas.


What are Paraprofessionals?What are Paraprofessionals?

• Paras are like… COKE They are the real thing. • Paras are like… HALLMARK CARDS They care enough to send their very best.



• Paras are like… GENERAL ELECTRIC They bring good things to life. • Paras are like… ALLSTATE Your in good hands with them.



• Paras are like… V0-5 HAIR SPRAY They hold through all kinds of weather. • Paras are like… US POSTAL SERVICE Neither rain, nor snow, nor ice will keep them

from their appointed task.


• But Most of all… C.E.C supporters are like FROSTED

FLAKES. They’re GRRRRREAT!!!!!



Paraeducator : Current StatusParaeducator : Current Status

• Fastest growing position in public education• 1989: 100,000 nationwide• 2001: 930,000• 2005: estimated 38% increase

What is a Paraprofessional?(Haim Ginott)

What is a Paraprofessional?(Haim Ginott)

• “I’ve come to a frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It’s my personal approach that creates the climate…I possess a tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humour, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or dehumanized.”

Elevator VideoElevator Video

Fuelling Change: Your Tool BoxFuelling Change: Your Tool Box

• Experiential knowledge• You come with experiential knowledge based on your

previous roles in life. These include being a sibling, parent, family, community member and working roles.

• These are lived experiences that empowers one with skills and abilities that have been accumulated.

• Literacy examples: reading bedtime stories, oral communication of day’s events at dinner table.

• Numeracy examples: helping with math homework, board games, activities.

• Formal knowledge• Schooling• Professional development and courses

Para as Partner in Student GoalsPara as Partner in Student Goals

• To increase independence and decrease dependence.

• To assist the student to reach his/her potential (using the IEP where applicable as the road map).

• To increase peer interaction and inclusion.• To use appropriate strategies and materials.• To model appropriate behaviour and

communication.• To achieve student success.

Create a Sense of WelcomeCreate a Sense of Welcome

Para’s GoalsPara’s Goals

• Lifelong learner

• Effective service to students

• Empowered (internally and externally) contributor

• Supporter of inclusion

• Collaborative team

member

Paraprofessional’s HopeParaprofessional’s Hope• I wish for a teacher who will see me as a colleague with

contributions to make.

• I wish for a teacher who will see me as an assistant to all children, though with particular focus on a few.

• I wish for a teacher who will ask for my ideas.

• I wish for a teacher who will see me as a person, but feel free to guide me as a tool to benefit children.

• I wish for a teacher who will challenge me to do my best.

• I wish for a teacher in whom I can see a role model

Gary Bunch, York University

• T ogether

• E ach

• A chieves

• M ore

Plane videoPlane video

Teams Moving ForwardTeams Moving Forward

• Respect and communication. That’s what teachers and paras say makes an effective classroom team.

• Paras are better able to use research-based techniques when the teachers are also using them.

• Paras do a better job of assisting students individually when the special education teacher and classroom teacher communicate about what kinds of assistance the child needs, what kinds of modifications, how the para can help other students etc.

“Knowledge is Power”“Knowledge is Power”

Albert Einstein

Knowledge is PowerKnowledge is Power

Teams work best if you know the following:• What is to be done

• What teaching, process and evaluation accommodations need to be created for the student to be successful?

• Adapted materials• Manual supports (scribing, reading, holding)• Extra time to do the work, less work to do• Incorporating multi-model strategies• Added visual, auditory or tactile cues

What support does the para need to be helpful to the student?

• Time to find or create materials• Help in creating materials• Training in the use of materials or equipment• Training in the use of specific teaching or

behavioural techniques

What is the para to do if the student does not cooperate? Is there a behaviour program in

place?

• The para should be able to give information about the student’s response to accommodations and other supports.

Who is to offer the support?

• No student needs support all the time; sometimes having the student work with peers is helpful and necessary.

• Sometimes the student must work with the teacher to build the student-teacher relationship which is critical to learning.

• At times, the student needs to work alone to experience autonomy of learning, if he/she has never worked alone, he/she may think she can’t.

• 6 foot rule

Helpful HintsHelpful Hints

• Watch your voice and volume. Discussions often disrupt the learning environment.

• Maintain student dignity (e.g., be discreet about individual student needs like oral and body language, culture, physical needs, etc.).

Group ActivityGroup Activity

The Skills: CommunicationThe Skills: Communication

• With staff colleagues, administration, parents, and students.

• Confidentiality, freedom of information.

• On regular basis (e.g., daily journal with home, dedicated discussion with teacher).


Principles of CommunicationPrinciples of Communication

• 7% is verbal (what you actually say with words)• 93% is non-verbal

- Tone, volume, cadence (38%)

- Body language and facial expression (55%)

Sensory ModalitySensory Modality

The Para as “Change Agent” in Inclusion

Research and Methodology

The Para as “Change Agent” in Inclusion

Research and Methodology

The Meaning of InclusionThe Meaning of Inclusion

When one student is not a full participant in his/her school community, then we are all at

risk

Inclusion: A Matter of Social Justice

ASCD, October 2003



Much of the best research suggests that for struggling learners, homogeneous learning

experiences are not beneficial.

e.g., Oakes, 1985; Slavin, 1993



“Inviting all children to learn together in classrooms creates an environment where they learn to work effectively with those

different from themselves, where learning increases for all, and where a sense of

belonging is pervasive.” Whole Schooling Consortium


Classroom CultureClassroom Culture

The inclusive classroom is one that has accepted the right of any student to

participate with all others in the process of learning. Difference in race, ethnicity, and

gender do not lessen that right. Neither does difference in ability. All learners are

accepted as members of the classroom community as equal participants within

their abilities and needs.

Inclusion: Basic PrinciplesInclusion: Basic Principles

• Each student should participate, at some level, in all classroom activities.

• All children have individual abilities and needs that should be recognized.

• All children are learners.

• Teachers, paras and students are colleagues in the act of learning.


The Differentiated Classroom:Guiding Principles


• Begin where students are, by referring to the student profile.

• Recognize that learners differ in important ways.

• Engage students through different learning modalities, appealing to different interests, using varied rates of instruction and with varying degrees of complexity.




• Individual benchmarks for learning.

• Do not assume one learner’s road map applies to another learner.

• Flexible schedules to accommodate the learner.

• Shape the curriculum and environment to each learner.

Adapted from: The Differentiated Classroom

Carol Ann Tomlinson 1999


The Differentiated Classroom:Universal Design for Learning (UDL)


“With the premise that each student can benefit from a flexible curriculum offering clear goals, multiple pathways for reaching

those goals, and fair and accurate assessment, the Universal Design

Curriculum reflects an understanding that each learner is unique.”

Hitchcock, Meyer, Rose and Jackson, 2002




• Universality and equity• Develop class profile.• Apply wide range of instructional methods to

meet needs of all students.

• Flexibility and inclusion• Make use of all senses, technology, assessment

strategies, and ways of using space.




• Appropriately designed space• Clear sight, resources at reach, space for assistive devices,

hand grip size, minimization of distraction.

• Simplicity• Communicating consistent expectations.

• Arranging info sequentially.

• Breaking down instructions into small steps.

• Providing effective feedback.

• Safety Adapted from: Education for All, Ontario Ministry of Education, 2005




“In a diverse classroom, no single method can reach all learners. Multiple pathways to

achieving goals are needed.”

Hitchcock, Meyer, Rose and Jackson, 2002


What is Differentiated Instruction?What is Differentiated Instruction?

• Differentiation is not a set of tools but a philosophy that an educator embraces to reach the unique needs of every learner. Gregory and Chapman, 2002

• The practice of adjusting the curriculum, teaching strategies and the classroom environment to meet the needs of all students ( Tomlinson, 2001)

• A way of responding to student differences related to their learning readiness, interests, and learning profile


Teachers need to consider:

Environment Content Process Product

According to students’

Readiness Interests Learning Styles



1. Can the students do the same activity at the same level as her classmates?

2. If not, can she do the same activity with adapted expectations?

3. If not, can she do the same activity with adapted expectations and materials?

4. If not, can she do a different parallel activity?

5. If not, can she do a different activity in a different part of the room?

6. If not, can she do a functional activity in a part of the lessonadopted from the work by Mary Falvey, Ph.D (U’Cal/ Los Angeles)

A FrameworkA Framework

ContentContent

(input)(input)Process Process

(how)(how)ProductProduct

(output)(output)

ReadinessReadiness

InterestInterest

Learning Learning ProfileProfile

Student factors

Curriculum Factors

How Boys and Girls LearnHow Boys and Girls Learn

• Learning and behavior disorders:• Boys make up 90% of discipline problems• Boys make up 2/3 of the learning disabled• Boys make up 90% of the behaviorally disabled• Boys make up 80% of ADD/ADHD diagnoses• Boys make up 70% of those with serious drug

and alcohol problems

The Current Situation: Underachieving BoysThe Current Situation: Underachieving Boys

• Girls receive approximately 60% of A’s

• Boys receive approximately 70% of D’s and F’s (D=50-59 F=less than 50)

• More girls than boys choose the harder courses in high school

• Girls spend more time studying than boys do

The Unique Nature of BoysThe Unique Nature of Boys

• Boys love movement and space

• Girls: WORDS; Boys: ACTION

• Vision is the male’s best-developed mode of sensing and acquiring information.

(Michael Gurian, 1995)

Boys and Literacy TestingBoys and Literacy Testing

• 1 1/2 years’ difference in language development between boys and girls.

• “standardized” testing does not take this difference into account.

• boys will always be “behind”.

Boys and Literacy: Practical Strategies

Boys and Literacy: Practical Strategies

Boys and SpeakingBoys and Speaking• Boys take longer to formulate their thoughts (and

feelings!) into words.• W – A – I – T • Wait longer for hands to go up.• Read previously written answers• Use concrete/spatial visual aids: e.g., bristol board

displays, powerpoint presentations, show-and-tell, maps.


Boys and ListeningBoys and Listening

• Boys do not hear as well as girls.• Boys are not as good at discriminating between

foreground and background noise.• Boys are “flooded” by repetitive aural stimulation

(saying the same thing 5 different ways).• Boys have a “surge protector” and will shut down when

over-loaded (stop hearing).

Boys and ReadingBoys and Reading

• Read to them aloud (the primacy of story)• Draw/doodle while listening.• Give choice of whether to read aloud and for how

long (“reading trauma”).• Give choice of reading material.• Diagramming stories - make it visual/spatial (maps,

plot graphs, charts, board games).• Drama.

Boys and WritingBoys and Writing

• Three kinds of writing: • Narrative (What is happening?)• Descriptive (What does it look like?)• Expository (What do you think?)

• boys like narrative best.• “I pass over the long descriptions.”• abstract thinking in boys evolves around 16-17.

Call-on RatiosCall-on Ratios

• Boys get called on more than girls, usually for negative reasons.

• Boys dominate, attention seek.

• Girls pull back.

• Boys act out.

• Girls act in.

• Girls need one-on-one connection as much or more than the boys do.

• Girls connect through words (face to face)

Boys Boys connectconnect through through actionaction (shoulder to (shoulder to shoulder)shoulder)

Physical MovementPhysical Movement

• Girls have better fine motor skills (printing and cursive writing)

• Girls are better at multi-tasking

Boys prefer one task Boys prefer one task at a time (and one at a time (and one instruction at a time)instruction at a time)

Boys do not transition Boys do not transition between tasks as well between tasks as well as girls doas girls do

Boys prefer to deal in Boys prefer to deal in the immediate the immediate momentmoment

Gardner’s Multiple IntelligencesGardner’s Multiple Intelligences

• Wide range of interlocking abilities.

• Opens up many areas in which a learner may show capability.

• Learner no longer needs to be judged solely in terms of verbal, linguistic or mathematical achievement.


Gardner’s Multiple IntelligencesGardner’s Multiple IntelligencesIntelligenceIntelligence ExampleExample

Visuo/spatial (picture-smart)Visuo/spatial (picture-smart) Navigator, sculptor, architectNavigator, sculptor, architect

Existentialist (abstract-Existentialist (abstract-smart)smart)

Philosopher, theoristPhilosopher, theorist

Interpersonal (people smart)Interpersonal (people smart) Counselor, politician, Counselor, politician, salespersonsalesperson

Intrapersonal (self-smart)Intrapersonal (self-smart) Researcher, novelist, Researcher, novelist, entrepreneurentrepreneur

Bodily/kinesthetic (body Bodily/kinesthetic (body smart)smart)

Athlete, firefighter, actorAthlete, firefighter, actor

Musical/rhythmic (music Musical/rhythmic (music smart)smart)

Musician, composer, DJMusician, composer, DJ

Verbal/linguistic (word-smart)Verbal/linguistic (word-smart) Journalist, teacher, lawyerJournalist, teacher, lawyer

Logical/mathematical (logic-Logical/mathematical (logic-smart)smart)

Engineer, programmer, Engineer, programmer, accountantaccountant

Naturalist (nature-smart)Naturalist (nature-smart) Environmentalist, farmer, Environmentalist, farmer, botanistbotanist

Learning StylesLearning Styles

“I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can

learn.”

Albert Einstein


Paraprofessional ReflectionParaprofessional Reflection

• Open, honest and direct communication is a very important part of developing a healthy education team.

• Requires that your team actually finds time to meet.

• Use a formal agenda in order to stay focused on our tasks.

• Discuss: Training/concerns/curriculum planning.

Paraprofessionals Do Make A Difference: A Parent’s Reflection

Paraprofessionals Do Make A Difference: A Parent’s Reflection

In my personal experience, paras have always made a difference in my daughter’s life.

Lindsey, who has Down syndrome, started junior kindergarten at the young age of 4. I was totally overwhelmed with the idea of my baby girl away from mom. Elizabeth Mora was assigned to be Lindsey’s para. She was with Lindsey through the primary grades.

To say this lady made a difference in my daughter’s life is an understatement. This para was compassionate, caring, patient, loving and very much the advocate for Lindsey. Yet she was firm and did chastise when the need arose. They understood each other.

When Lindsey started school, she was well on her way to read. She loved books. Elizabeth continued the reading, taught manners and helped Lindsey with peer-interaction. Our little girl became very sociable at school with most of the other students. Thank you Elizabeth!

Grateful Mom, Michelle Molloy

“ We will be known forever by the tracks we make”

-Native American Proverb

ResourcesResources-Ask a specialist, website answering questions in the Ask a specialist, website answering questions in the areas of Behavior, ADHD, Medical Issues, Assistive areas of Behavior, ADHD, Medical Issues, Assistive Technology and Secondary Issues Technology and Secondary Issues www.dcn-cde.ca.govwww.dcn-cde.ca.gov- Authors:Authors:

- Kent Gerlach- Kent Gerlach- Anna Lou Pickett- Anna Lou Pickett- Terry Wallace- Terry Wallace- Marilyn Likins - Marilyn Likins

-Dr Ash’s Contact: Dr Ash’s Contact:

[email protected]@transedinstitute.org