Review of Paraeducator Curriculum By Denise Ditto

1. Denise J Uitto
Consultant with Ohio SST 9
duitto@uakron.edu
NRCP Conference
April 16, 2015

2. 
Need for professional development
 Position Statement drafted for paraeducator &
supervision by teachers
Reasons for rubric development - laws,
professional standards
CEC Paraeducator Standards
Rubric development
Rubric criteria for analyzing curriculum
resources
Agenda

3. 
 Recommendation 1: State and local education agencies must develop
clear expectations for the role and responsibilities of
paraprofessionals.
 Recommendation 2: State and local education agencies must
operationalize the term “appropriately trained and supervised.”
 Recommendation 3: State and local education agencies must provide
competency-based, systematically-planned, and ongoing
professional development to ensure that paraprofessionals have the
content knowledge and skills “to assist in the provision of special
education and related services under this part to children with
disabilities.”
Recommendations

4. 
Summary
“Therefore research on professional development supports
competency-based, systematically-planned, and ongoing training for
paraprofessionals, which aligns with a comprehensive system plan of
professional development plan referenced in IDEA 2004. Professional
development for paraprofessionals needs to be competency-based
with a set of standards such as state standards or The Common Core
Professional Development Standards for Paraeducators in Special Education;
systematically-planned; and ongoing with plans from orientation and
preservice to inservice training and coaching. Careful planning is
essential and based upon the systematic review of research involving
professional development for paraprofessionals, as Brock and Carter
(2013) state ‘careful planning and forethought are essential for
paraprofessionals to appropriately and effectively support students
with individualized goals and complex support needs’ (p. 217).”

5. 
IDEA 2004 stipulates that State Education
Associations “must establish and maintain
qualifications to ensure that personnel
necessary to carry out the purposes of this part
are appropriately prepared and trained,
including that those personnel have the
content knowledge and skills to serve
children with disabilities” (Authority: 20
U.S.C. 1412(a)(14)).
Legislation

6. 
Advocate for professional learning, professional
conditions & resources to improve learning
outcomes of students
Provide guidance and direction to paraeducators,
tutors, & volunteers (observation, constructive
feedback, on-the-job training such as coaching)
Assure paraeducators have appropriate training
for assigned tasks
Assign only tasks for which para is prepared
CEC Standards for
Supervision of Paras
CEC Ethical Principles, Practice Standards, Preparation Standards

7. Provide instruction based on lesson plans by teacher
Reinforce learning with individuals/ small groups
Provide assistance with class activities
Prepare & produce instructional materials
Assist individual students - personal care
Assist with ongoing behavior management
Implement accommodations/modifications
Assist with data collection
Para Roles- Under direction of ...
CEC Para Standards, French, 2003; Ashbaker & Morgan, 2009

8. 
“As a trained facilitator, … I have to spend a
great deal of my own personal time, getting
ideas together and trying to find free or cheap
ways to get the information to my districts
paras. They do not want to do anything outside
of school time as they won't be reimbursed and
that sets the tone for a lot of my workshops.”
(Connecticut Paraprofessional Professional
Development Survey)
Need for Curriculum

9. 
Aligned with laws? (teacher as supervisor)
How to present? (workshop, case studies,
book study)
What content? (general vs specialized)
Aligned with CEC standards?
Knowledge or skill development?
(comprehension, practice, application into
classroom)
When? By whom? What cost?
QUESTIONS:

10. 
Designed to assist professional
development presenters &
teachers with a means to
analyze published curricula
Purpose of Rubric

11. 
Knowledgeable of the differentiation
of teacher & para roles
Expectations for practice & transfer
into the classroom
Background knowledge of classroom
practices
Presenter Knowledge

12. 
Defined roles of team members
System to encourage observation/
constructive feedback & coaching with
para to encourage knowledge transfer
Time, costs for training
Note: Necessity of teacher supervision
Infrastructure

13. 
Council for Exceptional Children
Common Core Professional
Development Standards for
Paraeducators in Special
Education
https://www.cec.sped.org/Standards/Paraeducator-Preparation-
Guidelines?sc_lang=en

14. 
Knowledge statements suggest basic
knowledge or understanding is critical
Skills statements, by definition, include
all knowledge & competencies
necessary to perform the skill
IDEA 2004 …content knowledge and
skills to serve children with disabilities
Components of Standards

15. 1. Foundations of special education
2. Development & characteristics of learners
3. Individual learning differences
4. Instructional strategies
5. Learning environments/ Social interactions
6. Language
7. Instructional planning
8. Assessment
9. Professional & ethical practice
10. Collaboration
CEC Standards – Core
knowledge & skills

16. 
Presentation of theory
Demonstration of a skill or modeling
Practice of the skill within the training
setting with feedback
Coaching for application for significant
increase in the transfer of training to the
classroom
How to present - Research on PD
(Joyce and Showers, 2002)

17. 
 Build on experiences & prior learning
 Align with a set of standards
 Focus on specific instructional practices integrated
into the classroom practice
 Active learning strategies for engagement by
participants
 Use collaborative opportunities or group learning
 Embed follow-up and feedback to support the
implementation of instructional practices
Characteristics of high-quality
professional development
Desimone, Porter, & Garet, 2002; Garet, Porter, & Desimone, 2001

18. 1. Congruence with NCLB/IDEA requirements –
teacher as supervisor
2. Type of Content - initial/ specialized
3. Presentation materials available for use
4. Alignment with CEC Standards – analysis of
learning
5. Knowledge base &/or Skill application
6. System defined for the professional growth of
paraeducator
Criteria to Analyze Curricula

19. 
Knowledge – recognition (informal
assessments)
Knowledge - comprehension (reaction, case
scenario)
 Application of skills in simulated setting
(modeling by participant, role play, practicum
exercises)
Skill competence within natural environment
(observation & constructive feedback by
licensed professional)
Rubric Analysis of Learning

20.  Ashbaker, B. & Morgan, J. (2009). Supporting and supervising your teacher
assistant.
 Brock, M.E. & Carter, E.W. (2013). Effects of a professional development
package to prepare special education paraprofessionals to implement
evidence-based practice. The Journal of Special Education, 20, 1-13.
 Bruce, J. & Showers, J. (2002). Designing Training and Peer Coaching: Our
needs for learning, VA: ASCD
 Desimone, L.M., Porter, A.C. Garet, M.S. (2002). Effects of professional
development on teachers’ instruction: Results from a three-year
longitudinal study. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 24(2), 81-112.
 French, N.K. (2003) Managing Paraeducators in Your School: How to Hire,
Train, and Supervise Non-Certified Staff
 Garet, M. S., Porter, A.C. , Desimone, L. (2001). What makes professional
development effective? Results from a national sample of teachers.
American Educational Research Journal, 38(4), 915-945.
References