Appropriate Guidelines for Working with Special Education Paraprofessionals
From the WEAC Education Support Professionals Committee
Skilled special education paraprofessionals are employed to improve the quality of education and services and to help ensure supportive, inclusive, safe, and healthy learning environments for children, youth, and staff. Guidelines for roles and professional development help special education paraprofessionals be qualified for their assigned positions.
- Administrators and teachers/providers should create environments that recognize special education paraprofessionals as valued team members and effectively integrate them into teams.
- Characteristics of successful team environments include providing time and mechanisms for special education paraprofessionals to participate in communications with teachers about progress on student goals and behavior.
- Team environments should recognize the value of appropriately trained special education paraprofessionals.
- Special education paraprofessionals should be respected and supported in their team roles by policymakers, administrators, teachers/providers, and families.
- Successful relationships between paraprofessionals and teachers should be based on mutual respect.
- Recommended practices for successful teams include permitting special education paraprofessionals to have access to Individual Education Plans (I.E.P.) and behavior plans for special education students.
- Special education paraprofessionals, when practicable, should be involved in I.E.P. meetings.
- Members of all program planning and implementation teams should participate within clearly defined roles in changing, dynamic environments to provide learner-centered and individualized experiences and services for all children and youth and their families.
- Paraprofessionals should receive pre- and in-service professional development provided by the district/agency and opportunities for continuing education or career advancement offered by institutions of higher education.
- Teachers/providers responsible for supervising the work of paraprofessionals should have the skills necessary to plan for, direct, provide on-the-job training for and monitor the performance of paraprofessionals.
Posted April 17, 2007