Paraprofessional Levels: Improving Student Learning

The authors went on to state that paraprofessionals “reported that they had some familiarity with the concept of self determined behavior for students with disabilities, with even lower levels of access to professional development opportunities pertaining to self-determined behaviors” (Lane, Carter, & Sisco, 2012, p. 246). Paraprofessionals are expected to play key roles in the education of students with severe disabilities, but they are not given the proper tools to complete this task successfully. Teachers, students and paraprofessionals would be greatly benefited if every person involved in the education of a child was properly trained.

My earliest memories of learning to read come from first grade and a book about a dog named Pug. I remember calling the words with concentration and focus, See Pug run. Run Pug, run. I don’t recall things improving much in the second grade “turtle” reading group I was assigned to. I struggled with fluency and confidence, especially in reading group, which consisted of sitting around the kidney bean table while each student read a page in turn. Fortunately, I had a proactive mother who borrowed a copy of the basal reader from the teacher and practiced the weekly story with me at home. Not only that, she read real literature to me, which ignited a passion for reading that was not developed in my primary classrooms.

Paraprofessionals and teachers play an important role in the success of children development. Typically, Paraprofessionals and teachers provide support and guidance in the classroom. When it was time for me to interview a Paraprofessional and teacher it was important to me to ask questions but also fully understand the answers that are given to me so that I can grow professionally when I became a paraprofessional or teacher. I asked both teachers the same questions and told them to elaborate on anything else they would like to discuss that goes on in the classroom. The role of the paraprofessional in the classroom environment is often imprecise and leaves too much room for clarification which can contribute to being frustrated in the role

Many students were reading below grade level, and Tyner needed an intensive reading model that could fill in the gaps of each student’s literacy. She began using a basal reading program called Early Steps (Morris, Tyner, & Perney, 2000). Tyner decided to use some of the components of Early Steps to develop her own reading model that would focus on the needs of beginning and struggling readers. The Small-Group Differentiated Reading Model consists of a framework specifically designed for beginning and struggling readers so that they may progress through the appropriate developmental stages and become proficient

he most fundamental responsibility of schools is teaching students to read. Indeed, the future success of all students hinges upon their ability to become proficient readers. Recent scientific studies have allowed us to understand more than ever before how literacy develops, why some children have difficulty, and what constitutes best instructional practice. Scientists now estimate that fully 95 percent of all children can be taught to read. Yet, in spite of all our knowledge, statistics reveal an alarming prevalence of struggling and poor readers that is not limited to any one segment of society:

Reading is a means of language acquisition, of communication, and of sharing information which is essential in being a productive member of society. If and when a student missed an opportunity to learn the skills necessary for reading, it’s has a profound impact on their lives. As educators we realize that teaching all children to read requires that every child receive excellent reading instruction. We are also aware that children, who are struggling with reading must receive

This course has provided a window into the resources and strategies available to create rich instruction for diverse needs of all literacy learners. The media segments and virtual field experiences provided models of the strategies and activities being conducted in the classroom. This was very helpful in implementing my own versions of those lessons with my literacy learner and completing the literacy development study. I believe this course has prepared me to be a more efficient educator when teaching students of diverse reading abilities. I plan to continue using my newfound knowledge and skills to create an enriching learning environment for all students in my classroom.

After taking time to reflect on working with paraprofessionals, there seems to be a few things that both teachers and paras should keep in mind. First, organization is key; however, organization has to branch out to more than just what assignments the students are doing. The whole day has to be well organized. However, both the para and the teachers do still have to work together when developing and planning students’ curriculum on an individual basis. Each student is different, and as such, teachers and paras need to know how to work with each of them (Hardman, Drew, and Egan, 2013; Heller, Forney, Alberto, Best, and Schwartzman, 2009; Polloway, Patton, and Serna, 2013). Moreover, the teachers and paras have to be able to work with each student’s related service providers, in order to help the student build progress. It is important know what other goals the student has, so that supports for them can be implemented throughout the day. However, working with all of these individuals can have its conflicts, and it is vital for everyone to have the skills needed to find respectful resolutions (Hardman et al., 2013; Heller et al., 2009; Polloway, Patton, and Serna, 2013). Finally, educators need to be aware that miscommunications happen, and they need to able to calmly, and correctly explain how strategies or classroom protocols should be carried out to ensure that everyone is on the same page (Hardman et al., 2013; Heller et al., 2009; Polloway, Patton, and Serna, 2013;

The article talks about how teachers get lost in the curriculum and don't think they have time to teach reading or that it's "not their job," and I feel like this is true for some of the teacher's that are still teaching in school. More recently though, I feel like schools and colleges are helping prepare teachers to help the students who need help with reading by reading aloud and having students silently read or follow along and suggests that teachers try other activities to help students. Seeing some students struggle with reading in subjects outside of the ELA classrooms need to be addressed and modified too, because like the article said, there's a lot of students who aren't fluent readers and then eventually check out of school which creates a whole new set of problems. Us as future teachers need to think of or learn ways that we can help these students instead of ignoring the issue and moving past it with lessons from the

I currently serve my school community outside of the classroom by participating in the Measures of Student Learning committee, Building Response Team, Positive Behavior Intervention Services committee, Professional Learning Communities and back up arrival and dismissal coordinator. My role in each of these groups has helped me learn more about the needs of the school beyond my classroom. I am continuously inspired to do more to make positive changes for the students. In addition to my classroom and committee support, I am now looking to expand my support to paraprofessionals, teachers and the principal.

Ber (2011) suggests that paraeducators can increase student learning but providing students with opportunities to improve self-sufficient behaviors. Asking leading questions can do this. By preparing paraeducators for instructional responsibilities will maximize instructional time spent with students. The research shows paraeducators can impact the amount of natural interactions students with disabilities with there non-disabilities (Collins and Wolery, 2012).

For a child who is just starting to learn to read, they need sufficient practice in reading a variety of different books to achieve fluency. Reading can be complex and has many different aspects (Burns,1999). It is suggested that children who have problems reading and writing at a young age will find it hard to catch up as they get older and will not reach their full potential as adults, many will withdraw from school or society and some becoming involved with crime (MacBlain,2014). 40 percent of children find learning to read a challenge but with early help, most reading problems can be prevented (Reading Rockets, n.d.).

Many students around the United States have reading difficulties, which can be due to a variety of reason such as: low socioeconomic status, family history of learning disabilities, a neurological disorder, limited exposure, etc. Reading difficulties can lead to further problems with education and learning, therefore the struggles should be addressed and intervention techniques should be implemented promptly. The interventions need to be individualized for the student based on their needs in order to improve the student’s reading to the best of their abilities.

Over the course of the semester, I have been fortunate enough to work with a student who is having difficulties when it comes to reading. My student does not have difficulties when it comes to hearing a word, but rather when he sees a word. My student has definitely benefited from one on one work with me as well as the additional help he’s getting from the reading specialist during their WIN (what I need) time. My student does not like to read because he knows that he is struggling and he is embarrassed about it. When my student goes to his WIN time, he does really well because the instruction is at his level and there are only two other students who are also on the same level there as well. Besides the current intervention, programs I would recommend are Direct Instruction: Reading Mastery, Letter Spacing, Wilson Reading System and the Lindamood program (LiPS).

This literature review will address the following topics/sub topics: importance of reading, fluency, phonics, word recognition, comprehension, what are reading difficulties, how to address reading difficulties, and the bottom up theory in reading.