Paraprofessional Certification

To whom it may concern, I would like to know the website that I would need to go on to take the Paraprofessional Test On-line before the year 2006, of January. If you could please e-mail me I would really appreciate it. My e-mail address is b_aquabine2@yahoo.com. Thank you in advance. Have a Blessed Day!! B.Williams :)

I would like to take the test does anyone know the step by step version? [/b]

I have been a teacher's aide for 15 years. About 8 years ago, we had a reading program called IST (Instructional Support Team). It met with alot of success, and a need was seen for a summer program that would enable the students to maintain that success. I am proud to say that it was my idea, and was met with enthusiasm by administrators when they were approached. Several things have happened, however; we now have a superintendent who seems to not like aides. He immediately made all aides Special Education Aides; there are now no aides for regular classroom teachers except for TSS Aides. Also, I could find no teachers willing to help with the program, so enlisted the assistance of another aide. Because we were attracting more students than another program ran by teachers, we were consolidated into one program. Ironically, we (NOT the teachers) were required to APPLY for the positions! In essence, we have gone from being in charge of a vital, well-recieved program to being "go-fers" within the new program. We have no input, our interaction with the children is secondary, and what we do consists of alot of busywork. My feeling is that if we are going to be required to get a degree or be tested (I should add that we have been informed that we will be required to do this), then we should not only be adequately compensated but for once treated as professionals. In our district, we are the lowest paid of all employees, below custodians and kitchen staff. While I believe they certainly should be well-paid, I feel that we should, too! I too would like to know what these tests will entail, whether they apply to all teacher's aides or only newly hired aides or Title 1 Aides, as was my understanding. I would also like to know if anyone knows of any programs which enable paraeducators to pursue an actual teaching degree, which enables us to ulitize the experience we now have and apply it toward such a degree, or any programs which have teacher training in return for a teaching commitment for a certain legnth of time. After all, with the teaching shortage, it would seem that many teacher's aides have the potential to be great teachers!

I've been looking over many of the posts, and a lot of folks seem to have questions about the parapro test. Any paraprofessional, current or new hire, now has to have 48 credit hours of college (60 in some states and districts), or an associates degree (or higher), or have scored high enough on the Parapro test to receive a passing score (the specific score required is dictated by state).

I have taken this test, being one credit hour short of the necessary fourty eight, and I have to say that in my opinion it has to be some kind of rather silly joke.

A person that cannot pass the Parapro has absolutely no place in a classroom. If you can't pass the Parapro, you probably can't add up the right change to give a customer in the McDonalds drive through either.

My fifth grader took the practice test and passed with flying colors. For me to consider that there might be a person in one of my children's classrooms that does not know the difference between a working verb and a preposition, or how to figure out what 70% of 200 is..is extremely scary. Most of all though, if you have been working in a classroom for years, and still cannot answer a simple question about how best a para can respond to questions from children, maybe you're in the wrong profession.

So, if anyone truly wishes to know what the test is about, and exactly how easy it is to pass..go to www.ets.org and find out.

I have to say that I am surprised to see how indignant people are about having to comply with these new laws. Doing this ensures that the people in the classroom are responsible individuals who have enough knowledge to do the best that they can for each child. How could that possibly be a bad thing? This is about educating the kids in the best way we can, and making things better for them, not about a pile of put-out paras who feel that their pride is taking a beating because they have been asked to prove they have the necessary skills to do the job. If you've been a para for a few years, you might well have developed skills that are valuable in the classroom, but they don't add up to a hill of beans if you are not able to handle the academics behind what you are trying to teach.

Compliances like these are designed to weed out the few bad eggs, I say, suck it up and comply. I did. This isn't about me, and my, or your, over-inflated ego. It's about the kids. Please remember that folks.

I would like to know if there were any sites where I could take the test at home; or do I have to go to a test site?

Do I have to take the test to be a para pro?  I currently have my bachelor degree in Management and working toward my Masters in Education and type 4 certification I was told to be a para pro now all i need is a letter from a superintendent is this true? Please help me get certified as a parapro