Resources

I went over to YouTube tonight to look for paraeducator videos- I was only able to find one, but it is a good one from the National Education Association. Watch Arthur Goff explains how he became a paraprofessional and tell about some of his experiences:

Anyone else willing to video yourself talking about the importance of paraprofessionals? If you do, post it to YouTube and let us know!

Are there any Facebook users out there?

Facebook is an online social network where over 50 million (and growing) users go to keep in touch with friends and acquaintances. The National Resource Center for Paraprofessionals has created a presence on Facebook for anyone who is interested to keep track of what we are doing and find other paraprofessionals online. There are two different ways to plug in to the National Resource Center on Facebook:

In last month's newsletter we mentioned an online paraeducator survey that is part of a study underway and hosted at three major universities in Arizona, California, and Florida.

Here is an announcement from the survey administrators:

A Survey of Paraeducators

Your opinion matters to us! Are you a paraeducator who works in a classroom where students with disabilities are educated alongside of their peers without disabilities? What you do and how you work with the children and the teachers is the subject of a study underway and hosted at three major universities in Arizona, California, and Florida! Co-principal investigators Ann Nevin and Ida Malian attended our conference in Albuquerque. Those who attended their session gave feedback on a previous version of the survey which they said was easy to follow!

Take the Paraeducator Survey here

If you have any questions or want to add any details, please contact Ida Malian or Ann Nevin.

I found a blog tonight titled Teaching Learners with Multiple Special Needs by Kate who writes about "resources and ideas for teachers of learners with severe, profound, intensive, significant, complex or multiple special needs." The site is worth bookmarking for the tremendous collection of links and resources running down the left hand side of the page.

The Iowa Department of Education and Kirkwood Community College have graciously allowed us to share this wonderful video that offers a sneak peek into the daily life of a paraeducator.

Web 2.0 refers to online web sites and tools that encourage users to share and collaborate. It turns out that paraprofessionals have not been left out of this latest Internet revolution. Take a look at some of the great paraprofessional resources available from others just like you. Remember, these resources are all about collaboration, so feel free to throw in your own ideas, pictures or links!

The first place we'll take you is to Yahoo! Answers where a number of people have asked (and answered) questions about paraprofessionals. We have our own set of Frequently Asked Questions, but if you question isn't answered there chances are somebody else has already asked it. If not, ask away! Yahoo! Answers Paraprofessional Questions

"The Paraprofessor" has started a new paraeducator blog titled paraeducator.info. There are only a few posts thus far, but he seems to be doing a great job of finding interesting paraeducator news such as this Feel Good Photo of the Day and a link to an article on the Paraeducator Paradox as well as a response article.

Stop by to see his other posts and leave a comment. If anyone else out there is interested in setting up a blog to talk about life as a paraprofessional, let us know and we would love to help you set one up!

The Education Support Professionals division of the National Education Association has made available two excellent publications that you can download or view online.

The NEA Paraeducator Handbook

The NEA Paraeducator Handbook acknowledges the important role that paraeducators play in the educational system.

From the Handbook:

This Handbook is intended as an information source for paraeducators to give them a strong and accurate sense of the increasing nation-wide recognition that they are full-fledged members of the professional education team.