Does My Student REALLY Need a 1:1 Para-Educator?

Within our blogs, we have written about the changes in education and society in general that have evolved over these past several years. Some of these changes are good, while others create challenges within systems. One of these items of change is how people in public education keep up with the ever increasing demands from some of their students. Over the past two decades, a popular addition to school systems are one on one pare-educators. During this stretch of time, the one on one para has gained in popularity among schools across the country. This classified staff member is typically assigned to a student who has challenges beyond what a classroom teacher is able to cope with. This, in addition to the twenty some other students in their room can create situations that call for systems to do something different in the way of support. In certain instances, having this support person within a classroom where some challenges exist is a good thing. These individuals can provide the support students may need in order for that particular student to be successful. I would beg to take some steps back for a moment however and explore what components could be looked at in determining the need for a one on one para-educator.

This is a topic I happen to be super passionate about for many reasons. As a former special education teacher as well as special education director, I have been able to look at this item from different perspectives. In my professional opinion, this is a complicated issue where a "once size fits all" approach cannot be taken. Each and every student should be looked at from an individualized perspective. We owe that not only to the students but also staff members as well. I would like to explore this topic by asking some questions.

1. What are the issues that suggests the student needs a one on one para-educator?

2. Have there been MDT meetings to explore interventions before assigning a one on one para-educator to a student?

3. Is there data and other evidence to support the need for a one on one para-educator?

4. What are the parent's thoughts on having a specific adult working with their son or daughter?

5. What type of training will be provided for the para educator who will be working with the student?

6. Is there a fade out plan in place?

Please allow me to look at this topic from the above mentioned questions. I am certain there are more to consider but these are what typically drive the one on one para. From my professional opinion and that alone, I find the one on one para-educator one of the most restrictive spots on the special education continuum. If a student is unable to function without the aid of an adult working with them mort to all of their day, that does become very restrictive. I am not saying to not head in this direction but please make sure you have eliminated all other possibilities first.

1. First and foremost, what are the issues? Is the student lagging academically and perhaps they may need extra support to help beef up skills? Does the student have violent outbursts that create an unsafe environment for all? What is the proposed purpose for wanting one on one support person? These are very relevant, yet not an exhaustive list of questions to consider. If the student has behavior that disrupts the health, safety and or the learning environment, it is the responsibility of the district and team to work on solutions to resolve these issues. From my recent past, the trend for wanting a one on one support person is due to violent behaviors or complete disregard for any type of authority. These items typically are what typically drives teams into discussing a one one one person for the student. I stress the word "discussion" as this should be where teams land in order to begin problem solving the issues.

2. Meetings and action items are necessary steps in determining if the student warrants the need for one on one support. I would recommend a planning meeting where the team can discuss the behaviors and or situations the student is struggling with. Within this part of the planning, it can end up being a gripe session. This is not what teams should be here for so I would advocate to have an agenda where each section is timed. This way, teams will not get lost in the weeds circling back to the problem at hand. One person should facilitate these meetings and another should be the designated time keeper. This way, the meetings should run with efficiency and end promptly within the time parameters. If the team feels they need more time to finish up, repeat the same types of steps at a second meeting. Please, please do not hold people hostage for hours lamenting about the problem at hand. By the time the teams are in meeting mode, people know what the general issues are.

Interventions should be created and worked on with the student. Whomever is in charge of working on these agreed upon interventions NEEDS to stick with them until the agreed upon time frame (hopefully AT LEAST a few weeks) is up. (Sorry about the all capital letters but..... one thing that grumped me up something big was when the team spent time setting up specific interventions for students and the team member in charge of implementing the interventions would say something such as "I tried it a couple of times and it didn't work, so I stopped." When working on the interventions, whether it be the teacher, counselor, para-educator, bus driver etc, fidelity of the interventions is critical. There is also a super strong need for detailed and solid data. This guides the team as to what direction to head. We owe this commitment to our students. Once the designated intervention time is completed, the team will need to meet to discuss next steps.

3. Speaking of data- does the team have enough data to support the use of a one on one support person? If specific interventions are working, the team should stick with these to ensure the situation is improving for the student. If not, you should have the data to support your stand. This section is pretty plain and simple. Tell the story of the student through your detailed data.

4. What does the parent think about a one on one person working with their student? Most generally, I have found the majority of parents will not say "no" to extra support for their students. I would certainly caution the team to make sure the parent knows this should be a situation where the para would not be working with their student for the whole of the student's school career. I would also make sure they understand that many times with a one on one situation, a co-dependent relationship can happen between the student and adult. This can lead to other adults, substitutes and even the classroom teacher to not be able to be affective with the student. Please try and avoid this relational dependency.

5. I have seen many times, a para-educator is hired for these unique situations. They appear to have at least a beginning skill set to accomplish these tasks yet, how are these people getting trained? It is unrealistic to hire someone off the street, even if they have massive potential, plop them into a challenging situation with a challenging set of behaviors and not give them training. In the last district I worked in, we set up trainings for our para-educators monthly and then offered more intensive trainings for our paras who were working in one on one situations. The para educators deserve this and so do the students they are working with. Without trainings, most generally, you will get burned out para-educators who feel helpless when not equipped with the proper tools necessary to help students become successful.

One other tidbit here- people within the system also need to be respectful of the para-educator and not expect too much of them. The classroom teacher is still the lead with each of their students. It is not the responsibility of the one on one para-educator to take care of everything for the student they are assigned to.

6. Is there a fade out plan in place? This is another sticky place educational systems can end up. Once the one on one para is working with the student and things begin to roll better for the classroom, over time, a fade out plan should be put into place. Why? Going back to the element of dependency, this can be an issue that is challenging to resolve if let go for too long. We do not want the students to become dependent on their one on one para-educator. As time marches on, I would hope the para would be able to fade out with the student they are working with. If things are working the way they should and the behavior plans are successful, there should no longer be a need for that student to have a one on one support person. I have also found, as the students get older, say upper elementary into middle school age, they do not want to have an adult with them day in, day out. These are the times when student want to fit in more with their peers. Having an adult helping them each day can be stifling for the student. Of course, you also want to make sure the student is ready for the fade. There is also opportunity for the para to work with another student who may need specialized support. They will surely be waiting in the wings.

-Footnotes-

-One alternative I have advocated for is a para-educator who most generally works with a particular student during a school day but they also help anyone else within the given classroom who need it. This way, the dependency doesn't always happen and the other students and teacher can benefit from having another adult in their classroom.

-If there is a need for a one on one para-educator due to student behavior issues, make certain their is a behavior plan in place that not only meets the needs of the student but is also followed with fidelity. Data collection again is key here.

-Sometimes the personalities of the one on one para-educator and student clash. This can make an attempt to help into more of a negative situation. Be thoughtful about moving adults around if necessary.

Lastly- This perhaps feels I am completely against having one on one support for students. I am not opposed to it but feel it is a situation that needs to be handled thoughtfully and with plans to make sure classrooms are running smoothly. Please do keep in mind there are extreme circumstances where teams will want to find the quickest short term solution depending on the intensity of the issues. There may be instances where a one on one para-educator needs to be established to help de-escalate situations. You cannot spent tons of time prepping for this. In the interim however, please keep the above mentioned steps in motion while the temporary diffusion is being worked on. With time, you will be able to work on a solid and successful plan for the student.

As always, have a great day and keep on teaching!