Current Research on Paraprofessionals
The research on paraprofessionals reveals that often, bilingual paraprofessionals share the same socioeconomic status, culture, language and educational experiences of many English language learners (ELLs) in the schools.
Their intimate understanding of these students' cultural backgrounds, families, and communities, as well as the students' educational needs, contributes to warm and caring relationships between students, parents, and paraprofessionals, relationships that facilitate learning.
In addition, bilingual paraprofessionals play an indispensable role as brokers of the new culture and language for culturally and linguistically diverse students and their parents; they serve as the bridge between children and their families, and teachers and administrators.
As a result, bilingual paraprofessionals end up assuming many different roles and responsibilities.
These include translating for parents and school personnel, assisting teachers who are monolingual speakers of English in the instruction and assessment of students not yet proficient in that language, and clerical tasks.
This situation sometimes results in bilingual paraprofessionals complaining about a job that lacks the prestige and remuneration attached to performing instructional tasks in two languages, often with little or no training.
Scholars and children's advocates often highlight the contradiction of having English language learners and students with special needs, who need highly trained professionals, served by bilingual paraprofessionals who often have a high school diploma or the equivalent and are not systematically trained before or after being hired to perform the many demanding tasks involved in teaching.
Paraprofessionals' rich experiences in the classrooms, coupled with the shortage of certified teachers and the disproportionate number of White teachers serving an increasing number of ethnically and racially diverse students, led to the consideration that paraprofessionals in general, and bilingual paraprofessionals in particular, are natural candidates to become teachers.
Their intimate understanding of these students' cultural backgrounds, families, and communities, as well as the students' educational needs, contributes to warm and caring relationships between students, parents, and paraprofessionals, relationships that facilitate learning.
In addition, bilingual paraprofessionals play an indispensable role as brokers of the new culture and language for culturally and linguistically diverse students and their parents; they serve as the bridge between children and their families, and teachers and administrators.
As a result, bilingual paraprofessionals end up assuming many different roles and responsibilities.
These include translating for parents and school personnel, assisting teachers who are monolingual speakers of English in the instruction and assessment of students not yet proficient in that language, and clerical tasks.
This situation sometimes results in bilingual paraprofessionals complaining about a job that lacks the prestige and remuneration attached to performing instructional tasks in two languages, often with little or no training.
Scholars and children's advocates often highlight the contradiction of having English language learners and students with special needs, who need highly trained professionals, served by bilingual paraprofessionals who often have a high school diploma or the equivalent and are not systematically trained before or after being hired to perform the many demanding tasks involved in teaching.
Paraprofessionals' rich experiences in the classrooms, coupled with the shortage of certified teachers and the disproportionate number of White teachers serving an increasing number of ethnically and racially diverse students, led to the consideration that paraprofessionals in general, and bilingual paraprofessionals in particular, are natural candidates to become teachers.
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