EARLY ED PARAEDUCATOR

 Burlington School District

PARAEDUCATOR VACANCY

A. SCOPE OF WORK: 

In collaboration with professional staff, the para educator will facilitate the skills necessary for the development of language, social-emotional skills, and gross and fine motor skills within a variety of settings (1:1 , small group or classroom) to support the developmental growth of each child through a play based environment. Responsibilities include supporting their child with activities in the classroom, instructional work goals developed by the Special Education team, as well as personal hygiene. Experience in early childhood is preferred but not mandatory. Training is provided by the program.

B. ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: 

This section outlines the fundamental job functions that must be performed in this position.  This includes: 

• Qualifications/Basic Job Requirements 
• Physical and Mental/Reasoning Requirements 
• Work Environment 

These areas state the underlying requirements that an employee must meet in order to perform these essential functions.  In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, reasonable accommodations may be made to qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.

1. Support the developmental growth of each child through:

a. Facilitating children's engagement in play activities by:

• enthusiastically engaging children in play
• asking children open ended questions about the child's activity
• offering children suggestions / adding more complex materials and ideas

b. Facilitate Language Development by:

• describing to children their activity as well as the adult's activity as they are happening
• expanding on the child's language

c. Use motivation/positive behavior management technique

• Respond appropriately to children's acting out/negative behaviors by modelling, encouraging acceptable behavior, redirecting, setting clear limits
• Support children through problem solving when frustrated or having personal struggles
• Effectively model to children ways of handling anger and frustration
• Effectively use steps to solve and avoid behavior problems
• Listen to each child's version of a disagreement
• Use guidance, redirection and understanding rather than punishment
• Quickly assess if a child is a danger to themselves or others
• Discuss and help children deal with anger and grief
• Give children ideas on how to better handle situations
• Reinforce positive behavior guiding and redirecting children in a positive way and helping children make good choices.
• Help children build self-esteem and positive feelings towards learning

d. Understanding young children, their behaviors and motivation:

• Understands and applies principles of child development
• Use age appropriate rules and language
• Consistently apply rules
• Always considers what is best for individual children
• Teaches self-reliance
• Is sensitive and develops an understanding of how a child's disability may impact his/her development
• Accepts there is more than one answer and recognizes children learn from self-directed problem solving and experimentation

2. Work Collaboratively with Teaching Team by:

• Following IEP Objectives and Behavior Plans
• Using methods, materials prescribed by the teaching team
• Actively participating in team planning by giving input and offering ideas
• Assisting professional staff in supervising students across environments
• Assisting professional staff in the maintenance and operation of classrooms by prepping materials and classroom for daily activities
• Assisting staff and students with appropriate materials and equipment
• Participate in scheduled paraeducator in-service and trainings
• Assist professional staff with the collation, collating and recording of data
• Willing to learn about children and their needs to better handle situations and problems.
• Perform other tasks and duties as appropriate and/or assigned

3. Maintain Professionalism:

• Accept constructive feedback and suggestions from teaching team and use the information to enhance/improve one's work with children
• Maintain a positive attitude and working relationship with both students and colleagues.
• Maintain high level of regular attendance, with established days/hours of work, arriving on time, being ready to work, following protocol when absent
• Effectively handle stress and stressful situations at work
• Seek and ask for help if needed
• Be willing to continue to learn the principles of child development
• Maintain a high level of confidentiality in accordance with Federal Law (FERPA)
• Participate in scheduled para educator inservice days
• Maintain a respectful demeanor with co-workers, parents, guardians and students

Physical Demands:

• Possess strength and stamina to be able to remain in a seated position for up to 90 minutes at a time throughout the work day
• Possess strength and stamina to be able to remain standing for a period of up to 90 minutes at a time throughout the workday
• Possess the strength and stamina to safely restrain a student
• Possess the physical ability to transition quickly from and to a variety of positions such as sitting in a chair, sitting on the floor, kneeling, standing, bending, twisting to meet the needs and ensure the safety of each child
• Ability to lift and carry up to 50 pounds
• Ability to reach, bend, walk, run, climb stairs to quickly engage and ensure the safety of children
• Possess the physical stamina to be outdoors for up to 60 minutes or more in a temperature range of 12 to 90 degrees while engaging children in a variety of play activities (i.e. show play, water play, sand box...)
• Frequent walking, lifting (both light and heavy), pushing, pulling, bending, twisting, reaching, grabbing, stooping, or other physical activities.
• Assist students with diapering, toileting and personal hygiene
• Lifts and moves students as needed

Environmental Working Conditions:

• Work environment is a regular office, classroom, outdoor, community preschool or other school setting
• Air-conditioned as well as un-air conditioned buildings
• Occasional exposure to weather extremes
• Ability to tolerate extremes in noise levels
• Ability to tolerate stressful situations and maintain proper decorum
• Ability to tolerate bodily secretions

C. REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

1. Education: 

• Minimum Required: At least two years post-secondary education or successful completion of the Praxis exam.   Child Development Associate (CDA) certification;
• Preferred: Coursework in Early Childhood or related field (i.e. psychology, education, human development, etc.); Associate or Bachelor’s degree.
• Certification Preferred: 

2. Experience:  

• Minimum Required: Experience working with children aged birth to 6 preferred but not required.
• Preferred: Experience working with children that have special needs.

3. Knowledge, Skills, And Abilities:

Working knowledge: Sufficient familiarity with the subject to know basic principles and terminology and to understand and solve simple problems.

General knowledge: Sufficient knowledge of a field to perform most work in normal situations. The work calls for comprehension of standard situations and includes knowledge of most of the significant aspects of the subject.

Thorough knowledge: Advanced knowledge of the subject matter. The work calls for sufficient comprehension of the subject area to solve unusual as well as common work problems, to be able to advise on technical matters and to serve as a resource on the subject for others in the organization.

Comprehensive knowledge: Requires complete mastery and understanding of the subject. This term should be used sparingly and only for unusually exacting or responsible positions required to originate hypotheses, concepts, or approaches.

4. List Specific Skills And/Or Abilities Required:

• Proficiency in English.
• Ability to communicate effectively and respectfully with students, parents, guardians and school staff.
• Ability to consistently demonstrate enthusiasm in working with preschool age children.

5. Preferred Qualifications: 

• Basic knowledge of computers.

SALARY:

As per the Master Agreement between the Burlington Board of School Commissioners and the Paraeducators of the BurlingtonSchool District.

PROCEDURE:

For more information, contact Stacie Curtis at 864-8463 or by email at scurtis@bsdvt.org.