Paraeducator-to-Teacher Program Partnership Program Designed to Address Educator Workforce Demands in a Large Urban School District

Emily Donnell Author

08/02/2021 Added

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Emily Donnell's UCARE project

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[00:00:03.030]Hello. My name is Emily Donnell,
[00:00:05.340]and I am a senior at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln studying Secondary
[00:00:09.510]English Education (7-12).
[00:00:12.210]The research project I am presenting on today is titled Para Educator to Teacher
[00:00:16.470]Partnership Program Designed to Address Educator Workforce Demands in a Large
[00:00:20.850]Urban School District. This research is led by Dr.
[00:00:24.490]Amanda Morales, doctoral student Cindy Linzell, and Dr. Guy Trainin.
[00:00:35.840]Just a few years ago,
[00:00:37.280]UNL started a program specifically designed to help paraeducators within the
[00:00:41.660]Omaha area become full-time classroom teachers.
[00:00:45.290]This program is similar to one created at Midland University in Nebraska.
[00:00:49.910]Our research is a study of UNL's program itself and how effective it is in
[00:00:54.230]providing an accessible path to teacher certification for paraeducators.
[00:00:59.720]Many people have heard that the United States is currently facing a teacher
[00:01:03.050]shortage.
[00:01:04.250]This program serves as a way for schools in Omaha to "grow their own teachers,"
[00:01:08.420]using people who already work within their schools, match the diversity of their
[00:01:12.950]schools, and are familiar with their students already.
[00:01:16.340]Paraeducators are a valuable resource that is commonly overlooked and
[00:01:19.940]underappreciated.
[00:01:21.380]They are unique due to the fact that they have extensive classroom knowledge
[00:01:25.220]without having a teaching degree, making them highly experienced job candidates.
[00:01:30.290]In addition to this, para educators are a very diverse group of individuals and
[00:01:35.090]their diversity matches the diversity of the schools
[00:01:37.520]they work in more than teachers do.
[00:01:43.950]From what I have observed,
[00:01:45.120]this research has two main objectives: to listen to the stories of
[00:01:49.860]program participants and to improve UNL's Para to Teacher program.
[00:01:59.490]Morales and Linzell began the research by conducting a series of
[00:02:03.900]individual interviews with participants in UNL's Para to Teacher program in
[00:02:08.880]order to find whether or not the program is effective in helping para meet
[00:02:12.990]their professional goals,
[00:02:14.460]teaching future educators to work with minoritized students, and providing an
[00:02:18.750]equitable education experience.
[00:02:21.030]The participants in this program are mostly non-traditional students in terms of
[00:02:24.840]age, diversity, and experience level,
[00:02:27.210]so these interview goals were tailored to them. Additionally,
[00:02:30.840]program participants worked in groups to together name and classify different
[00:02:34.860]challenges and successes within the program itself.
[00:02:38.070]This was done in focus groups using a pile sort method
[00:02:41.400]which included participants
[00:02:42.720]brainstorming challenges and positive aspects of the program before sorting them
[00:02:46.920]into piles based on similarities or categories.
[00:02:50.250]These methods fall under the scope of qualitative research,
[00:02:53.460]meaning that the focus is on people's experiences instead of on hard facts
[00:02:58.230]or numbers.
[00:03:00.010]All of this was uniquely done over zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
[00:03:05.170]Next, I went through all of the zoom interview transcripts and edited them,
[00:03:09.250]making them more accurate so that they would be easier to read and code. After
[00:03:13.660]this, Morales, Linzell, and I began coding the interview transcripts,
[00:03:17.530]looking for common themes across the interviews, issues within the program, and
[00:03:21.790]things that have worked well within the program.
[00:03:24.670]When we at each finished coding the interviews,
[00:03:26.620]we met as a group to discuss what we found and take notes.
[00:03:36.840]This research is still ongoing.
[00:03:38.910]We are still in the process of coding the interviews,
[00:03:41.190]but we've already found a wealth of valuable information.
[00:03:44.130]The biggest takeaway I have from coding the interviews so far is the fact that
[00:03:48.150]communication between UNL and Omaha Public Schools needs to be improved.
[00:03:53.040]When the participants were doing their practicum at OPS,
[00:03:56.430]there was a lot of miscommunication between those leading the program at UNL and
[00:04:00.900]the administration at OPS.
[00:04:03.960]When asked about challenges within the program,
[00:04:06.330]some participants have named the Praxis exam.
[00:04:09.360]This exam has been a hurdle for some participants in the program,
[00:04:13.020]likely due to the fact that many of them have been out of school and have not
[00:04:16.500]taken standardized tests for many years.
[00:04:19.320]The program may have to be more intentional about providing test preparation
[00:04:23.820]materials and bilingual supports to participants to ensure that they perform
[00:04:28.080]well on the standardized tests that are required for teacher certification.
[00:04:33.570]When talking about other challenges,
[00:04:35.190]they would like - other changes they would like to see in the program,
[00:04:38.490]Some participants expressed a desire for more instruction in lesson planning.
[00:04:43.440]They have learned about various tools, tips,
[00:04:45.480]and tricks they can use when teaching,
[00:04:47.520]and they've learned how to teach students from different backgrounds,
[00:04:50.610]but planning a full lesson is something that they do with uncertainty. In regard
[00:04:55.470]to how the participants are faring in the program,
[00:04:57.870]the fact that this program utilizes a cohort of students seems to be extremely
[00:05:02.250]beneficial.
[00:05:03.690]The participants take each class together, and this boosts their confidence and
[00:05:07.980]achievement.
[00:05:08.790]Since they have people to relate to and people to hold them accountable,
[00:05:12.870]there are-
[00:05:13.410]they are aware that they are not the only ones going through something hard,
[00:05:16.590]and that helps. When speaking about parts of the program that were most
[00:05:20.550]beneficial to them,
[00:05:21.930]many participants stated that classes in the program that focused on
[00:05:25.350]multiculturalism had been eyeopening.
[00:05:28.170]Most of them are leaving this program with a desire to teach students with
[00:05:31.620]equity and cultural awareness.
[00:05:33.840]The others have at least learned to appreciate the differences among students.
[00:05:43.090]After everything has been initially coded,
[00:05:45.310]we will finalize the themes of the research. Next,
[00:05:48.310]we will do some member checking with the participants of the program.
[00:05:51.880]This means the participants will have a chance to check our data for accuracy.
[00:05:56.380]Then, we will write a full draft manuscript and submit it for review. Lastly,
[00:06:01.250]the manuscript will be submitted for presentation at the American Educational
[00:06:05.060]Research Association's annual conference.
[00:06:14.620]First, I would like to thank Dr.
[00:06:16.480]Amanda Morales and Cindy Linzell for working with me and guiding me in my first
[00:06:20.950]ever research experience.
[00:06:23.140]Next, I would like to thank the University of Nebraska-Lincoln,
[00:06:26.260]the UCARE program, the department of Teaching, Learning,
[00:06:29.440]and Teacher Education, and the College of Education and Human Sciences for
[00:06:33.790]providing the opportunity for me to get involved with research as an
[00:06:37.150]undergraduate student. I would like to thank my academic advisor,
[00:06:41.410]Amanda Bergeron-Bauer,
[00:06:43.150]and the UNL Honors program for assisting me in finding this specific research
[00:06:47.260]opportunity and for showing me how it aligns with my career and academic goals.
[00:06:52.480]Lastly,
[00:06:53.020]I want to thank everyone who participated in the Para to Teacher program for
[00:06:57.100]their hard work and willingness to be open and honest for the sake of this
[00:07:00.250]research. Thank you.

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education
teaching
para
school

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Paraeducator-to-Teacher Program Partnership Program Designed to Address Educator Workforce Demands in a Large Urban School District

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