Ed Para,Ex Ed,C

Orange County Public Schools • Orlando, FL

1d • Onsite

About The Position

Under direct supervision, provides paraprofessional support in an educational or child care environment, assisting teachers and students. Works with certified teachers, occupational therapists, and other certified specialists to support the education, care, and development of students with mental, physical, emotional, and other special needs. Provides instructional, vocational, and developmental assistance to trainable and educable exceptional students under the direction of a certified teacher or other school official. Duties are performed according to the exceptional needs of assigned students, and related work may be assigned as directed.

Requirements

• Associate’s degree or higher, or at least 60 semester hours from an accredited institution of higher education; an official transcript is required to validate education.
• Passing the paraprofessional certification exam may substitute for the educational requirement to meet highly qualified status.
• Must be highly qualified before starting employment with Orange County Public Schools.
• Ability to fulfill the dexterity and physical requirements of the work and effectively attend to the needs of school-age children.
• At least two years of experience working with school-age children in an educational environment, with broad familiarity with and understanding of the physical and emotional behaviors and challenges of exceptional-needs children.
• Demonstrated stress-management skills.
• Ability to operate, maneuver, or control special-needs equipment and devices and standard office equipment.
• Ability to carry out detailed but straightforward written or oral instructions and perform routine work according to prescribed practices, with some latitude for independent judgment.

Nice To Haves

• Previous vocational training or work experience in a licensed childcare environment is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Respond to internal and external customers in a timely, accurate, courteous, and empathetic manner, representing OCPS positively.
• Provide instructional, vocational, and developmental assistance to students with special needs as prescribed by the supervising teacher.
• Help students arrive from buses and travel to and from learning areas; physically transfer students from wheelchairs to desks or floor mats when needed.
• Assist students with gross motor activities, including grasping, holding objects, posture, crawling, walking, and running, as appropriate to individual development.
• Assist students with fine motor activities, including playing with toys, cutting materials, and coloring, as appropriate to individual development.
• Assist students with daily living skills, including dressing, eating, lavatory needs, grooming, and personal hygiene, as appropriate to individual development.
• Monitor, observe, and chart student behavior, documenting behavioral changes, outbursts, and other student-specific actions.
• Apply crisis-intervention principles and procedures with students who display aggressive behavior or other social difficulties; provide physical restraint when necessary, such as in violent circumstances.
• Reinforce school and classroom rules, encourage appropriate behavior, and help students understand inappropriate behavior.
• Assist with lesson plans, behavior-modification plans, teacher pre-planning, development of learning activities, and preparation of instructional and vocational materials.
• Maintain accurate and complete records of student activities and behavior; enter student information and data using a computer terminal when required; complete forms, schedules, and instructional reports as directed.
• Assist teachers in supervising classroom learning activities by circulating and providing students with support.
• Perform assigned monitoring duties, which may include hallways, lunchrooms, restrooms, and buses; support appropriate student conduct and escort students to designated activity areas.
• Assist teachers in assigned labs and provide instruction or information to students; translate lesson plans and other information when assigned to support student understanding.
• Keep current with job-appropriate technology used by OCPS and attend district-supported training to maintain the technology skills required for the position.
• Maintain timely and accurate information as part of job responsibilities.
• Perform related duties as directed.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Associate degree