Support Staff In A School Need Professional Learning Too

FOCUS

Improve professional learning for the ‘hidden half.’ ONLINE EXCLUSIVE

By Danica Brown

Categories: Collaboration, Reaching all students, School leadership, Standards for Professional Learning

When education leaders think about professional learning, they usually picture teachers working with their peers to improve their instructional practice. But what about schools’ other employees, who also play vital roles in students’ learning, well-being, and achievement? Educators like paraprofessionals, school counselors, librarians, and school and district leaders comprise about 52% of school personnel in the U.S. (National Center for Education Statistics, 2021), and their salaries and benefits account for about one-quarter of schools’ operating budgets (Richmond, 2014). Yet they receive much less attention among leaders, researchers, and policymakers compared to teachers (Finn, 2014), including in professional learning. These educators are sometimes referred to as the “hidden half” (Richmond, 2014). These educators’ work is essential to many aspects of schools, and they share responsibility with

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References

Blank, R.K. & de las Alas, N. (2009). The effects of teacher professional development on gains in student achievement: How meta analysis provides scientific evidence useful to education leaders. Council of Chief State School Officers.

Brown, D.R. (2022). Organizational contexts matter: A multiple case study of college-going culture and counselors in charter and traditional public high schools [Doctoral dissertation, Tulane University]. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.

Finn, C.E. (2014, August 15). The hidden half: School employees who don’t teach. Education Next. www.educationnext.org/hidden-half-school-employees-dont-teach/

Learning Forward. (2022). Standards for Professional Learning. Author.

National Center for Education Statistics. (n.d.). Digest of Education Statistics: 2021. National Center for Education Statistics. nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d21/tables/dt21_213.40.asp

Richmond, M. (2014). The hidden half: School employees who don’t teach. The Thomas B. Fordham Institute. fordhaminstitute.org/national/research/hidden-half-school-employees-who-dont-teach

Will, M. (2022, June 15). Paraprofessionals: As the “backbones” of the classroom, they get low pay, little support. Education Week. www.edweek.org/leadership/paraprofessionals-as-the-backbones-of-the-classroom-they-get-low-pay-little-support/2022/06