Wayzata Schools Paraprofessional Joan McNutt

Paraprofessionals, also known as educational assistants, make up a large part of today's public school education support staff. Patch is recognizing their efforts and all they do by spotlighting particiapting paraprofessionals from local school districts.

Name: Joan McNutt

School: Wayzata Central Middle School in Plymouth

Why did you become a para for the Wayzata School District?

McNutt: "I became a para in Wayzata Schools in 1990. I had two children in the district at that time and I was volunteering so much at their school that some of the kids thought I worked there. I decided to apply for a part-time para position, and have been at it ever since."

What do you do as a para?

McNutt: "My job entails working with students who struggle in math. I assist a teacher in a couple math classes for struggling students and I also do math pull-out for small groups of students where we go over what is taught in class to help them understand better or present the material in another way if they still do not understand. I also may provide problems for them to work on in areas that have been identified by standardized tests as an area of weakness for them."

What are some misconceptions people have about para professionals?

McNutt: "One misconception that people may have is that para-educators are not as educated as teachers. Many of us who work as para-educators were already teachers, or in my case, a counselor or a professional in another area. I would like to point out what ‘para’ can be defined as in the school setting. Para comes from the Latin meaning 'beside or alongside of.' That is precisely what we do. We work alongside the teachers to help student be successful in school."

What are the biggest challenges of your job?

McNutt: "The biggest challenge in this job is in motivating students to try when they have had many failures. The job involves being a teacher, counselor, motivator, referee (occasionally), and organizer of data so we know that we are moving in the right direction and if we are successful at what we do."

Why are para professionals important and needed in education?

McNutt: "I think paraprofessionals are important in schools because we can provide the one-on-one instruction and relationships that some students need. Teachers do not always have the time to remediate when students are missing a concept that is important to current learning. This is where a para can reteach, or remediate as far back as needed to get the student on track so they can succeed."