Helping or Hovering? Effects of Instructional Assistant Proximity on Students with Disabilities
Exceptional Children
Giangreco, M., Edelman, S., Luisella, T., and McFarland, S. 1997 64(1), pp. 7–18. Helping or Hovering? Effects of Instructional Assistant Proximity on Students with Disabilities
Giangreco, M., Edelman, S., Luisella, T., and McFarland, S. (1997). “Helping or hovering? Effects of Instructional Assistant Proximity on Students with Disabilities”. Exceptional Children, 64(1), pp. 7–18.
Although fairly dated, the research presented in this article on how instructional assistants (teacher aides) impact on the social inclusion of students with disabilities is an engaging and provocative read, with implications that are well worth considering.
While the article is not long, you may like to pull out two sections for close consideration:
- figure 1 uses illustrative examples to highlight the problems associated with teacher aides who 'hover' over students with disabilities
- page 16 has a bulleted list of the considerations, arising from the research, for thinking about how teacher aides are hired, used, trained, and supervised.
| Relevance | Resources for further learning | Resources for taking action | Resources for learning about other people's stories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inquiry and knowledge-building | |||
| Leading change | |||
| Understanding autism spectrum disorder | |||
| Understanding inclusion | |||
| Effective schools | |||
| Special education and ASD in NZ school settings | |||
| Audit | |||
| Building inclusive school cultures | Y | ||
| Producing inclusive school policies | Y | ||
| Evolving inclusive practices | Y | ||
| Managing transitions | |||
| Specific issues for secondary schools |