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Paraprofessionals improve learning, social environment
David Skinner and Yolanda Travis are a team. This husband-wife paraprofessional pair of student advisors has been working to beat truancy, build students’ self-esteem, modify challenging behaviors, and improve academic performance at Hillcrest Elementary School in the Excelsior.
They can be found at recess and lunch in Room B-3, otherwise known as Hillcrest’s Rainbow Room
David Skinner, student advisor at Hillcrest Elementary School, listens to primary students’ concerns during their lunch recess.In the hour and a half the Educator visited B-3, about 300 students circulated through the colorfully decorated bungalow, 100 in each of three lunch periods. In a whirlwind of different activities, David and Yolanda supervised kids as they did arts-and-crafts, watched a “Bill Nye Science Guy” video, sat reading on a comfortable couch, or played with toys.
Improve attendance, citizenship, academics
Most students came in to get what they needed to serve as conflict managers, on the safety patrol or at community service where they can be found on the yard and in the halls, identifiable by their special hats and badges. To participate in these programs that are open to all grade levels and special education, children must have good attendance, complete their classroom assignments and homework, and show good citizenship.The couple has also organized sports tournaments, a cheerleading squad, and academic clubs in math, reading, spelling, and science. Yolanda and David work closely with teachers and have their strong support.
Yolanda Travis listens to a report of a member of the Safety Patrol. Serving on the Safety Patrol has proven to be an incentive for students to attend school and do well in class.Bill Thiele, fifth grade teacher for five years at Hillcrest, explains, “One of the biggest benefits I’ve seen from David and Yolanda’s program is a greater respectfulness of the kids in general. It’s amazing that kids who are identified as having behavior issues in first grade are fine by the time they leave primary grades because they’ve been working with them.”
Make school calmer, safer
“ Their program has made Hillcrest a much calmer and safer place,” says Liz Conley, building rep and teacher, who says she benefits from their work “in the positive attitudes, behaviors and academic performances” of her own students who want to participate in their programs. David and Yolanda visit their students’ classes to make sure they are on task in their regular classrooms. “It’s amazing how students perk up whenever they see them,” Conley states.Parents or guardians must sign a permission slip after reading about the rules, expectations and activities. They must also speak with one of the student advisors if their child is to participate.
“ We want to establish a positive rapport with the parents,” explains Yolanda. “We welcome their participation and assistance in any and all of our activities.”During the Educator’s visit, Betty Baclaan, the mother of a second grader and fifth grader, brought in pizzas to express her appreciation for the program. She described it as “beautiful in how it motivates children.” She said her kids talk about Yolanda and David all the time and have enjoyed learning spelling and math with them.
Equally impressive were the polite greetings from students who when noticing our visitor passes, asked if we had any questions or needed directions.
Last year as a result of the program, there were no fights and only 44 behavior referrals, 30 generated by only three students. Despite a consistently increasing student population, there is a strong relationship between participation in the program and a decrease in behavior problems according to everyone we spoke with.
“The goal is for everyone to be a conflict manager or on safety patrol or doing community service. The key to having a positive school climate is to have everyone constructively engaged and taking responsibility for themselves and each other,” says Yolanda.
Improve learning environment
Adds Principal Mary Lou Cranna, “David and Yolanda’s work contributes invaluably to Hillcrest’s learning environment. They recognize children’s social and emotional needs, providing them with great incentives to participate positively in their classrooms.They are studying psychology at San Francisco State . Yolanda hopes to be a behavior analyst and consultant for schools. David hopes to become a school counselor.
