Working Relationships
I'm talking to those special education teachers with one or more paraprofessionals in your room. I've quickly learned that your paraprofessionals can make or break your classroom. A great paraprofessional is a God send, and one who isn't so great can completely turn the tide of your classroom. Learning how to lead and to work as a team simultaneously is tricky enough - but there may be some ways to make it easier, starting with learning about who they are.
16 Personalities
Having multiple adults in the room can sure feel like there are 16 personalities, but that isn't what this is about. Before you categorize me as one of "those", hear me out! Out of curiosity, I took a free personality test at https://www.16personalities.com/. The test took 5-10 minutes and when I tell you the results were thorough, the results were THOROUGH. I was actually quite impressed that it contained so much information for a free test. So - I had my paraprofessionals take it too! At this point, I'm quite close with my paraprofessionals so I already know them very well but it was still very eye opening. It was information I could have definitely utilized a few years ago!
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| These women are worth their weight in gold! |
One of the best sections in the results is the "Workplace Habits" section. It can give you - as the "leader", a great deal of insight about your team - and insights about yourself. We all read each others' results and were all dumbfounded with how accurate they were. It was beneficial for all of our working relationships (and personal as well). For example, my personality type (INFP), had this to say about my leadership habits:
As managers, INFPs are among the least likely to seem like managers – their egalitarian attitudes lend respect to every subordinate, preferring communication as human beings than as a boss/employee opposition. People with the INFP personality type are flexible, open-minded and give their subordinates the tools they need, be they responsible delegation or an intuitive and receptive sounding board, to get the job done. Keeping their eyes on the horizon, INFPs set goals that achieve a desirable end, and help the people working under them to make that happen.There is a downside to this style, as sometimes the boss just needs to be the boss. INFPs know how they feel about criticism, and are reluctant to subject others to that same experience, whether it’s needed or even welcome. Further complicating this role, when INFPs are under stress, as when someone really does warrant criticism, they can become extremely emotional – they may not show it, but it can affect their judgment, or even cause them to withdraw inwards, in ways that can really hold back their team.
Everyone agreed this matched me, so I had some reflecting to do on my "downsides". It was actually very eye opening. One of the hardest things to do is to really reflect on your weaknesses. It's easy to get wrapped up in your strengths.
It takes more effort and dedication to identify and work on your weaknesses. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean you become a different person. What it means is that you understand your weaknesses and do what you are comfortable with to compensate for those weaknesses. Don't forget, what is perceived as a weakness in one setting may be perceived as a strength in another. Your weaknesses do not make you any less, they merely help shape who you are as an individual.
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