Teacher assistant screening questions: Title I paraprofessional rules, state certificates and classroom support

Teacher assistant screening questions have to settle one thing before anything else: which rules the job falls under. A paraprofessional giving instructional support in a Title I-funded school must meet federal minimum qualifications, and many states add a certificate of their own. After that, the screen is about the work itself: small-group instruction, behavior support, following another adult's plan, and keeping student information private. Strong candidates describe what the teacher asked them to do and how they did it. Weak ones describe "helping out in the classroom".

This page covers teacher assistants, also called paraprofessionals, paraeducators, instructional aides and educational aides. For the lead teacher roles see special education teacher screening questions and substitute teacher screening questions. Aides who mainly carry out behavior plans overlap with behavior technician screening questions.

Which assistant job is it?

Ask the client whether the school is a Title I school and whether the position is funded under Title I, Part A. The answer decides which federal rule applies; the state's rule applies either way.

The federal paraprofessional rules

Under 34 CFR 200.58, a paraprofessional who provides instructional support in a program funded under Title I, Part A (a paraprofessional in a schoolwide program school, or one paid with Title I funds in a targeted assistance school) must have:

• A high school diploma or its recognized equivalent, regardless of hire date; and, if hired after January 8, 2002,
• One of: at least two years of study at an institution of higher education; an associate's or higher degree; or a passing result on a formal state or local academic assessment showing knowledge of, and the ability to help teach, reading, writing and math (or reading, writing and math readiness).

The rule does not cover staff whose duties are only non-instructional, such as computer support, personal care or clerical work. It exempts paraprofessionals who are proficient in English and another language and act as translators, and those whose instructional duties consist only of parental involvement activities. The diploma alone is not enough to pass the assessment route.

The Every Student Succeeds Act adds state-level duties. In its state plan, each state assures that all teachers and paraprofessionals working in Title I programs meet applicable state certification and licensure requirements, and that it has professional standards for paraprofessionals, including the qualifications in place the day before December 10, 2015 (20 U.S.C. 6311(g)(2)(J) and (M)). Districts give the same certification assurance in their own plans, and must tell parents they can ask whether their child is served by paraprofessionals and what those paraprofessionals' qualifications are (20 U.S.C. 6312(c)(6) and (e)(1)(A)(ii)). Some states and districts use a commercial test, such as ETS's ParaPro Assessment, as the formal assessment.

Two state examples

The two models differ in a way that matters for placement. A New York candidate should already hold the certificate or have the exam and workshops scheduled. A Texas candidate cannot get the certificate until a district hires them, so the screen checks eligibility, not the certificate itself.

Knockout questions

Classroom questions with strong answers and red flags

1. "The teacher hands you four students who are behind in reading. Walk me through a 20-minute group."
   • Strong answer: follows the teacher's lesson or program, keeps a quick routine (review, new skill, practice, check), notes who struggled and reports back.
   • Red flags: makes up their own lesson without checking, or describes reading aloud to the group as the whole plan.
2. "How do you carry out accommodations from a student's IEP?"
   • Strong answer: knows the IEP is written by the team, asks the teacher which accommodations apply in which subject, and applies them consistently (extra time, read-aloud, breaks).
   • Red flags: decides on their own which accommodations a student "really needs".
3. "A student throws materials and runs toward the door. What do you do?"
   • Strong answer: follows the student's behavior plan and the school's procedure, keeps everyone safe, calls for help, documents what happened, and mentions any de-escalation or restraint training the district requires.
   • Red flags: describes physical restraint as the first move, or no plan at all.
4. "You disagree with how the teacher handles a student. What do you do?"
   • Strong answer: raises it privately with the teacher, follows the teacher's lead in front of students, escalates to the case manager or principal only for safety concerns.
   • Red flags: corrects the teacher in front of the class, or complains to parents.
5. "A parent at pickup asks how their child's classmate is doing. What do you say?"
   • Strong answer: does not discuss other students and refers the parent to the teacher for their own child's progress.
   • Red flags: shares details about another child.
6. "What would you do if a student told you something that made you worried about their safety at home?"
   • Strong answer: listens, does not promise secrecy, reports right away under the district's mandated-reporter procedure.
   • Red flags: would wait to see if it happens again, or call the family first.

How teacher assistant experience gets overstated

• Substitute days counted as aide years. Ask how many months in one classroom with one teacher.
• "Taught small groups" that turn out to be supervising worksheets. Ask what skill they taught last week and how they knew it worked.
• Special education experience that was one student for part of a year. Ask how many IEPs they worked from.
• Assessment passed "a while ago" with no score report. Ask for the document; the district will need it.

Knockout checklist and scoring

Put the qualification route and certificate details in the submittal so the district can verify them. For the general call structure, see phone screen questions for recruiters.

Lawful phrasing

Describe the physical parts of the job (lifting a student, toileting, recess duty outdoors) and ask whether the candidate can do them with or without accommodation; do not ask about health conditions before an offer. See pre-employment medical exams and the ADA. Do not ask whether the candidate has children of their own or plans to, even when the conversation turns to school holidays. Criminal history belongs in the state's fingerprinting process, not an open-ended question on the call; some states and cities limit when it can be asked, as covered in ban-the-box interview questions.