Training Paraeducators to Promote Communication Opportunities for Students with Complex Communication Needs
A 30-minute BST package lets paraeducators triple the kinds of communication chances they give students with autism during everyday classwork.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Anderson et al. (2025) worked with three paraeducators who support students with autism and complex communication needs.
The team used a short behavioral-skills-training package: instructions, model, practice, and feedback.
They measured how many different kinds of communication chances each para gave during regular lessons.
What they found
After the quick BST, all three staff tripled the variety of chances they offered.
They added more mands, tacts, and intraverbals without extra planning time.
How this fits with other research
Park et al. (2024) and Homlitas et al. (2014) show the same BST recipe works for teachers learning PECS.
The new study widens the lens: instead of one AAC system, it trains paraeducators to sprinkle many open questions, choices, and fill-ins across any lesson.
Aslan (2022) hit 100% fidelity with teachers using Power Cards; Anderson now shows paras can hit high marks too, so BST is not just for teachers.
Why it matters
You can run the same four-step BST in one prep period and see paraeducators create more talking moments the very next day. No extra materials, no new curriculum. Just model, practice, and watch your students get more chances to mand, label, and answer every period.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Abstract Paraeducators are often tasked with supporting students with complex communication needs (CCN) without being well prepared to promote their communication. Previous studies have focused on training paraeducators to promote communication during non-instructional contexts for limited or unspecified communication types. We extend the literature by targeting the diversity of communication opportunities during academic instruction. We used a multiple-probe-across-participants design to test the effects of behavioral skills training to increase the number and variety of communication opportunities (i.e., mands, tacts, and intraverbals) provided by three paraeducators providing instruction for students on the autism spectrum with CCN. The training package resulted in improvements in communication opportunities across all paraeducator-learner dyads. This study serves as an example of one method to promote diverse communication opportunities for students with CCN during academic instruction.
Journal of Behavioral Education, 2025 · doi:10.1007/s10864-024-09548-6