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The flexibility paradox: How to manage complexity in the work of educational paraprofessionals
Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change. (PEPP (Forskning om pedagogiska professioner och praktiker) samt FRIP (Forskargruppen för fritidspedagogisk forskning).)ORCID iD: 0000-0003-4932-9918
2025 (English)In: Management in Education, ISSN 0892-0206, E-ISSN 1741-9883Article in journal (Refereed) Epub ahead of print
Sustainable development
SDG 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
Abstract [en]

Educational paraprofessionals (EPs) play a vital yet often under-recognized role in contemporary schools, supporting students through direct, daily interaction. Known variously as “teaching assistants”, “classroom assistants”, “learning support assistants”, and other titles, they remain central to school life yet frequently face unclear job expectations, limited training, and insecure employment conditions. While previous research has highlighted role ambiguity as a key stressor and has advocated for role clarification, this opinion piece challenges the assumption that clarity alone can ensure sustainable working conditions. Drawing on fieldwork from three Swedish lower-secondary schools, I argue for a complexity-reduction approach that includes early expectation alignment, active management of communication load, protective organizational routines, and strategic attention to transition points such as the start of the school day. EPs' work involves intense, synchronous, face-to-face interaction that amplifies demands and complicates coordination. To achieve sustainability, work design must balance the need for structure with the inherently interpersonal and fluid nature of school life.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Sage Publications, 2025.
Keywords [en]
Educational paraprofessionals, Teaching assistants, Role ambiguity, Work sustainability
National Category
Social Sciences
Research subject
Pedagogics and Educational Sciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-141892DOI: 10.1177/08920206251379645OAI: oai:DiVA.org:lnu-141892DiVA, id: diva2:2003884
Funder
Swedish Research CouncilAvailable from: 2025-10-06 Created: 2025-10-06 Last updated: 2025-10-10

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Gardesten, Jens

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Citation style
  • apa
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Output format
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