Job Summary
The Language Facilitator’s primary role is to facilitate language acquisition in the homes, ECC and Head Start for children, teachers, and administrators. The Language Facilitator is responsible for facilitating listening and speaking activities that will support children as they practice and enrich their nehiyaw language skills, in a welcoming comfortable group environment.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities
- Monitors children’s understanding of all nehiyawewin learning within the educational setting and facilitates communication between ECC and Head Start education teachers, parents, and other school staff as appropriate through a monthly newsletter.
- With support from staff, modifies the physical environment as needed to ensure the provision of equal access to visual and auditory information for nehiyawewin, and previews instructional lessons and materials to ensure accurate facilitation of instructional content.
- Collaborates with the teachers, parents and other staff to ensure the language learning needs of the children are met, and serves as a liaison within the ECC and Head Start environment.
- Monitors child comprehension & provides instructional reinforcement, as needed, under the direction of the administrators, and in accordance with the learning materials. The language facilitator IS NOT a tutor, teacher, or teacher assistant.
- Monitors learning equipment and language learning progress as appropriate, documenting progress and concerns through logs, as determined by the educational team.
- Home and classroom Facilitation:
- Facilitate conversation and assist learners to gain more confidence in general communications
- Build rapport with learners to facilitate a positive experience.
- Facilitate discussions with curriculum provided
- Maintain a professional image and courteous demeanor with children, parents, and staff
- Maintain a safe, secure and respectful learning environment
- Identify resources and equipment appropriate to support learner development
- Assist with room set-up and clean up
- Meet reporting requirements as assigned.
- The goal is to gradually phase out the service to the program facility as appropriate.
- Serves as a member of the education teams(s) involved with the children, and participates as appropriate in the language learning process, in-servicing and consulting with regular ECC/H-S staff and children regarding language facilitation service, team with appropriate teachers and staff, and providing direct language facilitation service to learners.
- Assists teacher and administration with duties that contribute to the enhancement of the classroom environment while not interfering with the primary duty of language facilitation.
- When able, the language facilitator will assist the teacher in the supervision of students in the classroom and on community access/field trips.
- Creates a home visit schedule with participating parents/grandparents of children at this level.
- Creates an Elder/grandparent visiting schedule to the Centre in collaboration with the facility Program Manager.
- Uploads to the Saddle Lake/ Whitefish Lake websites, digital learning aids for the parents to access. Provides print copies to the homes.
- Monitors home language acquisition progress.
EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:
- Indigenous Language Degree or equivalent
- Ability to speak and write nehiyawewin is required.
- Specialized training or the willingness to participate in training in the use of language learning materials, and language facilitation techniques.
COMMUNICATION SKILLS:
- Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from administrators students, staff and the general public consistent with the duties of this position.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES:
- Ability to work with individuals and groups of language to support language learning and behavior management.
- Must have patience to work with young children and their classroom teachers and parents.
- Ability to learn new skills, flexibility and willingness to perform a variety of tasks.
- Ability to assess students’ learning needs and to facilitate learning opportunities to meet those needs
- Ability to innovate and motivate, including a capacity to deal appropriately and effectively with challenges, issues and problems
- Well-developed time management and organizational skills
- Works well with others, follows written and oral directions and completes assignments given.
- Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with children, peers, Parents, staff Members and departments.
- Is self-directed and works without supervision
- Ability to accurately perform assigned tasks
PHYSICAL DEMANDS:
- While performing this job, the employee is frequently required to stoop, reach, stand, walk, lift, pull, push, grasp, talk, hear, see and use repetitive motions.
- The employee must have a reliable vehicle and class 5 license.
- Specific visual abilities required by this job include close vision, such as to read handwritten or typed material, and the ability to adjust focus.
- The position requires the individual to meet multiple demands from several people and interact with the children’s grandparents or other staff