Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are being recognized globally for their influential role in realizing the UN Millennium Development Goal of education for all in developing countries. NGOs mostly employ untrained para-educators for grassroots activities. The professional development of these teachers is critical for NGO effectiveness, yet para-teacher learning in such contexts is rarely researched. To facilitate much-needed research on para-teacher professional development, this article offers a contextually relevant on-the-job learning model for para-teachers. The model suggests that para-educators can effectively learn when their work and learning are integrated by systematizing a simple daily cyclical routine of lesson planning, enactment and reflection for everyday instruction. It also suggests other supports to stimulate learning alongside the cyclical routine.

The appointment of para-professionals to overcome skill shortages and/or make efficient use of expensive resources is well-established in both developing and developed countries. The present research concerns para-teachers in India. The literature on parateachers is dominated by training for special needs settings, largely in developed societies. Little has been published about para-teachers working in developing countries with children without disabilities, despite this being a common occurrence. The present research investigates how contextual factors influence the design and implementation of professional support for para-teachers. The research participants were twelve parateachers and five management and administrative staff. Contextual factors included characteristics of para-teachers, classrooms and students from under-resourced settings; and the practices and policies found in a non-school educational setting, here a nongovernmental organization., The study indicates that each factor has potentially enhancing and hindering effects which need to be taken into consideration when designing and implementing professional development work.

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v 8.2.3 Multiple roles 8.2.4 Oversimplification of understanding about design-based research 8.2.5 Quick iterations 8.2.6 Quantitative versus qualitative analysis of lesson plans 8.2.7 Reflections on classroom observations 8.2.8 Understanding classroom discourse 8.2.9 Balancing the limitations of this study 8.3 Reflection on findings 8.3.1 Simple realistic teaching strategies that promote pupil learning within the classroom constraints 8.3.2 Mixed practices: a developmental stage in the learning process of para-educators 8.3.3 Teacher agency: an outcome of professional development 8.3.4 Organizational conditions contributed to professional learning 8.3.5 Efforts to build professional capacities promulgated positive changes in the organization 8.3.6 Conclusions 8.4 Design guidelines and recommendations 8.4.1 Substantive design guidelines 8.4.2 Procedural design guidelines 8.4.3 Building upon the original conceptual model 8.4.4 Suggestions for future design-based research 8.5 In closing, final remarks