Dr. Jerry Goldberg Teachers 21 Is what we are doing good for the both of us? Is what we are doing good for all of our students? Co- Teaching.

Dr. Jerry Goldberg

Teachers21

Is what we are doing good for the both of us?

Is what we are doing good for all of our

students?

Co-Teaching

Think back to a colleague, a former teacher, or a workshop leader who had great success with students.

What were the attributes of this teacher?

What impact did she or he have on you?

What would you like to learn from this person that you could incorporate into your teaching?

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The Hook: Teacher Collaboration

1. Turn to page 4 and draw a line that connects point A to point B. The line

must make a minimum of seven turns/bends in between point A and

point B.  

IMPORTANT: Do not let your partner see your line!

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2. Decide who will be the first “teacher” and who will be the first “learner.” 3. Have the learner pick up his/her writing utensil, close his/her eyes, and keep them closed through the remainder of the activity. 4. The teacher should put his/her paper in front of the learner and place the learner’s hand on the starting point (point A). The teacher must now figure out a way to guide the learner along the correct path from point A to point B.

There’s only one restriction: Once the teacher places the learner’s hand on the starting point, he/she cannot touch the learner’s hand again!

The goal is to have the learner trace the exact same oath from point A to point B that the teacher did. In other words, the learner’s line and the teacher’s line should overlap.

5. When you finish, take a minute to reflect on your experience as a teacher or learner. Make some notes in the Initial Reflection Box and then share your thoughts with your partner.

6. Change roles with your partner and repeat the task. Before you begin, collaborate amongst yourselves to determine what “Teacher 2” could do differently so as to be even more successful. Jot down some of your ideas in the Teacher Collaboration Box below.

What might we want to do differently this time? And why?

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What role did establishing and maintaining focus play in this activity?

What role did collaboration between teachers play in this activity?

What role did reflection play in this activity?

What role did the ability to adapt play in this activity?

How did the teacher’s practice of these four behaviors (collaboration, reflection, adaptation, and focus) influence the thoughtfulness and quality of instruction? The learner’s ability to succeed?

•Make some notes to yourself on page 7

What did we learn from our colleagues that we can apply to co-teaching?

5% of learners will transfer a new skill into their practice as a result of learning a theory

10% of learners will transfer a new skill into their practice as a result of learning a theory & seeing a demonstration

20% of learners will transfer a new skill into their practice as a result of theory, demonstration & practice during the training

25% of learners will transfer a new skill into their practice as a result of theory, demonstration, practice & corrective feed back during the training

90% of learners will transfer a new skill into their practice as a result of theory, demonstration, practice, feed back during training and coaching

Bruce Joyce, 1987

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4 Key elements to co-teaching...

1. two or more professionals working together in a classroom2. instruction occurs within the same physical space3. sharing of teaching responsibilities4. instruction is provided to a heterogeneous group of students

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2 Teachers Part 1

Co-teaching is a service delivery model. It has gained quite a bit of attention in the United States in the last few years as they attempt to meet the legislative requirements of NCLB and IDEA. This legislation emphasizes that students will special needs should have access to the general education curriculum and be taught by highly qualified teachers.

Co-teaching is a model that is based on the philosophy of inclusion. This philosophy believes that all students can learn and should be welcomed and accepted members of a learning community. It supports students with disabilities being educated along side their non-disabled peers.

Co-teaching also supports collaboration among professionals, in this case between general educators and special educators. There is a great deal of literature that suggests that collaboration among professionals (i.e.., learning communities) has significant potential for improving student outcomes. In fact, Friend and Pope say…

“Educators must pull together by sharing their work through collaboration; too much knowledge and too many skills are needed for any single professional to keep up with and master all of them.”2 Teachers - Part 2

At your table, brainstorm the benefits of co-teaching.

Appoint a recorder to capture your thoughts.

We will return to these lists later.

The Ins and Outs of Co-The Ins and Outs of Co-TeachingTeaching

The Ins and Outs of Co-The Ins and Outs of Co-TeachingTeaching

collaborationinclusionteaming

team teachingmainstreaming

job sharingco-teaching

Definitions

Although it is generally preferred that co-teaching be

collaborative, it might or might not be. Collaboration

generally refers to how individuals interact, not the

activity they’re doing.

Thus, any activity—including co-teaching,

problem solving, and consultation--may or may not be

collaborative.

Collaboration an ongoing process whereby professionals with different expertise voluntarily work together to create solutions to problems that are impeding student’s success, as well as to carefully monitor and refine those solutions.

Collaboration is enhanced by trust, respect, openness, and clear communication among the participants.

Collaboration is a process rather than a specific service delivery model.

- Knackendoffel

Although co-teaching is integral to the inclusive practices in many schools, it is not a requirement for inclusion to occur.

Inclusion refers to a broad belief system or philosophy embracing the notion that all students should be welcomed members of a learning community, that all students are part of their classrooms even if their abilities differ.

The term team teaching is often used to describe the situation in which two general education teachers combine classes and share instruction. In an elementary school, this might occur when two fourth grade teachers decide to open the portable that divides their rooms and teach the entire group as one. In a secondary school, this might occur when an English teacher anda history teacher combine two classes to present an American studies course.

Co-teaching is different from this type of team teaching in two important ways:

First, in co-teaching the teacher-student ratio is drastically improved.

Second, in co-teaching, two significantly different orientations toward teaching are blended.

Finally, team teaching in the middle school literature often refers to a process for planning interdisciplinary instruction, but not sharing instructional delivery.

Mainstreaming refers to the practice of educating students with special needs in regular classes during specific time periods based on their skill. This means regular educationclasses are combined with special education classes. Schools that practice mainstreaming believe that special needs students who cannot function in a regular classroom to a certain extent “belong” to the special education environment.

Job Sharing is an employment arrangement where two people are retained on a part-time or reduced basis to fulfill the job normally performed by one person. Collaboration is implicit in the performance of the job to ensure that there is continuity in the classroom.

That’s our job today – define

co-teaching as it fits our needs.

Co-teaching

Co-teaching is a proactive approach to education.

Co-teaching pairs general and special educators.

Co-teaching takes place in heterogeneous, integrated settings.

Co-teachers are simultaneously present in the classroom setting.

Co-teachers maintain joint responsibility for classroom instruction.

Co-teachers work in a coactive and coordinated fashion.

Co-teachers design instruction to meet the needs of all students in the class.

What do you see when we see co-teaching in action?

Nissittissit

Preparing to co-teach

The role of the principal

The roles of the co-teachers

Images of co-teaching

Planning

Instructing

Assessing

Troubleshooting

Belief in a collaborative school culture

Commitment to inclusive practices

Understanding of co-teaching

Visible reminders

Assigning partners

Observing implementation

Professional development

Problem solving when dilemmas occur

Communicating beyond the school

Letters to parents

Co-teaching is a service delivery mechanism.Two or more professionals with equivalent licensure and employment status are the participants in co-teaching.Co-teachers share instructional responsibility and accountability for a single group of students for whom they both have ownership.Co-teaching occurs primarily in a shared classroom or workspace.Co-teachers’ specific level of participation may vary based on their skills and the instructional needs of the student group.

Co-Teaching is not:

•One teacher—typically the general educator—acting as the main teacher with the special educator in the role of “helper.”

•The special educator only working with the students with disabilities.

•The general educator only working with the students without disabilities.

•Two teachers who take alternating turns teaching their students.

•Solely a way to help the students with disabilities.

•Planned at the last minute or improvised.

As you think about yourself as a co-teacher, complete the chart on page 24. You can use this a guideline as you prepare for the co-teaching role.

JIGSAW

• One instructs, one observes and collects data

•Roles should not be static

•Teachers should create systematic method for taking down observations

CautionsBenefitsOne of the advantages in

co-teaching is that more detailed observation of students engaged in the learning process can occur. With this approach, for example, co-teachers can decide in advance what types of specific observational information to gather during instruction and can agree on a system for gathering the data. Afterward, the teachers should analyze the information together. 

• Divide and concur

•Students rotate around stations

•Teachers offer support to all students

CautionsBenefits

• Joint planning

•Split the class into two heterogeneous groups

•Diversity in both groups

CautionsBenefits

• Small group of students receives separate instruction

•Teachers’ roles should not be static

•Small group membership and composition should be fluid

CautionsBenefits

•Both teachers are responsible for planning and share in the instruction of all students

CautionsBenefits

• one teacher teaches while the other supports in instructional process

CautionsBenefits

Videomodels in action

Lower teacher – student ratio

Classroom of diverse learners

Teachers can respond effectively to varied needs of students

Another professional can provide different viewpoints and more ideas for instruction

Teachers can be motivational for one another

Co-teaching can positively affect the general educator’s instructional behavior

Co-teaching Benefits

Lack of administrative support

Lack of shared planning time

Need for in-service training

Personality matches – the relationship between co-teachers is critical to success

Misguided perceptions and/or lack of communication

Poorly defined roles / unclear expectations

Dividing the class based on SPED and non-SPED students

Barriers/Cautions

“Virtually every treatise on inclusive practices…concludes that inclusion’s success, in large part, relies on collaboration among staff members and with parents and others, and that failures can typically be traced to shortcomings in the collaborative dimension of the services to students.”

Friend, 2000

Let’s Practice... Writing a Persuasive Essay• Lesson Objective:• Write an interesting lead• take a position• provide examples and details to support your position• Write detailed counterarguments• Write effective conclusions

• Choose one of the six models of co-teaching that you will put into practice.

• Tell what it would look like in the classroom if you were to be teaching students to Write a Persuasive Essay

Topic:

Your principal suddenly bans the selling of chocolate milk in the cafeteria because he/she thinks it is not healthy.

The students revolt!

Write a persuasive essay to convince the principal that he/she is right or wrong in this decision.

Reflection:• Does one approach seem more appropriate

for this lesson?• Why or why not?• Can you see yourself in one of these settings?• What would you change, if anything?

• There is no RIGHT or WRONG way to co-teach.• No one way works all the time, nor should it.• The content of the day, along eith the skill set

of the teachers, drives the decision on a day-to-day, class-by-class basis.

Instructional content and expectations for students

Planning, including time to do it and who does what

Instructional format, including who will do which part of the instructional delivery

Parity, or how it will be clear that both educators have the same status in the classroom

Space, related to both students and teachers

Noise and each educator’s tolerance for it

Instructional routines

Organizational routines

Topics for Co-Teachers to DiscussThe definition of “help”

Discipline procedures for the classroom

Safety matters

Feedback, including when and how to discuss issues with each other

Student evaluation, including grading

Teaching chores, such as grading, duplicating, assignment preparation, and so on

Responsibilities and procedures for substitutes

Confidentiality

Pet peeves

What are your pet peeves about teaching and learning and how might they influence a positive co-teaching experience?

PET PEEVES

not evaluative

share an understanding of goals

supportive – analyze what might have contributed to this outcome

interactions confidential

focus can change to meet the needs of the teachers

emphasizes probing questions as opposed to directive suggestions

opportunities to engage in planning as well as reflection

parity

Guidelines for Co-Teaching

Learning environment

Use of space for instruction

Noise – strategies for keeping noise at an acceptable level

Organizational routines

Procedures for substitute teachers

Classroom Norms (rules)

Discipline procedures

Classroom and Behavior Management Considerations

1.Fear of MAKING MISTAKES

2.Fear of LOOKING LIKE A FOOL

3.Fear of HAVING A WEAKNESS EXPOSED

4.Fear of NOT BEING LIKED

5.Fear of FAILURE

Fears spring from beliefs!

The lynchpin of a strong culture.It doesn’t mean saying just what is on your mind.It means creating the conditions, so others can say what they are thinking (straight talk)

where people can be listened to, and when necessary, disagree agreeably (non-defensive)

where administrators and teachers learn to read and understand how emotions impact working relationships and performance (self-awareness and social awareness)

Where everyone takes responsibility for the mistakes they make, thus improving the chances to learn from them.

Honest, Open Communication

Safe Talk Straight Talk

Hints at the real issue and is often unspecific, non-instructive

Accurately saying what needs to be said to whom it needs to be said, at the time it needs

to be said

Begins with a goal to not hurt or be hurt Behaviorally specific, goal-focused and compassionate

Focused on avoiding discomfort and/or conflict Sensitively timed, usually “in the moment”

Rarely proactive and rarely supported by meaningful data

Objectively serves the speaker, the listener, the organization

Hints at the real issue and is often unspecific, non-instructive

Accurately saying what needs to be said to whom it needs to be said, at the time it needs

to be said

Raise some co-teaching scenarios that require straight talk. Keep in mind as you consider solutions:What is the problem?What is getting in the way of the collaboration?What suggestions do you have for addressing the issue?How will you start the conversation?What will you respond?What will you do next?

Reflection...