Roles, Power, Planning A CONVERSATION ABOUT CO-TEACHING: Pamela L. Eddy and Sharon L. M. Stone The College of William and Mary 6 th Annual Conference on.

Roles, Power, Planning

A CONVERSATION ABOUT CO-TEACHING:

Pamela L. Eddy and Sharon L. M. StoneThe College of William and Mary6th Annual Conference on Higher

Education PedagogyFebruary 5, 2014

Overview of the literature and facilitator experiences

Engagement in conversation using guiding questions

Summary and posting of key points

AGENDA

Professional growth due to reflection & students gain by variety of learning strategies (Conderman & McCarty, 2003)

Power differentials for faculty and graduate students (Eddy & Mitchell, 2006)

Willingness to be open and receptive to different perspectives helps support co-teaching (Leavitt, 2006).

Missing—thinking of instructors as adult learners

LITERATURE

The Circumstances

Sharon

Pam

Initiative

The Course

Change of instructor

Question of intention – Comparative vs. Internationalization

Frame of reference among students

INTRODUCTION

Spring 2013

Discussed teaching philosophies

Calendar to accommodate both instructors

Conceptual framework for adult learners

Summer 2013

Reviewed text and selected readings

Organized material into thematic sections

Interviewed international scholars

Fall 2013

Met weekly for debriefing/planning

PLANNING

What would this look like for

interdisciplinary studies?

Unique mitigating factors

Collegial culture of department

High comfort level in communicating with one another

Similar in age and international experience

Co-creating rather than just co-teaching

Awareness of power differential

Expectations of roles

Shared meaning/understanding

POWER

Pam remained primary instructor; Sharon supported instruction

Pam gave Sharon positive introduction and divided content presentation

Both facilitated small group discussion and learning activities

Both read submitted student work; Pam evaluated and modeled for Sharon

Kept fun as a focal point

ROLES

How do you define the concept of co-teaching?

What best practices support co-teaching, in particular when crossing disciplinary areas or when working with others who may possess more status and power?

What are the key learning outcomes for those involved in co-teaching based on adult learning theory?

What do you see as challenges of co-teaching?

GUIDING QUESTIONS

Be patient – it takes time to get all the parts to operate cohesively

Communication is critical—revisit course

objectives and goals often

Flexibility is key—both for instructors and students

Some students were uncomfortable with andragogical approach and/or student-centered learning

Formative assessment helps for making mid-course adjustments

LESSONS WE LEARNED AND WAYS TO IMPROVE

Pamela L. Eddy, Ph.D. Sharon L. M. StoneProfessor Doctoral CandidateThe College of William and Mary The College of William and MaryWilliamsburg, VA Williamsburg, [email protected] [email protected]

See CIDER website for reference/resource list