6/2/11 Collaboration won’t just happen Supervising Co-Teaching Teams: Whose Line is it • Deliberate Anyway? • Structured • Systematic • Ongoing Excerpts for Co-Planning and Co- Teaching Handbook Why won’t it just happen? How can we work with this? • Provide purpose and structure • Some findings… • Create baseline and a plan for scaffolded – General educators begin with the curriculum first and use assessment to change determine what was learned • Provide a visual map to guide discussion – Special educators begin with assessment first and design instruction to repair gaps in • Keep discussions objective and data learning driven – No wonder we are talking different • Allow many issues to be put on the table languages for consideration What we have learned… What we have learned… • Parent concerns decrease when special General educators are more receptive and general education practices are to change when they have background aligned, data is shared and is used to knowledge and a chance to participate identify how students are progressing in in the decisions rather than being given the general education domain first. a special education mandate to follow. 1
6/2/11 Aligning Practices through Co- Defining Co-Teaching Teaching • Co-teaching occurs when two or more • Co-teaching is becoming one of the professionals jointly deliver substantive fastest growing inclusive school instruction to a diverse, or blended, practices group of students in a single physical • Despite this rapid increase in space (Cook and Friend, 1995, pg 1) popularity, co-teaching remains one of the most commonly misunderstood practices in education Most Common Approaches • One Teaching, One Drifting • Parallel Teaching • Station Teaching • Alternative Teaching • Team Teaching One Teaching, One Drifting Parallel Teaching • One teacher plans and instructs, one teacher • Teachers share responsibility for planning provides adaptations and other support as and instruction needed • Class is split into heterogeneous groups and • Requires very little joint planning each teacher instructs half on the same material • Should be used sparingly • Content covered is the same, but methods of – Can result in one teacher, most often the general educator taking the lead role the majority of the delivery may differ time • Both teachers need to be proficient in the – Can also be distracting to students, who may also content being taught become dependent on drifting teacher 2
6/2/11 Station Teaching Alternative Teaching • Teachers divide the responsibility of planning • Teachers divide responsibility for planning and instruction and instruction • Students rotated on pre-determined schedule • The majority of students remain in large through stations group setting, while some students work in a small group for pre-teaching, enrichment, re- • Teachers repeat instruction to each group teaching or other individualized instruction that comes through--though delivery may vary • Allows for highly individualized instruction to according to student needs be offered • Approach can be used even if teachers have very different pedagogical approaches • Teachers should be careful that the same students are not always pulled aside • Each teacher instructs every student Team Teaching • Teachers share responsibility for planning and instruction • Teachers work as a team to introduce new content, work on developing skills, clarify information, and facilitate learning and classroom management • This requires the most mutual trust and respect between teachers, and that they are able to mesh their teaching styles Benefits of collaboration • Shared responsibility for educating all Sounds good…now what? students • Shared understanding and use of common assessment data Getting co-teaching started at the • Supporting ownership for programming building and classroom levels and interventions • Creating common understanding • Data driven problem solving 3
6/2/11 Considerations Not an all-or-nothing approach • Teachers need to volunteer and agree to co- • Teachers do not have to commit to only teach one approach of co-teaching • Gradual implementation • Teachers do not have to only co-teach • Attention needs to be given to setting • Co-teaching is not the only option for changes that an inclusive classroom may serving students invoke • Some students with disabilities may be • Goals and support services need to reflect the new learning experiences that students in a co-taught classroom for only part of will receive in general education classes the day Limitations and Potential Benefits of collaboration Drawbacks • Shared responsibility for educating all • Not easy to maintain in schools students • May not be enough special education • Shared understanding and use of teachers to go around common assessment data • Co-taught classrooms may be • Supporting ownership for programming disproportionally filled with SWDs and interventions • Special educators can function as more • Creating common understanding of a teaching assistant than a co- • Data driven problem solving educator Action Steps • Administrators should provide information, encourage proactive preparation from teachers • Assess level of collaboration currently in place • Pre-plan • Implement slowly…baby steps! 4
6/2/11 Planning and Scheduling What Makes a Good Lesson? • Requires thoughtful planning time • Lessons are student-centered • Administrative support is essential • Recognition of diverse learning styles of • Here is where the alignment of special students and general education occurs, as well • Questions tap high-order thinking as the alignment of assessment and instruction • Engagement of students and evidence that students are not on task • School-level scheduling should be done after student needs have been identified A Good Lesson… A Good Lesson… • Makes use of materials that are useful • Summation at the middle and end of the and available lesson • Pays attention to motivation • Activities that apply the information • Incorporates awareness of transitions • Connections made to students’ experiences • Contains aims that are open-ended • Positive student-teacher relationships Are there components of a co-taught A Good Lesson… lesson that require unique perspectives in order to be evaluated • Appropriate use of technology effectively? • Adherence to state standards • Roles of the teachers • Reinforcement of previously learned – The supervisor is to look at the roles of co- teachers, such as parallel teaching, one and new material teaching one drifting, station teaching, and • Positive teacher-teacher relationships alternative team teaching. (Vaughn, Schumm, & Arguelles, 1997) 5
6/2/11 Are there components of a co-taught Are there components of a co-taught lesson that require unique lesson that require unique perspectives perspectives in order to be evaluated in order to be evaluated effectively? effectively? • Instructional strategies • Assessment processes – How are strategies incorporated into a – Is there a continuous and conscious effort lesson? Evidence of co-planning needs to to assess student achievement? Is there be easily seen through the strategies and evidence of reflective questioning? modification integrated throughout the lesson. Questions to Consider When Questions to Consider Observing Co-teaching Teams • Are co-teachers to be treated as one and • Should supervisors write one observation? receive a single observation report? Are there different criteria of performance • Could the special education supervisor for the general and special education comment on the general educator’s teachers? performance, even if the focus of the • What criteria should be used to judge observation was the special educator? teacher performance in a co-taught class or • Should the general and special education program? supervisors observe the same lesson? • What roles do teachers perform? Are these roles meaningful? Questions to Consider Questions to Consider • How often and for how long are • Which students are the recipients of these interactions? teachers interacting with each other? • What are the outcomes of these interactions • Who is initiating and ending these for teachers and their students? interactions? • What factors appear to promote and limit • What is the nature of these these interactions? interactions (e.g., cooperative, • How are these components incorporated reciprocal, supportive, complementary, into an effective observation tool? individualistic) 6
Recommend
More recommend
