Co Teaching

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Co Teaching

• Start up and Overview
• Prepared by
• Theresa Montalbano Owen
• Jon Malone

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Topics to Be Covered

• What is co-teaching?
• Responsibilities
• Paraprofessionals
• Structures of Co-teaching
• Planning

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What is co-teaching?

• Co teaching is an educational approach in which
  two teachers work in a coactive and coordinated
  fashion to jointly teach academically and
  behaviorally heterogeneous groups of students in
  an integrated setting.

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What are the benefits of Co-teaching?

• Enables teachers to function on a proactive basis
• Increases teaching and learning potential
• Decreases problems with generalization across all
  settings
• Allows students to work with teachers with
  different styles

• Provides the expertise of two professionals in
  planning and problem solving
• Provides students with a model of collaboration
• Increases the potential for student who are
  having difficulty to receive assistance.

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Tips for successful co-teaching

• General Ed
• Be flexible
• Identify strengths
• Take responsibility for all students
• Establish an inclusive environment
• Remember your class is shared by two teachers
• Focus on students, not labels
• Be willing to expand your skills

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Tips for successful co-teaching

• Special Education
• Be flexible
• Identify strengths
• Take responsibility for all students
• Allow your students to become a member of the
  class
• Remember you are not a guest but a teacher
• Focus on success
• Be willing to expand your skills

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Preparing to co-teach

• When two teachers work together, they need to be
  prepared for a variety of situations. Clarifying
  roles and responsibilities in advance of
  challenging situations will contribute greatly to
  the success and impact of the co-teaching
  experience.

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Preparing to co-teach

• With your co-teaching partner, discuss your
  responses to each of the following tasks.
  Identify issues in which there is complete
  agreement. Clarify who will have primary
  responsibility for each item. Discuss those
  topics where there are differences and seek to
  identify common ground.

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Example

• Identify goals and develop objectives for the
  course
• Shared - Gen. Ed. teacher primary Sp. Ed
  teacher as support
• Modifying curriculum and materials as needed
• Shared - Sp. Ed. Teacher Primary Gen. Ed
  teacher As support

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Collaborative Teaching Decisions

• Identifying goals and develop objectives for the
  course
• Designing IEP objectives for students with
  disabilities
• Planning instructional activities to achieve the
  goals
• Teaching specific class content
• Teaching study skills and learning strategies

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Collaborative Teaching Decisions

• Maintaining home contact
• Modifying curriculum and materials as needed
• Designing tests, homework assignments, etc
• Providing individual assistance to students
• Directing to paraprofessionals

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Collaborative Teaching Decisions

• Monitoring IEP progress
• Assigning grades
• Dealing with student discipline issues
• Collecting data on student performance
• Communicating to all appropriate parties
  regarding students with disabilities

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Please remember

• Co-teaching is a partnership and most
  responsibilities should be shared. However, IEPs
  need to be written by the Special Ed. Teacher
  with the General Ed. Teacher as support. Grades
  need to be given by the General Ed. Teacher with
  input from the Special Ed. Teacher.

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What Is The Paras Role?

• Para's are employed to assist and be guided by
  certified staff in the delivery of educational
  services to students.
• The classroom teacher maintains primary
  responsibility for all students in the classroom.

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What Is The Teachers Role?

• Teachers are responsible to share expectations
  and determine where para support is essential
• Teachers need to sure that paras understand their
  expectations, and have everything needed to
  complete an assignment
• Provide time to plan and answer questions

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What About Kids With Disabilities?

• Kids with disabilities are protected under IDEA
  (individuals with disabilities education act)
• IDEA has a strong LRE component
• Paras are a very important resource when trying
  to educate kids in LRE

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Establishing Shared Expectations

• Share thoughts and practices about classroom
  management
• Discuss the big picture for all learners
• Review IEP goals

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The Dance

• Paras are in a challenging position it can be
  difficult to provide the right amount of support.
• Like a dance, backing off when needed and
  jumping in when needed.

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How Do We Provide the Right Amount of Support?

• Build on students strengths, independence, and
  perseverance
• Use wait time
• Try to prevent singling out any student
• Support everyone
• Dont give support when none is needed
• Continually discuss opportunities for
  independence

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What Is Fair to Expect From a Para?

• Providing attention, direction and assistance to
  students.
• Regular communication.
• Working with small groups.
• Implementing teacher planned activities.

• Encouraging appropriate behavior.
• Supervising students free time.
• Escorting students about the building.
• Assisting students with physical needs.
• Working with students with and without
  disabilities.

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What Is an Unfair Expectation?

• Being the primary person to deliver instruction
  or supervision.
• Doing only clerical duties.
• Contacting parents.
• Doing IEPs or report cards.
• Working with only one student the majority the
  time.

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Support Codes

• I Independent, student took initial teacher
  direction and completed work independently
• R The information was read to the student
• D Direction was given throughout the assignment

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Support Codes

• C Cues or prompts were given throughout the
  assignment
• A Assistance was given to the student to complete
  the work given
• G Group work, student with either a small or
  large group on the assignment given

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Structures of Co-teaching
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Structures of Co-teaching

• Several structures commonly used in co-teaching.
  Which co-teaching structure will work best for
  you, the students you serve, and the content you
  deliver? Remember whichever structure you use,
  the special educator needs to maintain a focus in
  the co-teaching process on serving the needs of
  students with disabilities as outlined in the
  students IEP.

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Structures of Co-teaching

• Lead Support
• One teacher leads and another offers assistance
  and support to individual or small groups.
  Remember, in this model the support needs to be
  clearly defined

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Structures of Co-teaching

• Station Teaching
• Students are divided into two heterogeneous
  groups. Then, each teacher provides instruction
  at a station to half the class. Students then
  move through the stations.

• Parallel Teaching
• Teachers jointly plan instruction, but actual
  content may be delivered to half the class in
  small groups. Heterogeneous grouping should be
  used.

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Structures of Co-teaching

• Alternative Teaching
• One teacher works with small groups of students
  with a specific skill need (e.g., pre-teach,
  re-teach, enrich) while the other teacher works
  with the rest of the class.

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Structures of Co-teaching

• Team Teaching
• Both teachers share planning and instruction of
  students in a coordinated fashion

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Planning
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Planning time

• Use a co-planner lesson form
• Use zero hour
• Plan when students are engaged in an activity
• Use planning forms on the Website
• Divide tasks
• Speak with your Special Ed Supervisor