“For us it works” Co-teaching in a High School Global History Class

Effective collaborative teaching is an expectation of teachers today, especially when addressing the needs of special education students. This qualitative study looked at a pair of high school co-teachers – a special education teacher and a social studies teacher. “Co-teaching,” defined by Friend and Cook (2007) as a partnership between two or more professionals who share instructional responsibility for a diverse group of students in a shared classroom space, is a service delivery model for addressing the needs of special education students, who increasingly receive their instruction in general education classrooms. Interviews and classroom observation were used to study how these two teachers understood and negotiated their roles in this partnership. The study shed light on the perceptions of special education and general education teachers on roles and responsibilities, classroom ownership, and collaborative planning. Despite a collegial relationship, both teachers acknowledged the general education teacher’s control and ownership of the classroom and the curriculum. Co-construction of lessons was limited, due partly to structural obstacles such as lack of common planning time, high special education caseloads, and the demands of multiple co-teaching partnerships on the special education teacher. Despite these obstacles, the partnership promoted inclusion by creating a general education classroom where students with and without disabilities learned together.

Utilizing Middle School Common Planning Time to Support Inclusive Environments

In common planning time (CPT), middle school educators have an opportunity to share their experience and expertise during a designated period. Common planning time is especially beneficial in the collaborative process in which special and general educators can address the needs of students with exceptionalities. This column provides an outline on the possible implementation and the virtual experience of CPT and also offers information on how special education topics can be incorporated within CPT.

Co-Teaching: A Simple Solution That Isn't Simple After All

Among the many programs that professional educators are developing to better help their increasingly diverse students reach their potential, co-teaching is emerging as an innovative and potentially effective approach. As a way to ensure that students with disabilities or other special needs have access to the same curriculum as other students and the opportunity to succeed in the general education setting, co-teaching occurs when two professionals, typically a general education teacher and a special education teacher or another specialist, partner in delivering instruction. Although the research base on co-teaching is still emerging, it suggests that co-teaching is far more complex to effectively implement than it might seem at first consideration. Challenges to co-teaching that have been identified and must be addressed include: arranging time for co-planning, building positive working relationships between co-teaching partners, clarifying roles and responsibilities, and ensuring administrative support. When creative strategies for arranging common planning time, building understanding and collaboration between co-teachers, planning and delivering instruction, and enlisting principal and other administrative supports are implemented, the potential of co-teaching for improving student outcomes is significant.