Improving Collaborative Teaching Through utilization of teacher feedback and direct observation Denise Hall, PEDU 504

Project OVERVIEW This project Stemmed from a request for professional development for collaborative teachers Professional Development Would address utilizing all co-teaching models 1-Teach, 1 Observe Station Teaching Parallel Teaching Alternative Teaching Team Teaching 1-Teach, 1-Assist (Friend, 2005) Co-Teaching in Mecklenburg county relies heavily on the “One Teach, One Assist” model

Preparation for Professional Development Send out surveys To Co-Teachers and Analyze the Results Perform direct observations experienced collaborative teachers AND new collaborative teachers Review the information From the previous Collaborative Teaching Professional Development NELP Standard 1.4, Improvement: taking a system that is already in place and seeking to make specific improvements upon it based on noted weaknesses NELP Standard 2.1, Professional Norms: dealing with collaboration between general education and special education teachers

Teacher Survey Survey was sent to co-teachers at both high schools (35 responses) All Agreed/Strongly Agreed With “If my collaborative teacher is not in the room, learning would still take place with me.” Some Were neutral About “My collaborative teacher is comfortable with the course content.” A few Disagreed with “I feel supported by my collaborative teacher.” “My collaborative teacher and I work together as a team.” The Majority of teaCHERS HAD SOME EXPERIENCE WITH CO-TEACHING, but over a third had only been co-teaching SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR: 37% Just this year 60% One to three years 3% Three plus years

Observations and preparations Objective: what kind of co-teaching methods were being utilized? Review of lesson plans: What role IS the special education teacher playing in the classroom? Is it being documented as such? resources on Effective Collaborative Teaching were used to create a Professional Development session FOR November 8 Prezi addressed big Ideas T-Tac’s ”Mentoring Co-Teaching Teams” resources were used as handouts Activities were used to actively engage the teachers NELP Standard 7.4, Supervision and Evaluation: evaluating teachers on their collaborative methods through direct observations and review of their lesson plans

Professional Development Activities ACTIVITY 1 Activity 2 Activity 3 Marshmallow Spaghetti Tower Objective: Non-verbal communication Jigsaw puzzle Objective: collaboration Partner Drawing Objective: Verbal Communication and listening skills

Professional Development Exit Ticket What was your favorite activity? What will you utilize? What would make today's pd more effective? The spaghetti Tower was the favorite. the Drawing activity was One Vote behind! Some of the teachers just named the activities in general as their favorite. Parallel Teaching centers More balance of the different Co- teaching models Work better together for the benefit of the students Team Building Activities “Co-Lab Can Be fun” More hands-on Activities Sample Lesson Planning More input from the teachers Make it more personalized Role-play different teaching styles Video examples of co-teaching models

Next Step: Follow-up Using Exit Tickets as a guideline, I was able to follow up with some of the teachers who required additional assistance Some comments mentioned aspects beyond my control (i.e., Location and Length) 35% of the responders stated they enjoyed it, had fun, etc., and did not give a way to improve Ongoing for the remainder of the school year: Be a resource to teachers who are interested in receiving personalized feedback for their classrooms. Go back to observe teachers and look for the addition of an element that was missing from the previous observation. NELP Standard 4.4, Learning Supports: incorporating professional development as a means to effect positive change

reflection One Exit Ticket stated, “Ban cell phones and computers.” Professionals should act professionally. Flexibility and Using “What you’ve got” Are key components of Leadership. Performing Observations is more time consuming than I anticipated. If I were to do this project again, I would be more realistic about how many observations I could actually perform and expand the Scope of the PD role Play Scenarios and Have the teachers “switch roles” (SPED be Gen Ed, vice versa) Practice modifying assignments Take real lesson plans and incorporate the other methods of co-teaching into them

References Friend, M. (2005). “Co-Teaching/Support Facilitation Approaches.” Retrieved from https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1B1Cip7cPAzHrakM0cDdBWDFOLU0 NELP Standards. Retrieved From https://canvas.longwood.edu/courses/1281568/pages/nelp- standards?module_item_id=12101074