Danielle DerwichMelissa Scire English Teacher EC Teacher

One Teach, One Assist  One teaches, the other constantly moves about room monitoring behaviors and helping other stay engaged.  Requires little joint planning.  Works well with educators and certified teachers who do not feel comfortable leading instruction.  This should not be the only method by two certified co-teachers (roles should be interchanged).  Can be distracting to some students or encourage dependent learners. Station Teaching  Students move from one station to another using preset time/schedule; much like learning centers.  Station teaching could have up to three stations if using independent work stations.  Requires joint planning and shared responsibility for delivering instruction.  Lowers student-teacher ratio.  The most common problems occur with transition and noise levels-must monitor and adjust as instruction takes place.

Parallel Teaching  Essentially the same lesson is taught to half the class.  Reduces teacher-student ratio.  Both groups have regular and special education students.  Great for re-teaching, reviewing for tests, projects, and cooperative learning activities.  Should not be for initial instruction, unless both teachers are proficient in the concept being taught.  Requires joint planning and shared responsibility for instruction. Alternative Teaching  One co-teacher takes a small group to teach something different from what the large group of students will be taught.  Great for pre-teaching, re-teaching, assessing specific skills, IEP goals, and PEP plans.  It is important not to stigmatize students or keep some students from accessing the regular curriculum.  Both teachers should take responsibility for small group at various points throughout the year.  This requires joint planning and shared responsibility for instruction.

Team Teaching  Both teachers are teaching and planning for instruction  Teachers alternate leading discussion and demonstrating concepts.  This requires the most amount of joint planning, commitment, compatibility, comfort level, and mutual trust to be a successful strategy.  When used effectively, students will view both teachers as the same.  Teachers need to constantly reflect together as a team, rather than individually.  Both teachers need to confer with each other about the satisfactory of instruction.

Before 1 st Day of Class  Establish clear guidelines, responsibilities, and roles.  Use the Co-Teaching Survey to help promote better communication and understand each others expectations.  Have both teacher’s names on the syllabus and/or other important academic documents.  Have both teachers establish a schedule to help students outside of the classroom (before and/or after school). During the Year  Plan together if possible or communicate through or Google docs with both teachers contributing to the lesson.  Establish comfort levels within each lesson, so both teachers can contribute effectively.  Both teachers review assessments and progress for all students – not just EC or standard-level students.  Revise & Reflect

 The EC teacher is highly qualified in every subject area.  Some EC teachers are not contributors to the classroom, but rather assistants.  All inclusion classes include students with behavior problems and low achievement levels.  EC teachers are highly qualified in revising, modifying, and accommodating student assessments and lessons for students with different learning abilities.  It may not be that they do not want to contribute, but rather how they can contribute to enhance the regular educator’s style.  Inclusion secures opportunities for students with disabilities to learn alongside their non-disabled peers in general education classrooms.

 Benefit #1: More Teachers = More Assistance  Benefit #2: Supportive Strategies  Benefit #3: A Variety of Teaching Approaches  Benefit #4: Access to Learning Specialists (at the elementary level)  Benefit #5: More Resources

Questions?Concerns?

Friend, M. & Cook, L. (2007). Interactions: Collaboration Skills for School Professionals. Boston: Pearson. Rosen, Peg. ( ). 5 Benefits of Inclusion Classrooms. Understood.org. USA. LLC.