Co-Teaching Strategies
Co-Teaching Strategies
Two or more teachers working side by side to create lesson plans, teach, and assess the different students in the same classroom is the definition of co-teaching strategies. This method serves to make the teaching and learning experiences better by bringing together two or more expertise, promoting inclusive practices, and effectively meeting the needs of the students.
What are the different models of co-teaching?
Models of co-teaching are many to choose from for teachers to work together, for example, 'One Teach, One Observe', where one teacher teaches the lesson and the other looks at the students' behavior and other learning data; the 'Team Teaching' model, conversely, is where the two teachers are fully committed to the instructional process together; the 'Station Teaching' model contains students in a self-rotation scheme among the different learning stations directed by each teacher. Each model has its own specific targets and is also flexible, thereby meeting different classroom needs.
How can co-teaching benefit students with special needs?
Sharing teaching facilitates unique support for students with special needs through integrating into the regular classroom, for example, learning together with their classmates. A special education teacher is able to offer targeted strategies and accommodations while the general educator is in charge of the broader curriculum. This teamwork not only teaches social skills but also creates a more inclusive environment and helps students to be more competent academically.
What are some challenges faced in co-teaching, and how can they be addressed?
In co-teaching arrangements communication problems, different teaching styles, and more than one teacher being responsible for a task can be the problems that teachers face. To overcome these obstacles, professionals must make the distribution of the roles and responsibilities known at the beginning, keep the communication channel open, and take part in a regular planning meeting to converge the instructional approaches that they will both use. For instance, allocating the time for debriefing after lessons to both of the teachers can contribute a lot to the process of self-evaluation, discussing the things that went well as well as the issues that should be approached differently in the next lessons.
How can co-teachers effectively plan lessons together?
In order to incorporate special needs students into co-teaching through effective co-planning, both teachers should work together and exchange their expertise in such a way that it results in inclusive and interesting lessons. They can start with establishing common goals and objectives, talking about student needs, and using each other's strengths. A shared digital platform (for instance, Planbook) for lesson plans will help in maintaining ongoing communication and planning amendments. Besides, co-teachers also can think of the use of the backward design approach, starting with the intended outcomes (which are desired by all students) and creating activities that will help all the students accomplish those outcomes.