Co-Teaching and Collaboration in Inclusive Classrooms

Introduction: Diversity and Inclusion in Today's Classrooms

Schools today face a significant challenge. The school environment is no longer one in which a teacher can expect a relatively homogeneous population in the classroom. In addition to the challenges already posed by cultural and linguistic diversity, school reform initiatives focused on inclusive education have also resulted in intellectual diversity. This poses many challenges for the teacher of the inclusive classroom. Since it is no longer acceptable to exclude children with disabilities or limited English proficiency from general education and assessment, teachers must find new ways to accommodate these children and help them develop to the best of their ability (Haynes, 2006, p. 1).

In order to handle this responsibility, co-teaching has been implemented in many schools, involving a partnership between teachers and special educators. Special educators work with the children who need specific attention, while general education teachers handle broader classroom responsibilities. Such a collaboration is filled with many complicated challenges. However, with sufficient focus on planning, the co-teaching process can be made very effective. In addition, collaborative efforts can and should also be made with parents, the community, and innovators to ensure that all possible support is provided to help every student in the inclusive classroom reach their full potential — both within their communities and ultimately in the adult world.

Accountability, Assessment, and Progress Monitoring

One of the main challenges of inclusive classrooms is that students are included in a single accountability system applied to most general education classrooms. The difficulty is that students with intellectual challenges, in particular, cannot always manage the rigors of these testing systems and may invariably struggle or fail them.

Wilson and Blednick (2011, p. 84) note that, in order to ensure effective education and evaluation for all students, a thorough knowledge of the curriculum and standards is necessary. Students are then inclusively graded on product — which includes formal testing such as exams and reports — on process — which includes effort and homework — and on progress, which refers to the individual growth of each student.

The authors also suggest implementing a system of progress monitoring by means of curriculum-based measurement (CBM) (Wilson and Blednick, 2011, p. 88) to effectively assess the results of the co-teaching effort. Through this system, test items can be administered quickly and efficiently to address specific components of learning. Examples include biweekly one-minute reading tests and similar brief assessments.

With these ideas in mind, co-teaching systems are designed to help all students with disabilities in the general education classroom improve their ability to learn the material and testing methods used in that particular setting. In order to accomplish this, however, co-teaching must be implemented effectively.

Implementing Effective Co-Teaching Strategies

Haynes (2006, p. 2) suggests several strategies that schools can consider when implementing a co-teaching system. The first is building a strong relationship between the general and special education teacher. These two individuals share a classroom throughout the day and need a solid foundation for their collaboration. Any strain in their relationship will be communicated through the teaching process and reduce classroom effectiveness. If the teachers do not know each other, one option is to create opportunities for them to become comfortable with one another before being expected to collaborate — for example, attending each other's classes or meeting informally outside of school.

Haynes also suggests that effective planning should occur on a regular basis, both before implementing the co-teaching program and throughout the co-teaching process. Items such as the types of students included in the classroom, materials to be presented, and the responsibilities of each teacher should be carefully discussed and planned before implementation begins. During the process, teachers should collaborate regularly to plan lessons thoroughly and ensure that all students benefit. Planning efforts should also address non-academic behaviors, including social skills and integration into the broader school community.

Co-teaching programs should additionally be evaluated on a regular basis by monitoring the satisfaction levels of all stakeholders — including students, parents, and school administrators. This evaluation process can also form the basis of further collaboration between the school and the community, helping all students reach their full potential. Fattig and Taylor (2008, p. 7) affirm that effective collaboration both inside and beyond the classroom gives students a solid foundation for their educational development.

Conclusion: A Shared Responsibility

There is no way to deny that children with special needs have become a central part of the general education setting, and rightly so. In their adult lives, there will be no separate special education classrooms to which they can be directed and where their challenges might be overlooked. Instead, it is the responsibility of educators, parents, and the broader community to collaborate in making their lives as smooth and integrated as possible.

With sufficient commitment to that collaboration, even the most challenged student with special needs can learn not only to live with but to celebrate his or her differences — if not exactly as a blessing, then at least not as a curse.

References

Blednick, J., & Wilson, G. L. (2011). Teaching in tandem: Effective co-teaching in the inclusive classroom. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

CBS News. Apps for autism. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/apps-for-autism/

Dailymotion.com. (2008). The medicated child. Retrieved from http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x17awuw_the-medicated-child-2008_news

Fattig, M. L., & Taylor, M. T. (2008). Co-teaching in the differentiated classroom. San Francisco: John Wiley and Sons.

Haynes, D. L. (2006). Understanding general/special education collaboration: A naturalistic study of secondary co-teachers' experience. [University thesis].