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One Step Further Than Co-Teaching... Team Teaching

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One Step Further Than Co-Teaching... Team Teaching

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Team teaching is a little different than co-teaching; the teaching is encountered in various classrooms by various teachers, but they all work together with the same students, for the same purpose - student achievement and success.

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Classroom Management

Teaching teams are wonderful. They offer an opportunity for teachers to collaborate, share, problem-solve, and create friendships that extend beyond the school building.

That's the theory, anyway. They can also be dysfunctional, negative, ineffective, and destructive. The truth is that great teaching teams just don't happen - they must be intentionally created and nurtured.

Whether you are returning to your old team, joining a new one, or welcoming a new member, keep in mind the following tips that will help your team run like a well-oiled machine!

1. Set the ground rules

You would never start teaching without going over the rules and expectations for your students - the same goes for your team. Take time to set up what your group will and won't be.

Will "what happens in the team meetings, stay in the team meetings"? Make sure this is understood completely by all members!

Should your team meetings have an agenda and who should set that?

If you don't have a team leader as assigned by your administration, you probably want one. Who should it be?

What does each person expect from the team?

2. Set policies

If you don't already have school-wide policies for weighting grades, homework, etc., take time to set them. (I have a freebie that provides an editable teacher booklet - perfect for setting your policies and procedures. You can grab it here: Back to School Freebie)

Create a document that outlines what your policies are. This is helpful to students, parents, and the administration. It also protects your integrity as a professional.

3. Establish goals

Do you want to create cross-curricular activities this year? Set up a digital classroom? Focus on a particular skills like writing or reading nonfiction? As a team, decide on what you can do to create new challenges and learning opportunities for your students.

Take time at the start of the year, semester, or grading period to set goals - decide what special events are coming up that you want to plan for or what administrative requirements you need to address.

4. Build your team

You know how you've had a classroom of students that really jells? Work to create that with your teaching team.

Consider having a social event together outside of school - have a potluck, go to a movie, or set up a bowling night. Include spouses!

Get to know your teammates. Talk about other things besides school - find out about your teammates hobbies, family, and background.

5. Communication is Key

Not only do you need to communicate effectively with your team, you also need to keep your administrators in your communication loop. How will you do that? What do they need to know?

Keep notes. It is helpful to write down the results of the meeting, what the next steps will be, and who is going to do what. You can follow up with email.

Stay flexible - if something isn't working, communicate that with your team.

Keep your team up-to-date with issues that may impact their schedule or plans. A team test/project calendar is helpful in planning when student tests and projects are due.

6. Be supportive

Share resources, time, and ideas.

If possible, have other team members participate in parent conferences. This is especially helpful for new teachers.

Create a special way to honor each other - birthday lunches, secret Santa, or a monthly lunch together if you can.

If you have a mix of new and seasoned teachers, we aware of this! Support the new teachers.

7. Be a team player!

A teaching team doesn't mean that one teacher will gallop off on his or her own and be a Lone Teacher! As difficult as it can be, the goal of a teaching team is to work as a team!

Respect the team meetings. This is not the time to vent or complain. If there is a set agenda for the meeting, respect and focus on what your team needs to accomplish.

Follow the guidelines your team has decided are important. For example, if your team has decided that students cannot chew gum or have their cell phones out during class, and you allow that behavior in your classroom, you are undermining your fellow teachers. Even if you don't agree with a policy, you need to either follow the team's decisions or work with your team to change it.

Don't gossip about other members of your team. That can quickly cause a faction within the team. Address problems privately with a teacher you may have disagreements with.

Keep these tips in mind as you work with your team - you'll be off to a great start!

Have any suggestions for fellow teachers on how to create a dream team? Add to the discussion with a comment below!

Happiness always,

Related

Teaching teams are wonderful. They offer an opportunity for teachers to collaborate, share, problem-solve, and create friendships that extend beyond the school building.

That's the theory, anyway. They can also be dysfunctional, negative, ineffective, and destructive. The truth is that great teaching teams just don't happen - they must be intentionally created and nurtured.

Whether you are returning to your old team, joining a new one, or welcoming a new member, keep in mind the following tips that will help your team run like a well-oiled machine!

1. Set the ground rules

You would never start teaching without going over the rules and expectations for your students - the same goes for your team. Take time to set up what your group will and won't be.

Will "what happens in the team meetings, stay in the team meetings"? Make sure this is understood completely by all members!

Should your team meetings have an agenda and who should set that?

If you don't have a team leader as assigned by your administration, you probably want one. Who should it be?

What does each person expect from the team?

2. Set policies

If you don't already have school-wide policies for weighting grades, homework, etc., take time to set them. (I have a freebie that provides an editable teacher booklet - perfect for setting your policies and procedures. You can grab it here: Back to School Freebie)

Create a document that outlines what your policies are. This is helpful to students, parents, and the administration. It also protects your integrity as a professional.

3. Establish goals

Do you want to create cross-curricular activities this year? Set up a digital classroom? Focus on a particular skills like writing or reading nonfiction? As a team, decide on what you can do to create new challenges and learning opportunities for your students.

Take time at the start of the year, semester, or grading period to set goals - decide what special events are coming up that you want to plan for or what administrative requirements you need to address.

4. Build your team

You know how you've had a classroom of students that really jells? Work to create that with your teaching team.

Consider having a social event together outside of school - have a potluck, go to a movie, or set up a bowling night. Include spouses!

Get to know your teammates. Talk about other things besides school - find out about your teammates hobbies, family, and background.

5. Communication is Key

Not only do you need to communicate effectively with your team, you also need to keep your administrators in your communication loop. How will you do that? What do they need to know?

Keep notes. It is helpful to write down the results of the meeting, what the next steps will be, and who is going to do what. You can follow up with email.

Stay flexible - if something isn't working, communicate that with your team.

Keep your team up-to-date with issues that may impact their schedule or plans. A team test/project calendar is helpful in planning when student tests and projects are due.

6. Be supportive

Share resources, time, and ideas.

If possible, have other team members participate in parent conferences. This is especially helpful for new teachers.

Create a special way to honor each other - birthday lunches, secret Santa, or a monthly lunch together if you can.

If you have a mix of new and seasoned teachers, we aware of this! Support the new teachers.

7. Be a team player!

A teaching team doesn't mean that one teacher will gallop off on his or her own and be a Lone Teacher! As difficult as it can be, the goal of a teaching team is to work as a team!

Respect the team meetings. This is not the time to vent or complain. If there is a set agenda for the meeting, respect and focus on what your team needs to accomplish.

Follow the guidelines your team has decided are important. For example, if your team has decided that students cannot chew gum or have their cell phones out during class, and you allow that behavior in your classroom, you are undermining your fellow teachers. Even if you don't agree with a policy, you need to either follow the team's decisions or work with your team to change it.

Don't gossip about other members of your team. That can quickly cause a faction within the team. Address problems privately with a teacher you may have disagreements with.

Keep these tips in mind as you work with your team - you'll be off to a great start!

Have any suggestions for fellow teachers on how to create a dream team? Add to the discussion with a comment below!

Happiness always,

Related

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I'm Marypat -- passionate about helping teachers make the most of their time in the classroom. I have over 15 years of teaching experience (note the white hair!) -- primarily in the wild world of middle school (I did mention the white hair, right?!). I look forward to the opportunity to help you in your journey!

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7 Tips for Creating a Dream Teaching Team - Just Add Students

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Classroom Management Teaching teams are wonderful. They offer an opportunity for teachers to collaborate, share, problem-solve, and create friendships that extend beyond the school building. That's the theory, anyway. They can also be dysfunctional, negative, ineffective, and destructive. The truth is that great teaching teams just don't happen - they must be intentionally created and nurtured.

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Establishing teams of teachers for students to have throughout a school year can be very beneficial for their success. It allows the teachers in the team to all have the same students and create a learning dynamic that is cohesive and beneficial to the learners.

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Looking for classroom management tips for team teaching and co-teaching? You'll find information on discipline and behavior management while sharing a classroom with a co-teacher, organization ideas for team teaching, and more! Learn from my personal experience with team teaching and hear from educators who have successfully implemented co-teaching, plus find links to other co-teaching and team teaching resources.

What's the difference between team teaching and co-teaching?

Though some people use these terms interchangeably, team teaching usually refers to two general education teachers combining their classes (or sometimes, switching classes) and sharing responsibility for instruction. Co-teaching is two teachers (one of whom is usually general education, and one is usually a special education or ELL teacher) who are both responsible for a single group of students. On this page, I'll provide resources for both scenarios.

My team teaching experience

I team taught during my sixth year of teaching due to an overcrowding situation. We had 65 third graders in one classroom while we were waiting for a new building to be constructed. We were told it would happen in October. As you probably predicted, construction feel behind schedule. We weren't able to move rooms until the end of May, so my team teacher and I ended up sharing a classroom all year!

Fortunately, our teaching styles were very similar and we got along wonderfully. We ended up splitting the teaching load so that we each taught our strongest subjects: she taught whole group reading and science, and I taught math and social studies, and we both taught reading small groups so that the group sizes would be smaller. While one teacher taught the class, the other would be dealing with students on an individual basis, handling all those little things that come up throughout the school day (solving inter-personal disputes, monitoring bathroom privileges, dealing with emotional meltdowns, etc.) and assisting our students with special needs and English language learners. Because our students as a whole were not high-needs (due to the type of school population), we were also able to spend time grading papers, filing, etc. while the other person was teaching.

We conducted parent conferences together, which meant having to do double the amount of conferences, but it was worth it to have someone else be the bearer of bad news occasionally and back me up when there was a conflict. We also graded each other's papers (we each graded for the subjects we taught) but we entered the grades in our own individual grade books, because in the school's eyes, we were each responsible for our own group of students.

I was actually sad when the year ended and I had my own classroom again, because I loved having the downtime in between teaching lessons and the ability to talk with an adult who actually knew what it was like to be in the classroom with our kids all day! Teaching is such an isolating profession and I really enjoyed having someone to bounce ideas off of-someone who knew the kids just as well as I did and would be able to give the exact advice I needed.

I don't think the situation was best for the students, so in that way, I was relieved to have my own room again. If we'd only had 30 kids, it would have been awesome, but no child should have 65 students in his or her class. Our team teaching circumstances were far from ideal, but we really made the best of it and I look back on that year very fondly.

Team teaching essentials from Ashleigh Swinford

Teacher blogger Ashleigh Swinford has a LOT of experience with team teaching-this will be her tenth year teaching with three years in fourth grade and the rest in third grade. She taught in a self-contained classroom for her first six years, and this will be her fourth year in a departmentalized setting. I invited Ashleigh to share some of her ideas below. She writes:

"Departmentalization or team teaching has become a trend in many elementary schools, and with the right set-up, it can be a very positive experience for both students and teachers. However, team teaching is like a marriage and requires hard work and commitment from all involved for a truly successful year. I've had the wonderful experience of team teaching for the past three years with an amazing teacher and through my experiences have learned that there are five essential elements to making it work.

1. Trust: You have to trust your partner completely. It's important to know with 100% certainty that your teaching partner(s) excel in their subject areas, and also have faith that they will give students the best instruction possible while in that classroom. This gives you the freedom to focus on your academic areas and to develop your expertise in that subject.

2. Communication: Set aside time to communicate with each other daily. Discuss student progress, behavior, RTI, EIPs, ways to integrate your subject areas, upcoming assessments, and the list goes on and on. Always be courteous and respectful, and be willing to listen to new ideas, as well as share your own.

3. Consistency: The importance of consistency cannot be overstated. Elementary students crave routines and stability, so the transition from one teacher to another should be seamless. All teachers should have the same academic and behavioral expectations. From my observations and personal experience, this is the area where the most difficulties arise in team teaching, because when students lack the structure they need there is usually a breakdown in their classroom performance. Before the year begins, create a plan with your team to decide on your expectations for behavior, homework, recess, lunch room, hallway, etc. Then as a team, stick to the plan.

My partner and I like using this discipline log. We print a new one for both groups each week, and this log follows the class. This allows us to keep track of both groups' behavior and helps us stay consistent.
Organization: Staying organized is a challenge for any teacher, and adding multiple groups of students only adds to the challenge. When working with multiple classes, it's important to have separate places for students to store their supplies and turn in their work. Be prepared for the organization of classwork and homework. Also, have a place where students can store their personal items. These steps can help you create a more organized classroom and improve your efficiency.
I keep two separate trays inside student desks. Each student has their own tray for their supplies and classwork. There is also a caddy in the center of groups for community supplies. We have separate trays for make-up work, as well as trays where each group turns in their completed work.
Flexibility: As with any relationship, flexibility is a must. Life happens. Be prepared for the unexpected. When you departmentalize, you're held to a much tighter schedule, so little things like a fire drill or assembly can have a major impact on your day. Try to be as agreeable and flexible as possible when working with your partner(s), and they'll likely return the favor.

Working together with another teacher can be an extremely rewarding experience. Just remember that like any relationship it takes time to find your own way. By implementing these strategies, you may be amazed at the success you experience!"

Mandy's co-teaching experience

Since I've never co-taught before (only team taught), I've invited Mandy Holland Gregory to share her story and tips about co-teaching.

Co-teaching requires a great amount of flexibility, communication and opportunities for collaboration. While it can have its difficulties, it can be an amazing experience. I have grown and learned more co-teaching for the last two years than I did in the seven years before this experience combined!

We jokingly refer to our situation as an arranged marriage- neither of us requested to co-teach. My partner was actually a part-time second grade teacher and lost her position when ALL part-time teachers were cut. She was hired back as a Special Education teacher and we happened to be placed together. Somehow it has worked out and three years later, a "divorce" would be quite painful now!

Communication:Co-teaching often requires working together closely with a colleague for most of the school day. It is important to communicate tactfully pet peeves and expectations. One thing my partner and I hashed out quickly were the things that drove us batty. She requires silence during morning announcements. I like anchor charts to be in my own handwriting (although I have learned to let this go!).

Also co-teaching in a Special Education inclusions setting requires many meetings. It is important for all parties involved to be aware of meetings dates and times. As the general education teacher I am provided a copy of all of the students accommodations and goals so I am providing students with the correct accommodations and targeting their needs when I am meeting with them in small groups.

1. Organization: Two teachers in one classroom space can make for a tight situation. It is imperative to stay as organized as possible. My partner and I have chosen to share a desk that has communal supplies (thank you cards, post cards, etc) and use our reading table as our desks. This saves spaces, but still allows a space for supplies and a laptop to be hooked to the Promethean and projector.

2. Flexibility:My partner and I try to plan together as often as possible. We often do this during our lunch break! However, some of our grandest plans may crash and burn if we notice students are not understanding the lesson. We are very flexible in our planning and are able to break into small groups or continue a lesson if it is going well. We always have a plan B waiting in the wings!

3. Respect:Unfortunately, many parents see two adults in a classroom and assume that one is the teacher and the other adult is a paraprofessional. I try to make sure both our names are on every paper from the office, both names are displayed in the halls and are on every note from our classroom. We both speak to parents during Open House and stress our experience and educational background.

4. Expectations:My partner and I both are very structured as far as routines and procedures. However, we have a relatively easy going disposition toward discipline. It would be very hard to work with another person that has a more structured approach to discipline. Try to find a median as far as student's behavioral expectations. It will prevent student confusion and make the classroom run smoother as a whole.

5. Division of Labor: One nice perk of co-teaching is a partner to share the work load (and being able to go to the bathroom whenever needed!). However, keep in mind a Special Education teacher has a ton of extra paper work and data collection to do. We do not have a hard and fast division of labor where my partner has specific tasks to complete and I have another set of tasks to complete. Instead, we share the work load. I have noticed that partnerships in which work is "assigned" it tends to create resentment.

We each have tasks we prefer. I prefer to do the planning, grading, and day to day preparations. My partner does the monthly calendar, newsletter and homework. It works well for us since I am terrible at planning ahead and she is a whiz at it! However, I do not do all the planning every week and my partner does not do all the newsletters every week; we help each other and switch tasks as needed.

Support Each Other:Certain times of the year are very stressful: conferences, report cards, and end of the year paper work. At times one of us will teach a lesson whole group (this works especially well in science and social studies) while the other partner plans or completes paper work. It is an unpleasant reality in teaching; paperwork is inevitable. We try to do this only occasionally, because there is a reason two teachers are in the classroom!

My last piece of advice: laugh. Laugh hard and often. Teaching is a stressful profession, isolating profession, with little down time. It is great to able to look across the room at another adult and smile!
Mandy Gregory has been teaching for over ten years. She has co-taught for two years and taught departmentalized Reading, Writing, and Grammar for three years. Mandy has taught second, third, and fourth grades. She currently lives in Georgia with her husband, adorable two year old daughter, and two very fat cats! Her website is Mandy's Tips for Teachers. You can also follow her on her blog.
Team teaching in a departmentalization scenario

I get lots of questions from teachers about departmentalizing and how that works in an elementary setting. If you are team teaching in a set up where you teach certain subjects and other teachers provide instruction on the rest (with either students of teachers changing classrooms throughout the day), check out the Departmentalized Teaching page for tips from teachers who have implemented that successfully.

Questions about co-teaching and team teaching

The following questions were submitted to me as part of the Ask Angela Anything blog post series. You can submit any teaching-related question anonymously to maintain your privacy and student confidentiality. I'm including the two questions below here on this page instead of in the column to make it easier for co-teachers to find answers all in one place.

I work with a wonderful co-teacher. We have both been under lots of stress from work and home. Due to this we haven't had the best relationship. To add to it, we both are disorganized. I am working on both home and work, but when I attempt to implement it at work, she claims she doesn't have time. In order to survive this next year, I need to implement better time management and organization skills. How do I do this when our jobs are intertwined? I was thinking of meeting and setting to do lists, prioritize our work load, so when we are not together we still can do the jobs that needed to get done in a timely fashion. HELP......
-Overwhelmed

No wonder you are "overwhelmed"! That's quite a challenge you've got there. If you can, I would use Google Drive (formerly Google Docs) and Google Apps for Education as much as possible-these resources are free and make collaboration immensely simpler. You can have a shared online calendar that's accessible from any computer (work or home), keep your lessons in Google Drive (which you can both edit concurrently), and even use Google Forms and Google Spreadsheets for data keeping.

I definitely agree you should meet before school starts and plan some things out. Do all the leg work for your co-teacher so that your questions are answered and you leave the meeting feeling comfortable about where you both stand. Make a list of every task that you'd like to prioritize or assign to one of the two of you, and then you can just go down the list and talk about who will do each one.

Mention that it would be great if you could have a set planning time each day, either first thing in the morning before the kids come in or at the end of the day when they leave. Just 15 minutes, if nothing else, in which you both agree to be in the room alone together and talking about students progress, things that need to be done, etc. Make that time a priority and stick to it.

When problems come up, think of a solution that you think would work and pose it to her: "Hey, I noticed __ happening. What if we __ next time? Is that okay with you?" That way she can't say she doesn't have time to think about it or doesn't know what to do. Be open to her suggestions and input, of course, but take the lead so that there are no excuses about staying disorganized.

In terms of maintaining the relationship, try to let her know you appreciate her as often as possible. Always speak highly of her when she's standing there (i.e. tell about how she saved the day by making the photocopies when you forgot, or handled a problem with a student while you were busy) and never criticize her behind her back. Foster as much good will as possible: little things make a big difference. Sometimes a single genuine compliment or "thank you" just makes a person's day. Keep looking for ways to share one another's workloads (and emotional loads) and try to make the most of what can be a wonderful situation.

I'm a fifth grade teacher and we team teach in our grade level. What advice do you have on working with a teacher whose behavior management style is different from your own? I was teamed with a teacher who is very passive in her approach and that made it difficult since I was more active in teaching and correcting behavior. The students always seemed confused why they were corrected for interrupting in my math/science class, but not in her language arts/social studies class. How do I work with her to ensure we have the same expectations for our students so that they can succeed?
-Rebecca

If it makes you feel better, Rebecca, know that this is a really common problem. After all, no two people discipline alike (just ask moms and dads who try to co-parent!) Start by figuring out what you can compromise on and what you can't. If your team teacher lets kids call out when she's teaching and you don't, decide whether you can tolerate that behavior or not. You might even want to list the things you can loosen up about and the things you absolutely must see eye-to-eye on.

Then talk to her about the areas in which you feel strongly that you must be in agreement on. Approach her in a casual way when you're alone together and have a few minutes to talk. You could say, "I saw how [student] was __ while you were teaching and it was driving me nuts. Your lessons are so good and I'm bothered when the kids are distracted by __. When I see that kind of behavior, I'd like to address it by __. Is that okay with you? Are you comfortable with addressing that behavior too? I want to make sure we're sending a clear message to the kids that we're on the same page and have the same expectations, and that if I don't allow something, you won't either."

It's also worth talking to your students about how there are different expectations for different scenarios. Discuss how they have one set of rules at home, one on the school bus, one in the hallways, etc. Tell the kids that it's important to be resilient and flexible and understand how to behave in different scenarios, and talk about how a classroom is like a teacher's second home. We all run our homes differently, and we all run our classrooms differently. When two teachers share one room, it can get a little tricky. Their other teacher might be okay with kids getting up to get drinks without asking, but you prefer they ask you. Neither of your preferences are right or wrong, they're just your personal preferences, and you ask that the kids respect those preferences, just as you try to respect their likes and dislikes whenever possible.

In that way, you can make allowances for the differences in your teaching style in a way that makes sense to the kids. Children intuitively know what they can get away with in the presence of every adult in their lives (hence their behavior is often different for substitutes), so don't stress out about having a perfectly united front. Try to be gentle when correcting the kids about behaviors that your co-teacher allows and you don't: kids are likely to cooperate with patient reminders about your expectations but get defiant when they're yelled at for something they're sometimes allowed to do.

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Looking for classroom management tips for team teaching and co-teaching? You'll find information on discipline and behavior management while sharing a classroom with a co-teacher, organization ideas for team teaching, and more! Learn from my personal experience with team teaching and hear from educators who have successfully implemented co-teaching, plus find links to other co-teaching ...

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Matrix model designed to effectively collaborate with other teachers, in order to create successful learning environments for the students.

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Do you work with tons of specialists? I know I do! The best thing we can do for our student's success is work with those people to build a team to support our students.

I work with some amazing specialists who've always been willing to collaborate with me. I have set up biweekly meetings where we get together and have a chance to talk about our students. It's a great chance to talk about how we can address goals for students across the day and in many different settings. I have found this process to be the most beneficial use of my time.

When we begin meeting in the beginning of the year, I always plan to work on an activity matrix. This allows our team to brainstorm ways students can be working on goals throughout the day. I love these working documents that my staff and I use. I keep them in a binder for myself and my staff to access throughout activities.

If it's art time, we flip to the art matrix; at snack, we flip to the snack matrix; you get the idea. This helps us think about what each child is able to do and where we are pushing them. And the best part is that we are working on speech, OT, and academic skills at snack time and art time! Even better, if my admin asks me why we're doing art I can show them ALL of the goal areas we are addressing for students through art.

In this matrix that our team develops, we look at a particular activity on our daily schedule (i.e.: snack, recess, art, group work, etc.) and talk about how we can incorporate skills related to students speech and OT goals. I document this on the matrix and print it out for access throughout activities. I love how this document is a working document. As we learn and grow we simply change the matrix and print out a new copy for the binder. Check out the art matrixes we are currently using in the classroom!

Take a closer peek to see how we're tackling speech goals through our daily art time!

Head over and grab these editable forms for use in your classroom too!

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Building a Collaborative Team: Matrix Planning

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Do you work with tons of specialists? I know I do! The best thing we can do for our student's success is work with those people to build a team to support our students. I work with some amazing specialists who've always been willing to collaborate with me.

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Collaboration for Special Needs Education

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Collaboration for Special Needs Education

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Collaboration with parents and an IEP team is imperative for the success of students with IEPs or special needs.

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The IEP process can be overwhelming, particularly for parents. That's why it is important for IEP team members-including parents, educators, and administrators-to work together and support each other as they develop a plan for their student.

Collaborative, effective IEP teams can make all the difference in helping students reach their full potential and prepare them for the rest of their lives. Here are a few tactics used by successful collaborative IEP teams:

Communicate with Respect.

Each team member should strive to practice active listening. Many people listen simply to respond in a conversation. However, in IEP team meetings, it is vital to listen to understand others' viewpoints.

Ask questions for clarification if needed, and remain open to new ideas. Even if the whole team does not agree on a particular issue at the end of the meeting, compromise is more attainable when everyone feels heard and understood.

Of course, team members also should avoid interrupting each other and should pay close attention to the message their own body language might portray.

Prioritize

First, use the team's time as efficiently as possible. Set a meeting agenda and appoint a team member who will keep the group on track so the most important items get the time and attention they deserve.

Furthermore, prioritize goals for the student. Not everything can or will be accomplished in one year, and developing too many goals could mean setting the team-and the student-up for failure. Instead, decide which items are most urgent and must be addressed by the IEP now.

Build Consensus

It takes the work of all team members to successfully implement an IEP. Team members should walk out of an IEP meeting with their own plan of action-items they can personally focus on to assist the student.

Outlining goals for each team member, as well as a timeline for those goals to be reached, can help rally each person around the central goal of helping the student be successful.

Celebrate

Take time to value fellow IEP team members and celebrate the achievements that have been made and the goals that have been reached. Celebrating with words of appreciation-or even a few snacks-helps build camaraderie among members and strengthens the team's commitment.

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Four Keys to Successful Collaboration on IEPs

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The IEP process can be overwhelming, particularly for parents. That's why it is important for IEP team members-including parents, educators, and administrators-to work together and support each other as they develop a plan for their student. Collaborative, effective IEP teams can make all the difference in helping students reach their full potential and prepare them for the rest of their lives.

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Google Drive has a variety of components that can allow for the successful collaboration among teachers and students. Both can work together to create documents via Google Docs or presentations using Google Slides.

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Classroom Layout for Successful Co-Teaching

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Classroom Layout for Successful Co-Teaching

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Different classroom layout plans that can benefit the practice of co-teaching.

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Differentiation methods of co-teaching in the classroom.

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Collaboration is not only beneficial among colleagues, but it is also beneficial among students.

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Use these five best practices to help your students build a valuable 21st-century skill.

iStock.com/Christopher Futcher

Most of us who teach believe in the power of collaboration and frequently engage our students in collaborative activities. But how many times have we put students in groups only to watch them interact with their laptops instead of each other? Or pursue their own individual goals instead of consult with one another? Or complain about a lazy teammate?

Promoting real collaboration is hard to do well-and it doesn't just happen on its own. If we want real collaboration, we need to intentionally design it as part of our learning activity. These are five strategies to encourage effective collaboration.

Create Learning Activities That Are Complex

Students need a reason to collaborate. If the assignment is too simple, they can more easily do it alone. At most, they may check in with each other or interact in superficial ways. The real reason to collaborate is because the task is complex-it is too difficult and has too many pieces to complete alone.

Complex activities are challenging, engaging, stimulating, and multilayered. Complex activities require "positive interdependence" (Johnson, Johnson & Holubec, 2008), a situation in which attaining the goal, completing the task, being successful, and getting a good grade require that the team work together and share knowledge.

One way to do this is through rigorous projects that require students to identify a problem (for example, balancing population growth in their city with protection of existing green spaces) and agree-through research, discussion, debate, and time to develop their ideas-on a solution which they must then propose together.

Prepare Students to Be Part of a Team

Help students understand the benefits of collaboration and what successful collaboration looks like.

Guide students through the stages of team building (forming, storming, norming, and performing).

Give students time and opportunities within the activity to develop leadership, decision-making, trust-building, communication, and conflict-management skills.

Establish expectations and norms for working together.

Design, or have students design, protocols for handling conflict disagreement so they can resolve issues within their teams.

Teach students active listening skills.

Collaborative groups can't be assigned-they have to be built and nurtured. Students often need to learn how to work effectively with others and as part of a team. We have to help students understand the what, why, and how of collaboration. We can do this in several ways:

Minimize Opportunities for Free Riding

Create small groups of no more than four or five people. When there is less room to hide, nonparticipation is more difficult.

Ensure a high degree of individual accountability (Johnson, Johnson & Holubec, 2008) by assessing students both individually and as a group. For example, at the end of the day give students an individual quiz based on the intended outcome of their collaborative activity.

Design meaningful team roles that relate to the content and to the task. Roles like time keeper are episodic and don't intellectually engage students in the content, and this can encourage free riding. In contrast, more meaningful roles such as manager, monitor, and leaders for each subtask of the activity give students ownership in the process and allow the teacher to assess students based on successful completion of these roles.

Have students evaluate their own participation and effort and that of each team member and triangulate those assessments with your own

When students complain about collaborative groups, it often has to do with the free riding of one member who lets others do all the work and then benefits from the group grade. We can eliminate free riding in a number of ways:

Build in Many Opportunities for Discussion and Consensus

Many group projects are based on efficiency, dividing labor to create a product in the most effective way possible. This focus on the product means that we often ignore the process of collaboration. Rich discussions that connect students with the experiences of others, that engage them deeply in a shared intellectual experience, and that promote coming to consensus are essential to collaboration.

For instance, students can come to consensus around a solution or decision where they must defend or propose a common vision or develop a set of beliefs or principles. This focus on discussion and consensus builds both academic and social skills-students learn to defend their ideas through evidence and analytical reasoning, to negotiate meaning, and to argue constructively.

Focus on Strengthening and Stretching Expertise

The challenge of designing good collaborative activities is ensuring that all students, even those who struggle, play an important role. Collaboration should not just strengthen students' existing skills but ensure that their interactions stretch existing knowledge and expand one another's expertise. If, for example, a student is much stronger in one skill than her peers in her group, she can teach others and her grade can be contingent upon how much her peers learn.

In collaborative activities, we want to ensure that students don't just occupy the same physical space but that they share an intellectual space-that they learn more, do more, and experience more together than they would alone. As teachers, we can promote real collaboration by shifting our role from instructor to coach-promoting team autonomy, checking in on students and providing instant feedback, and helping them increasingly learn to work together productively to attain a common goal.

Reference:

Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R., & Holubec, E. (2008). Cooperation in the Classroom.

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5 Strategies to Deepen Student Collaboration

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Use these five best practices to help your students build a valuable 21st-century skill.

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This article mentions many elements of co-teaching that allow for a successful attempt for all involved.

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This website details co-teaching basics and how to make the best out of a co-teaching experience. This includes what co-teaching is, different ways to co-teach, and how to make the best out of a co-teaching relationship.

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Impossible. That was my first thought when I saw the class roster. In one of my ninth grade English classes, 13 of my 27 students had IEPs. Additionally, about one-third of the students had failed the class the previous year. I dreaded the first day of school. But then something wonderful happened: The principal assigned me a co-teacher, a special education expert to serve as another set of hands (and eyes and ears!) during this class every day. I was thrilled.

My co-teacher Sandie was a joy to collaborate with, but our relationship was by no means perfect, especially at the beginning. We often struggled to find planning time. Sometimes we disagreed about how to best help a particular student. However, we nurtured the co-teaching relationship and, in time, found a rhythm that worked for us-and for the students we served.

In the years since I co-taught with Sandie and other teachers, I've coached and consulted with dozens of successful and not-so-successful teams. Co-teaching, when done well, offers benefits for both students and teachers. When not done well, it can be confusing or downright frustrating for all involved. If you are or will be part of a co-teaching partnership, this post will show you some ways to make your partnership work beautifully.

What is Co-Teaching?

In a co-teaching relationship, also known as a "push-in" arrangement, a general education teacher partners with a specialist who may be certified in teaching English Language Learners (ELLs), students with learning disabilities, or some other special population. A co-teaching team works in the general ed classroom; for the majority of the time, students with special needs are not pulled out to receive services in another location.

For instance, a middle school social studies teacher may have an ELL teacher co-teaching with him during one class period because five students in that class are newcomers to the United States and speak only Arabic fluently. A high school teacher may have one or two sections of biology to which many students with IEPs for reading are channeled; a co-teacher who specializes in reading disabilities co-teaches in these classes. A 4th grade teacher may have two students with 504 plans and another three who have specific learning disabilities in her class; she works alongside a special education teacher daily during lessons in the four core academic subject areas.

For more background, download this Brief History of Co-Teaching.

Co-Teaching Structures

General education teachers working with specialists in a "push-in" model often work in one of the following structures described by Friend and Cook (1996):

One teach, one observe: One teacher delivers instruction while the other observes student learning. Usually the observer collects data on student understanding so that the co-teaching team can better plan future instruction. Sometimes, specific students are watched closely so that the teachers can determine new strategies to use with them.

One teach, one assist: One teacher takes the lead in providing instruction while the other moves around the classroom, assisting struggling students. This help is not limited to students with special needs; the assisting professional is there to serve whomever needs support.

Parallel teaching: The class is divided in two groups and the same material is presented simultaneously by both teachers. The teachers plan the two groups deliberately to maximize the success of all students; this is not simply a "pull-out" or intervention group sitting in the same room.

Station teaching: Both teachers are actively involved in instruction as students are divided into groups and rotate from one station to the next. There may be stations where students work independently or with a paraprofessional in addition to the two stations the co-teachers facilitate.

Alternative teaching: One teacher takes a small group of students and provides them more intensive or specialized instruction that is different than what the large group receives from the other teacher.

Team teaching: Both teachers teach the content at the same time in tandem or "tag team" fashion.

It is important to note that both teachers have equal status and equal responsibility in all six of these arrangements. In the co-teaching relationships that work best, at no time is one teacher seen as subordinate to the other. Both professionals are credentialed professionals, although each may have his or her specific areas of expertise.

How to Make the Most of a Co-Teaching Partnership

Researchers and practitioners have tons of advice about how to co-teach effectively, and as a person who has been "in the trenches" with several different co-teachers, so do I. The advice below sums up the most common recommendations.

1. Respect each other.

Not surprisingly, mutual respect is critical to the co-teaching relationship. You'll have to share ideas openly and do much of your work facing students together, so respecting each other is paramount. Sometimes you'll disagree, and that's to be expected. As co-teacher and ELL specialist Melissa Eddington says, it's fine to disagree with someone's ideas, but don't make the disagreement about the person.

Teachers in co-teaching situations that don't work well often report feeling disrespected. Amy* is an ELL specialist paired with a middle school social studies teacher. When they collaborate, Amy feels her suggestions for tweaking whole-class lessons are not taken seriously by her partner. "She respects me as a professional," Amy says of her co-teacher, "but I think because I'm not experienced in her content, she doesn't see my input as valuable."

Susan*, who is licensed in both secondary science and learning disabilities, works with two physical science teachers and one biology teacher. The physical science teachers welcome her ideas and eagerly adjust their lessons based on her suggestions. They are seeing a steady increase of students mastering the required standards in the classes Susan supports. The biology teacher, however, dismisses many of Susan's ideas and accuses her of "dumbing down" his content. Susan feels disrespected and finds it hard to even be in the room with the biology teacher because he constantly positions himself as "the expert" and places her in a subordinate role.

Words and gestures speak volumes. Take care to show respect for your partner in all you do.

2. Clearly define roles and responsibilities.

Co-teaching works better when the partners agree on who does what, when. Clearly defined roles and responsibilities prevent either partner from feeling the other has overstepped a boundary or shirked responsibilities.

Natalie Marston (2002-2015), an elementary special ed teacher, recommends co-teachers reach agreement on scheduling, classroom procedures and behaviors, classwork and homework policies, grading, and school/home communication together so they present a united front at all times.

Obviously this type of planning requires a great deal of time, ideally before school starts. If extended time is not available prior to the beginning of the school year, then the co-teaching team should expect to put in extra hours before and after school in the first few weeks so things get off to a good start.

My co-teacher Sandie and I did not have advance warning of our assignment. We found out about it on the first teacher workday, leaving us only a few days before the students arrived. For weeks, we both felt like we were playing "catch up and keep up," but found that having lunch together (and some happy hours together) helped us stay in sync.

3. Be flexible.

Innovation is difficult. That's why so many teachers find themselves falling back on comfortable (and even tired) activities and strategies. Co-teaching allows you to gain another person's perspective on how instruction might be improved, how students might be best assessed, what resources to use, and so much more. Sometimes this means one person has to put aside his or her favorite tried-and-true strategy and try something different.

When Susan suggested a tactile, quiz-like method for reviewing the periodic table to her physical science co-teaching partners, they were skeptical about the time and materials it might require. They initially felt it would be more efficient to simply give additional notes to their students and then pair students to quiz each other. However, they agreed to try the review Susan's way. The students loved the activity, and almost every student with special needs passed the chapter test two days later. All three teachers were thrilled and committed to using the activity in future years.

4. Plan together.

The co-teaching relationship brings together two people with wonderfully rich expertise and experiences. Special educators are typically skilled in individualizing curriculum and instruction based on children's needs (Dettmer et al., 2005; Volonino & Zigmond, 2007). General educators, on the other hand, tend to have broad knowledge of the curriculum, standards, and desired outcomes for the larger group. Therefore, when general educators plan lessons, they tend to aim for the masses (Dettmer et al., 2005). Both perspectives are important, and co-teaching teams need ample planning time to work through how to best utilize each one.

Lack of planning time can lead to territorialism. Without time to plan for a good balance of content and individualization, a general ed teacher may become protective of his subject matter, or a specialist may become protective of his students. Emma*, a high school special ed teacher partnered with two geometry teachers, has experienced this. One teacher often asks Emma to pull aside the five or six students with specific disabilities within his class and work only with them. He sometimes says to her, "You worry about your kids. I'll worry about geometry." The principal is now providing an additional hour of planning time for Emma and this teacher. An assistant principal who oversees the math department facilitates the meetings so Emma feels supported and the geometry teacher has another content-area expert to hash things out with.

Keep in mind that planning must include both instruction and assessment. Considering many students with special needs have legal accommodations for assessment (like being provided translation, extended time, or oral reading), it's best to include both partners fully in designing quizzes, tests, papers, and other high-stakes assessment tasks.

How much time is ideal? One study found that co-teachers desired, on average, 15 minutes to an hour each day for planning (Dieker & Murawski, 2003). This figure corresponds to what worked for my co-teacher and me, and it also confirms what I hear from many co-teachers in the field. Strive to find that time any way you can.

5. Don't take yourself too seriously.

Innovation requires failure. Many times, teachers feel they've failed somehow during instruction, and in reality, the students haven't even noticed. We are often our own worst critics. Revisiting or correcting something later in the day (or the next day) doesn't mean you failed earlier. It means you've learned something since. This is the kind of ongoing learning we want to model for our students.

And, as in most situations in life, a little bit of humor goes a long way. Laugh with your co-teacher. Allow students to see both of you laughing with each other and with them when something is surprising, silly, or just doesn't go the way you planned. In the words of Jennifer Wolf who co-teaches with Melissa Eddington, "Take the work seriously, but don't take yourself too seriously."

Eddington adds, "You gotta laugh at each other! Our job is hard, and if you're not laughing and making light of some things, then it's just not going to be a good place to be."

6. Communicate, communicate, communicate.

Planning time is one thing; constant communication is another. Not only should co-teachers frequently plan for what standards will be covered, how material will be taught, and how students will be assessed, they should also regularly communicate in less formal ways.

Co-teaching teams have different methods to create and sustain that communication:

Eddington and Wolf use the Voxer app throughout the school day and on their drives home to send messages back and forth. Voxer works like a walkie-talkie and allows back-and-forth conversation in real time when two people are not physically close to each other. Melissa says, "We're constantly communicating. We're talking about specific students. We're looking at assessments to see what areas are lacking...different things we want to bring to the classroom, things we don't want to do..."

Some other teams I've worked with use texting and emails throughout each day to share updates. Voxer, texts, and emails can all work well, especially if one teacher has urgent information or an urgent question about a particular student.

Teams can use Google Docs or other shared documents to keep track of lesson planning and to share feedback with each other on how lessons went. Collaborative documents can also be used to provide each other with information about targeted students.

In addition to ongoing communication, Ariel Sacks (2014) reminds us to periodically check in with our co-teacher about how we are doing in general. She recommends asking your partner the following:

Are there management items we should clarify, such as when are students allowed to go to the bathroom?

Are we sharing airtime well?

Are we dividing grading in an equitable way?

Would different teaching formats better utilize the two of us in the classroom?

Finally, co-teachers need to present a united front when dealing with parents. Some partners go as far as to create a shared email address from which all communication flows. This may or may not be practical in your situation. At the very least, important parent communication about a student's progress should be drafted by both parties.

For more in-depth information about communicating and collaborating with your co-teacher, see Communicating and Collaborating in Co-Taught Classrooms (Conderman et al., 2009).

7. Seek administrative support.

Sometimes, teachers have been scheduled to co-teach by administrators but didn't have much advance notice. This is what happened with Sandie and me. We were able to find snippets of time during the school day to use for planning and checking in with each other, but we had no common planning period. If you and your partner don't have a common planning time when you can frequently collaborate, ask for it. Go to your principal with a couple of proposals about how this can work without too much disruption to the rest of the schedule.

Sometimes co-teachers may not understand fully why they are being asked to team. If this is the case, ask for a meeting with the principal and any others responsible for the assignment. Ask them why they thought the two of you would be a good fit and what they hope you will accomplish with students.

If you're already in a co-teaching partnership that's not working well, and you've tried to address this with your partner, turn to a trusted administrator next for advice. If you and your co-teacher have not recently been observed, ask the administrator to come sit in on part of a lesson. Tell him or her what you'd like feedback on or what feels like it's not working well. Debrief with the administrator, ideally with your co-teaching partner. When an observer offers data and feedback to both of you, it may feel different for your partner than when you share things from your perspective. (This co-teaching observation form can help.)

It's important not to go to other teachers with your concerns. Respect the collegial relationship you have with your co-teacher and don't do anything that might undermine it. And it should go without saying that you don't want students to perceive any problems within the co-teaching relationship. Be cognizant of your demeanor, tone, and body language. Students are quite perceptive and can easily spot trouble. They are also experts at "good cop/bad cop." Don't let students play you and your partner against each other. If your colleagues or students give you any evidence that they know the co-teaching arrangement is ineffective, head straight for that trusted administrator to support you. ♦

*These names have been changed.
References:
Conderman, G., Johnston-Rodriguez, S., & Hartman, P. (2009). Communicating and collaborating in co-taught classrooms. Teaching Exceptional Children Plus,5(5). Retrieved January 26, 2017, from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ967751.pdf

Dettmer, P., Thurston, L., Knackendoffel, A., & Dyck, N. (2009). Collaboration, consultation, and teamwork (6th ed.). Columbus, OH: Pearson.

Dieker, Lisa A., Murawski, W. M. (2003). "Co-teaching at the Secondary Level: Unique Issues, Current Trends, and Suggestions for Success." The High School Journal, 86(4). Retrieved January 26, 2017, from http://search.proquest.com/docview/220220652/13494E2D48D1DB506F0/8

Friend, M. & Cook, L. (1996). Interactions: Collaboration skills for school professionals. White Plains, NY: Longman.

Marston, N. (2002-2015). Six steps to successful co-teaching: Helping special and regular education teachers work together. National Education Association. Retrieved January 26, 2017 from http://www.nea.org/tools/6-steps-to-successful-co-teaching.html

Sacks, A. (2014, October 15). Blog post. Eight tips for making the most of co-teaching. Retrieved January 26, 2017, from http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2014/10/15/ctq_sacks_coteaching.html

Volonino, V. & Zigmond, N. (2007). Promoting research-based practices through inclusion. Theory into Practice, 46(4), 291-300.

Learn More

Angela Peery is the author of The Co-Teacher's Playbook, which will be available in September 2019.

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When done well, co-teaching offers benefits for both students and teachers. When not done well, it can be confusing or downright frustrating for all involved.