Making Collaborative Teaching More Effective for Academically Able Students: Recommendations for Implementation and Training

Abstract

Collaborative teaching is being used more and more in serving academically able students with disabilities, including a large number of students with learning disabilities. The focus of this article is a series of recommendations to improve collaborative teaching. The recommendations were generated as a result of an intensive study of collaborative teaching in elementary, middle, and high school programs through interviews with administrators, teachers, parents, and students. The recommendations are divided into (a) general recommendations addressing service delivery, administrative, and communication issues and (b) training recommendations for new and indirectly involved personnel, parents, and university pre-and inservice programs.

A Qualitative Study of Student Teachers' Experiences with Collaborative Problem Solving

“…Working in isolation rarely produces the kind of innovative instructional methods needed to maintain students with challenging academic and behavioral needs in general education (Englert & Tarrant, 1995;Rogers & Babinski, 1999). Both general and special education teachers possess knowledge and skills necessary for successful inclusion of children with disabilities, highlighting the need for these teachers to be skilled in professional collaboration (Gerber & Popp, 2000;Hudson & Glomb, 1997).…”

Effects of Modeling Collaborative Teaching for Pre-Service Teachers

“…Friend and Cook (2007) stated that defining how shared planning time occurs and is used becomes one of the challenges unique to coteaching. Administrative support for coplanning time is vital to the success of coteaching partnerships (Fennick, 2001;Gerber & Popp, 2000;Voltz et al, 1995). Finally, perspective of instructors for feedback and grading were reported both as a necessity and a possible challenge.…”

“…Therefore, they said that co-teaching should come as a directive from their administrator. Similarly, authors described the necessity of administrative support to ensure a successful co-teaching partnership (Fennick, 2001;Friend & Cook, 2007;Gerber & Popp, 2000;Stang & Capp, 2004).…”

Initial teacher preparation for special educational needs: policy and practice in the North and South of Ireland

“…In time, radically new practices may be warranted. Collaborative teaching for improved practice is frequently advanced as an essential precursor to addressing diversity in education (Salend et al, 1997;Hudson & Glomb, 1997;Tichenor et al, 2000;Gerber & Popp, 2000;Welch, 2000). This practice appears to be an uncommon strategy for improving SEN provision either among beginning teachers in schools or their diverse tutors in colleges.…”