best practices for co-teaching literacy in the secondary
TRANSCRIPT
Hamline University Hamline University
DigitalCommons@Hamline DigitalCommons@Hamline
School of Education Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations School of Education
Fall 12-13-2016
Best Practices for Co-Teaching Literacy in the Secondary Best Practices for Co-Teaching Literacy in the Secondary
Language Arts Classroom Language Arts Classroom
Anne Robenhorst Hamline University
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Part of the Education Commons
Recommended Citation Recommended Citation Robenhorst, Anne, "Best Practices for Co-Teaching Literacy in the Secondary Language Arts Classroom" (2016). School of Education Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations. 4244. https://digitalcommons.hamline.edu/hse_all/4244
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BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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BESTPRACTICESFORCO-TEACHING
LITERACYINTHESECONDARYLANGUAGEARTSCLASSROOM
by
AnneRobenhorst
Acapstonesubmittedinpartialfulfillmentoftherequirements
foradegreeofMastersinLiteracyEducation.
HamlineUniversity
December2016
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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TableofContentsChapterOne:Introduction................................................................................................................4Background 5Co-teachingStruggles 7SharingtheResearch 8
ChapterTwo:LiteratureReview..................................................................................................10Introduction 10WhatisCo-teaching? 13One-teach,one-observe.............................................................................................................................................14Stationteaching.............................................................................................................................................................15Parallelteaching............................................................................................................................................................15Alternativeteaching....................................................................................................................................................16Teaming............................................................................................................................................................................16Oneteach,oneassist...................................................................................................................................................16
ResearchontheEffectivenessofCo-teaching 17BestPracticesinCo-teaching 19Professionaldevelopmentandadministrativesupport..............................................................................21
SecondaryLiteracyInstructionBestPractice 22Wordstudy......................................................................................................................................................................23Cognitivestrategiesforcomprehension.............................................................................................................24Rereading.........................................................................................................................................................................26StudentEngagement...................................................................................................................................................26
Summary 28ChapterThree:Methodology.........................................................................................................30OverviewoftheChapter 30ResearchParadigm 31SettingandParticipants 32DataCollectionandRationale 33Datacollectiontechnique1:Interview...............................................................................................................33Datacollectiontechnique2:Questionnaire......................................................................................................33Datacollectiontechnique3:Statetestingandgradereportreview......................................................34
Ethics 34Summary 35
ChapterFour:Results.......................................................................................................................36OverviewoftheChapter 36StudentOutcomes 36Co-taughtStudentPerceptions 37AdministratorInterview 40TeacherInterviewandQuestionnaire 42Summary 48
ChapterFive:Conclusions..............................................................................................................50MajorLearning 50Literaturereview..........................................................................................................................................................50
ResearchQuestionandConclusions 51Limitations52Futureresearch 52Sharingthedata 53
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Summary 53AppendixA...........................................................................................................................................55AppendixB...........................................................................................................................................56
AppendixC...........................................................................................................................................58
AppendixD..........................................................................................................................................59AppendixE...........................................................................................................................................61
AppendixF...........................................................................................................................................62References...........................................................................................................................................63
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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ChapterOne:Introduction
Co-teachingisdefinedasapartnershipbetweenageneraleducationteacherandspecial
educationteacherwiththegoalofprovidinginstructiontoadiversegroupoflearnersboth
withandwithoutdisabilities(Friend,Cook,Hurley-Chamberlain,&Shamberger,2010).Co-
teachinghasbeenpartofmyprofessionalexperiencesincemysecondyearofteaching.My
experienceshaveledmetobelievethat,whenimplementedwithplanningandstudent
outcomesinmind,itisaverypowerfulmodel.Theseexperienceshavealsoinfluencedmy
decisiontofurthermyeducationandprofessionalgrowthintheareaofliteracyeducation.
Thesetwointerestareashavegreatlyinfluencedtheresearchthathasguidedthispaper.
InthischapterIwilldiscussmybackgroundandmyjourneywithco-teaching.Iwill
alsointroducemyresearchquestionandexplainhowthisquestionandresearchwill
providemewithbothprofessionalandpracticalguidance.Thisthenlendsitselftosomeof
thestrugglesthatmyteachingpartnerandIhaveexperiencedovertheyearsintheco-
teachingenvironment.
OnequestionthatIhavebeencuriousaboutforthepastseveralyearsis:which
modelsofco-teachingandliteracyinthelanguageartsclassroomarethemosteffectiveatthe
secondarylevel?Thisoverarchingquestionalsoleadstoother,morespecificquestions.
Theseinclude:Whatarethebestpracticesforco-teachingingeneral?Whichcomponents
ofliteracyinstructionshouldbeincluded?Whatcomponentsofco-teachinghelptomake
themodelmostsuccessful?WhatarethebestpracticesofEnglishlanguageartsinstruction
thatshouldbeincluded?Isitokayformetopullstudentswhoarestrugglingoutofthe
largergroup?Ihaveconductedsomeresearchandreadingonmyown.However,Ihavenot
cometodefinitiveanswers,buttheabovequestionshaveledmetothiscapstoneresearch.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Background
WhenIwasfirsthiredasasecondaryspecialeducationteacherinthesummerof
2011,Iwasnotentirelysurewhattoexpect.Ihadjustcompletedmyfirstyearwith
elementarystudentswithbehavioralandemotionaldisabilities.WhenIwastoldthatI
wouldbeco-teachingwithanEnglishteacher,Iwasbothexcitedandwary.Wouldthis
teacherwelcomemeintoherclassroom?Wouldsheseemeasaparaprofessionalinstead
ofalicensedteacher?Whatdidsheknowaboutadaptingthingsforstudentswithspecial
needs?Fortunately,Ishouldnothaveworried.
Forthepastfouryears,Ihavebeenworkingasaspecialeducationteacheratahigh
school.MyBachelor’sofArtsinEnglish-CreativeWritingaswellasabackgroundinEnglish
LanguageLearningweredecidingfactorsinmybeinghired.Sincearrivingatthisschool,I
havehadtheopportunitytoco-teachinaninthgradegeneraleducationlanguageartsclass
withanamazingco-teacher.Duringthefirstyear,co-teachinginvolvedlearningthebasics
ofthecurriculumandensuringthatallstudentswhorequiredadaptationsand
accommodationswereprovidedthem.BecauseIhadnotyetmasteredthecontent,myco-
teacherandIdevelopedamodelthatinvolvedmereteachingandreviewingthecontenton
adailybasis.Thisallowedmetobecomemorefamiliarwiththecontentaswellasthe
students.Ialsotookchargeofthere-teachingbecauseIfeltmorecomfortableafterhaving
itmodeledbymyteachingpartner.ThefollowingyearIfeltmoreconfidentwithmy
knowledgeofthecurriculumandmyownskillsasateacher.Ourpartnershiphasgrown
intoamuchmoreequitableteam-teachingsituation;inourcurrentmodel(oneteach-one
assist)webothintroducenewmaterialwhiletheotherteachercirculatesaroundtheroom
andviceversa.Thishasallowedustomeetindividuallywithstudentstodiscusstheir
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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writingandgivemoreattentiontothosewhostruggle.Myco-teachingpartnerandIhave
beenabletomeetatleastweeklytogooverourplansandtomakeanyadjustmentsbased
onstudentneed—somethingthatIfoundtobeanintegralpiecetoourpartnership.We
havealsobeenabletoadaptassignmentstogetherinordertoensurethatallstudentshave
theaccesstothecurriculumatthelevelthatismostappropriateforthem.Overall,ithas
beenoneofthemostrewardingpartsofmyteachingcareersofar.
Themodelthatmyco-teacherandIcurrentlyuseinvolvesbothofusintroducing
contentandreviewingmaterial.Wesharetheworkload.Eachofusgradesassignments,
meetswithstudents,andpreparesfortheclassesduringacommonpreptime.Whenoneof
usispresentingnewconceptsorcontent,theotherisgenerallycirculatingtheroomand
checkinginwithstudents.Webothalsocollaborateonmakingadaptationsand
accommodationsforstudentswithdisabilitiesorotherstudentswhoarestruggling.Wetry
tosharetheloadandensurethatourstudentsarereceivingwhattheyneed.Currently,this
isanidealpartnership.
Ihavelearnedagreatdealfrommyteachingpartner,shehasbeensupportive,
flexible,andkind.Wediscoveredthatourpartnershipwashighlybeneficialtoourstudents
withandwithoutdisabilities.Throughourownprogressmonitoring,wehaveseengainsin
themajorityofourstudents.However,muchofoursuccessandfeedbackhasbeenstrictly
anecdotal—fromstudentsorparents.Webothareconstantlyreviewingandrevisingwhat
wepresentinordertomeettheneedsofstudentseachclass.Theseneedsaremostoften
relatedtoliteracy—especiallycomprehensionandwrittenexpression.Thisworkhas
impactedmyprofessionaldevelopmentagreatdeal.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Myowneducationaljourneyhasledmetofocusonliteracyeducation,andteaching
studentstobecomestrong,thoughtfulreadersisahighlightofmyjob.However,Ioftenfeel
thatthereisadisconnectbetweenlanguageartscurriculumandliteracyinstruction.Ihave
struggledbetweenknowingthatallstudentsneedexplicitliteracyinstructionandstill
havingtofollowthecurriculumoftheprogramatmyschool.Iseethatwespendtime
readinganovelwithstudents,butneverreallyteachthemhowtounderstandwhatthey
arereadingortothinkdeeplyaboutthecontent.Thisissomethingthatcontinuestowear
onmyconscienceasateacher.Fortunately,throughProfessionalLearningCommunity
(PLC)work,Ihavebeenabletodiscusstheneedtoengageinexplicitliteracyinstruction
withinallcontentareas—includinglanguagearts.Myworkwithliteracyeducationhas
pushedmetofurtherreadingintotheareaofliteracy.Authorsthathaveparticularly
influencedmyownpracticeincludeKellyGallagher(2004)andDougBuehl(2008).These
areauthorsthatIcontinuouslyrevisitandwhosupportmypracticebothindividuallyand
intheco-teachingmodel.However,despitetheidealpartnershipandsupportivework
environment,co-teachingisnotwithoutchallenges.
Co-teachingStruggles
Co-teachingisbotharewardingandhighlycomplexteachingmodel.Attimes,we
facechallengessuchasclasssize(sometimesuptothirty-sixstudents),ratio(morethan
halfoftheclasswithspecialeducationneeds),andplanningtime.Oftenco-teachersare
simplyassignedtoeachother.Thiswasthecaseforme.Fortunately,Iwasabletodevelop
apositiverelationshipanddevelopgoalsandstrategiesthatwebothfeltbenefitedthe
students.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Whentransitioningtothehighschoollevel,studentsmaystrugglewiththeamount
ofmaterialandthereadingloadthatisexpectedofthem.Itissometimesdifficulttocreate
anatmospherewhereallstudentsareabletofeelsuccessfulandhavetheirvoicesheard.
Weoftenstrugglewithstudentswhohavefeltdisenfranchisedforyearsabouttheir
educationandtendtobebehavioralproblemswhileotherstudentswhowouldliketo
engageandlearnfeelingfrustratedbecausetheycannotgettheattentionthattheywould
likeordeserve.Studentswhostrugglewithbehaviorsareoftenscheduledintoourclass;
thesestudentsdonothavespecialeducationservices.Itmaybeassumedthathavingtwo
teachersshouldhelptomakeitlessstressfulthanitwouldbeforasingleteacher.Attimes,
wehavehadmorestudentswithIndividualizedEducationPlans,504plans,andEnglish
LanguageLearnerneedsthanstudentswithoutanyneeds.Thishascreatedanatmosphere
thatcanbeespeciallydifficulttomanage.Throughcollaborationwithotherco-teaching
teams,wehavediscoveredthattheyoftenhavesimilarsituationsandchallenges.This
involvementhasledtomyengagementincurriculumdevelopmentandleadershipwithin
mybuilding.
SharingtheResearch
Asamemberofourdistrict’s7-12CurriculumReviewCommittee,Iamfortunate
enoughtobeabletoadvocateforstudentandteacherneeds.Ihavebeengiventheunique
opportunitytohaveperspectivesfromboththespecialeducationandgeneraleducation
lenses.Inordertobestadvocate,itisimportantformetohaveabetterunderstandingof
whichaspectsoftheco-teachingmodelaremostsuccessfulandbeneficialforallstudents.
Certainmodelsarebettersuitedtodifferentlevelsandneedsofstudents,aswellasage
groups.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Inthischapter,Ihaveoutlinedmyownpersonalexperienceswithco-teaching.
Additionally,Ihaveintroducedmyresearchquestionandhowtheresearchwillimpact
bothmyownpracticeandmyabilitytoshareitwithothersinmyprofessionalsetting.In
thenextchapter,Iwillreviewcurrentliteratureandresearchpertainingtosecondaryco-
teachinginthelanguageartsclassroom.Iwillgiveabriefreviewofdifferenttypesof
modelsthathavebeenexplored,whichhavebeensuccessfulandshareanyspecificdata
relatedtostudentsuccess.Iwillfurtherexplorethisbydiscussingtheinitialreasonfor
introducingco-teachingintothegeneraleducationsetting.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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ChapterTwo:LiteratureReview
Introduction
Thepurposeofthisstudyistoexaminewhichco-teachingandliteracypracticesare
mosteffectiveinthesecondarylanguageartsclassroom—specificallyforgradesnineand10.
Thischapterwilldiscussthehistoryofco-teachinganddifferentmodelsofco-teaching.
Additionally,itwilldiscussinclusivepracticesthatstemmedfromtheamendedIndividuals
withDisabilitiesEducationAct(IDEA)in2004,andmandatesputforthfromNoChildLeft
Behind(NCLB)(2002)and,mostrecently,ResponsetoIntervention(RTI).Thischapter
willreviewtheadvantagesanddisadvantagesofthisservicedeliverymethodandhowto
makethesepartnershipsthemosteffective.Finally,thebestpracticesinliteracy
instructionthatwillbestcomplimenttheco-teachingmodelwillbeexplored.
Intoday’sdiverseclassrooms,thereareavarietyofwaystomeettheuniqueneeds
ofstudents.Onesuchmodelisco-teaching,whichprovidessupportandspecialized
servicestoindividualstudentsinthegeneraleducationenvironment.Thoughcollaboration
betweenspecialeducationteachersandgeneraleducationteachershasbeenanintegral
partofspecialeducationsincethe1980’s,moreinclusivepracticeshavebeengrowingover
theyears(Friend,Cook,Hurley-Chamberlain,andShamberger,2010).
Co-teaching:Wherediditcomefrom?
Manylawsandmandateshaveinfluencedspecialeducationovertheyears.The
EducationoftheHandicappedAct,P.L.91-230waspassedbycongressin1970inorderto
addresstheneedsofstudentswithdisabilities.In1975,theEducationforAllHandicapped
ChildrenAct,PL94-142waspassed.Thislawofferedafreeandappropriateeducationfor
allstudentswithdisabilitiesfromagesthreetotwenty-one.Italsofocusedonspecial
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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educationservicesthatwouldberequiredtomeettheneedsofstudentswithdisabilities.
Friend,Cook,andHurley-Chamberlain(2010)citeDunn(1968)andLeafstedtetal.,(2007)
bypointingoutthat,adecadeearlier,concernswerebeingraisedbyeducationalleaders
abouttheeffectivenessofspecialeducationservicesinthepulloutorresource
environment.Parentswerealsopushingformoreinclusionarypracticesfortheirchildren
withdisabilities.Furthermore,Friend,Cook,andHurley-Chamberlain(2010)discusshow
the1980’sand1990’swereatimeofchangeinrelationtofederalandstatemandatesthat
addressededucationforstudentswithdisabilities.Outcomesforstudentswithdisabilities
hadbeenfoundtobeunsatisfactory.Legislationpushedforincreasedexpectationsrelated
toacademics.Theyfurthersuggestthatamajorconcernwasrelatedtothelackofprogress
forstudentsinspecialeducationclassroomswhencomparedtotheirsamegradepeers
whodonotreceivespecializedservices.
OneofthemostsignificantlawstohavebeenpassedwasIDEA,whichcalledfor
increasedinclusivepracticesforstudentswithdisabilities.Additionally,itallowsstatesto
besuedfornotprovidingtheappropriatecontinuumofservicescalledforinthelaw.Over
theyears,IDEAhasbeenreauthorizedandupdated.Essentially,itcalledfortransition
servicestobeincludedinastudent’sIndividualizedEducationPlan(IEP).Additionally,it
addeddisabilitycategoriesoftraumaticbraininjuriesandautismandtheireligibility
criteria.AlateramendmentrequiredIEPstoincludeaplanforstudentstohaveaccessto
generaleducationcurriculum(http://idea.ed.gov/).IDEAencouragesschoolstohavehigh
expectationsforallstudents,includingthosewithdisabilities.Thismeansprovidingaccess
tothehighestqualityofinstructionwithintheleastrestrictiveenvironment.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Anotherlawthatinfluencedthewaysthatstudentsreceivespecialeducationservicesis
NCLB(NoChildLeftBehind[NCLB],2002),whichwasimplementedin2001.Thislaw
statesthatallstudentsreceiveinstructionfromhighlyqualifiedteachers.Becausenotall
middleandhighschoolspecialeducationteachersareconsidered“highlyqualified”ineach
individualsubjectarea,asdefinedbyNCLB,thishascausedadministratorsofschoolsto
rethinkwaystoappropriatelyusestaffandtheirindividualareasofexpertise(Conderman,
2011,p.24-25).NCLBrequiredallstudents,evenstudentswithdisabilities,tobeheldto
statestandards.Overall,theintentofthislawwastoincreasestudentoutcomes,teacher
andschoolaccountabilityandqualityofeducation.Becauseallstudentswouldnowbe
requiredtomeetstatestandards,theyneededaccesstogeneraleducationcurriculumand
“highlyqualifiedteachers”.InordertomeetthestandardsofNCLBandIDEA,schoolshave
trieddifferentmodelsandmethodsofeducatingstudentswithdisabilities—including
increasedtimeinandaccesstothegeneraleducationcurriculum.Co-teachingisonewayto
ensurethatallstudentsarereceivingahigh-qualityeducationinthegeneraleducation
setting.
Mostrecently,ResponsetoIntervention(RTI),whichsprungfromupdatedSpecific
LearningDisabilitiesqualificationcriteria(IDEAreauthorization2006)hasbeen
introducedinmoreschoolsandisbeingmandatedbysomestates.RTIisanalternative
modeltoidentifyingstudentswithlearningdisabilities.Previously,studentswithlearning
disabilitieshadtomeetfederalcriteriathroughamodelthatindicatedadiscrepancy
betweentheirintellectualability(IQ)andtheiracademicachievement.Thismodeloften
leftstudentswhorequiredspecializedsupportfromqualifyingbecausetheydidnot
demonstratea“largeenoughgapordiscrepancy”tomeetcriteriaforspecialeducation
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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services.RTIcallsforhighquality,research-basedinstructionanddatacollection.This
processisfocusedonproactivestrategies,ratherthanwaitingforstudentstomeetnarrow
criteria(MurawskiandHughes,2009).Often,theinterventionsrelatedtoRTIinvolve
pullingstudentsoutoftheirlargergeneraleducationclassesinordertoengageinsmall
groupinstruction.MurawskiandHughes(2009)citeDupuisetal.,(2006)inpointingout
thatthereisstillastigmaattachedtostudentswhoarepulledoutoftheirgeneral
educationsetting.Onewaytoavoidthismaybethroughthemodelofco-teaching.Inthis
modelstudentsofallabilitiesandneedsreceiveinstructionfromtwoteachersinavariety
ofdifferentmodels.Thespecialeducatorcanbringherexpertiseandexperienceandmeld
withtheexpertiseandexperienceofthegeneraleducator.
WhatisCo-teaching?
CondermanandHedin(2014)defineco-teachingas,“oneapproachforhelping
studentswithdisabilitiesaccessarigorousgeneraleducationcurriculumintheleast
restrictiveenvironmentwhilereceivingsupportfromtwocertifiedteachers”(p.157).The
term“co-teaching”canbeusedsynonymouslywithcollaborationorteamteaching.
However,co-teachingisadifferentmodeltoprovidingservicesforstudentswithspecial
needs.Collaborationtendstorefertotheoutsideworkthatspecialandgeneraleducators
doinordertosupportstudentswithdisabilities.Teamteachingisoneofthemodelsused
intheoverarchingmodelofco-teaching(Friend,2014).AuthorsHangandRabren(2009)
defineco-teachingbyfollowingcomponents:
(a)twocertifiededucators,includingageneraleducationteacheranda
specialeducationteacher;
(b)deliveryofinstructionbybothteachers;
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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(c)aheterogeneousgroupofstudents—studentswithandwithout
disabilities;
(d)asingleclassroomwhereallstudentsreceiveinstructionregardlessof
educationallabel(p.259)
Thepurposeofco-teachingistomakethegeneraleducationcurriculummore
accessibleforstudentswithdisabilitieswhileprovidingspecializedinstructionand
strategiestosupporttheirlearning.Itisonewayforstudentstoreceivespecialeducation
servicesandisoneoftheleastrestrictivewaystodoso.Ideally,itisahighlysymbiotic
relationship.
Thereareavarietyofco-teachingmodelsthataresuggestedtobeeffective.Some
researchers,authors,andteachersprefertoavoidtheuseof“model”and,instead,use
“approach”.Forthepurposeofcontinuity,theterm“model”willbeused.Itissuggested
thatnoco-teachingteamuseanyonemodelatalltimes.Theideaisthat,becausethereare
twoinstructors,thereisahigherlevelofflexibilityinordertomeetstudentneeds.Inthe
secondaryclassroom,co-teachinggenerallyinvolvesonespecialeducationteacherandone
generaleducationteacherworkingtogetherduringoneclassperiodononecorecontent
area:socialstudies,English,mathematics,orscience.Friend(2014)suggeststhat,within
theco-teachingapproach,thereareseveralmodelsthatco-teachersmayuse
interchangeablybasedontheinstructionalobjectivesandthestudentneedsinone
particularclass.
One-teach,one-observe.
IntheOne-teach,One-observemodel,oneteachermaintainstheroleofleadinstructor.
Thisisamodel“inwhichoneteacherleadslarge-groupinstructionwhiletheothergathers
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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academic,behavioral,orsocialdataonspecificstudentsortheclassgroup"(Friend,2014).
Theobservingteachermayalsobegatheringdataonstudentbehavior.Abenefitofthis
modelisthattheteamrequireslittlecommonpreparationtimeforthis.However,the
weaknessofthismodelisthatthestudentswillmostlikelyviewtheobservingteacherin
anassistiverole,ratherthanaspartofateam(Fazel,2011).
Stationteaching.
Thestationteachingmodelallowsforbothteacherstoengagestudentsinsmall
groupinstruction.Itisdescribedas,“threenonsequentialpartsandstudents,likewise
dividedintothreegroups,rotatefromstationtostation,beingtaughtbytheteachersat
twostationsandworkingindependentlyatthethird”(Friend,2014).However,onemajor
benefitisthatitallowsstudentsmoredirectandindividualizedtimewitheachteacher.
Also,thistypeofmodelallowsforabilitylevelgroupingwhichcangreatlybenefit
strugglingstudents(Friend,2014).
Parallelteaching.
Parallelteachingdividestheclassintohalves.Inthismodel,bothteachersengagein
directinstruction.Itallowstheteacherstoteachspecificobjectivesorthesamecontent.
Studentsdonotswitchbetweenthetwoteachers.Thismodelcouldbeespeciallyuseful
whenco-teachingteamswouldliketoprovidetwolevelsofreadings,butwillbestudying
thesametopic.Thismodelalsoallowsforanalysisoftwodifferentperspectivesor
rationales(Friend2014).Thetwogroupscombineandhavealargegroupdiscussion,
Socraticseminar,ordebate.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Alternativeteaching.
Inthismethod,oneteacher,instructsthemajorityofthestudentswhiletheother
teachesstudentswithdisabilitiesorstrugglingstudents,orthosewhoachieveathigher
levels(Fazel,2011).Thismodelshouldbeusedoccasionallywhenasmallgroupof
studentsmayneedspecialattention,orwhenahandfulofstudentsdidpoorlyonan
assessmentandrequirere-teaching.Pre-teachingisalsoanotherpositiveuseforthis
model.Thiskindofgroupingmayalsobenefitastudentwithsignificantbehavioralneeds
byplacinghimorherwithpeerswhowillnotrespondtooff-taskordisruptivebehavior
(Friend,2014).
Teaming.
Friend(2014)andFazel(2011)outlinethattheteamingmodeliswhentwo
teachersbothengageindirectinstructionofawholegroupofstudents.Thisrequiresthe
twoteacherstohaveaverycomfortablerelationship,astheyarebothresponsiblefor
instructingstudentsinterchangeablybytakingturnsasleadinstructorthroughoutthe
lesson.Itissuggestedthatthismodelshouldbeusedoccasionally.Thismodelhasbeen
especiallybeneficialinmyownpractice--whileoneteacherinstructsandtheothermodels
note-taking.
Oneteach,oneassist.
Oneteach,oneassistisanmodelinwhichoneteacherisleadingthedirect
instructionofthestudents,whiletheotheriscirculatingamongthestudentsofferinghelp
anddirection.Friend(2014)suggestsperScruggs,Mastropieri,andMcDuffie(2007)that
thisisoneofthemostusedandleasteffectivemodelsofco-teaching.Researchsuggests
thatthismodelcanleadtopullingstudentattentionawayfromthecorecontent,and
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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developingalevelofdependencyonthespecialeducator.Itisrecommendedthatthis
modelbeusedrarelyorseldom.Itissuggestedthatthismethodshouldbeusedasa“start
uptechnique”asnewco-teachingpartnersaregettingtoknoweachotheranddevelop
theirownstyleofco-teachingthatismostappropriateforthecontentareathattheyare
teaching.
Brown,etal.(2013)suggestthatwhenconsideringwhichmodeltouse,teaching
partnersshouldconsider:whichobjectivesneedtobemastered,ifdifferentiatedobjectives
areoccurring,andwhichtypesofgroupingorenvironmentalarrangementswillbeselected
forthatlesson.Becauseco-taughtclassesincludeaheterogeneousgroupofstudents,the
needsofeachstudentwillvary.Whilesomestudentsmayrequiresimpleaccommodations,
otherstudentsmayrequireadditionalopportunitiesforre-teachingorpracticeinorderto
reachmastery.Behavioralneedsofstudentsshouldalsobetakenintoconsideration.
Reviewinginformalandformalassessmentdatacanalsoaidco-teachingteamswhenthey
developlessonsanddeterminewhichmodelofco-teachingtoimplementforeach
objective.MostimportantlyBrownsuggest,“Theabilitytobeflexibleandrespondtothe
needsofthestudentandthelessonisaskillthatisacquiredthroughpracticeandis
essentialtotheimpactofthisdeliverymodel”(p.88).
ResearchontheEffectivenessofCo-teaching
Thoughco-teachinghasbecomeamorepopularservicedeliverymodelforstudents
withmildtomoderatedisabilities,theresearchaddressingitseffectivenessislimited.
Despitethis,theresearchthatisavailablehasfoundthatitdoespositivelyimpactstudent
outcomesforthosewithdisabilities.Friendetal.(2009)foundthatstudentswithlearning
disabilitiesinco-taughtclassesperformedbetterrelatedtoattendanceandreportcard
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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grades.However,overallachievementonhigh-stakestestsdemonstratednosignificant
gains.Thiswasfoundforstudentsbothwithandwithoutdisabilities.McLaughlin,Rea,and
Walther-Thomas(2002)andIdol(2006).Additionally,whencomparingstudentswithina
resourceclassroomtostudentsinco-taughtcourses,andgeneraleducationclasseswithout
co-teachingMurawski(2006)found“nosignificantdifferencesacrosssettings,commenting
thatthefailuretofindincreasedachievementinco-taughtclassesmayhavebeentheresult
oflackoftrainingandthus,unevenimplementation.”
Parker(2010)studiedtheimpactofco-teachingwithinthe10thgradegeneral
educationclassroom—specificallyimpactsongeneraleducationstudents.Theresearcher
usedstandardizedtestscoresintheareasofreadingandmathematicstodetermine
whethertherewasdirectimpactongeneraleducationstudents.Thisstudyfoundthat
therewasadisproportionateamountofstudentswhowereconsideredunderachievingor
belowproficiencyasrelatedtotestscoresinlanguageartsclasses.Theauthorsuggested
thatthedesignofco-teachingistoprovidesupportandaccommodationswithstudents
withdisabilities.Throughusingtheco-taughtmodeltoassistlowperforminggeneral
educationstudentsthelackofheterogeneity“couldbeasignificantfactorinoverallstudent
achievement.Studentleaderswouldbewisetoensurethatthegeneraleducationstudents
inco-taughtclassesareheterogeneousintheiracademicabilities”(p.102).Thestudy
determinedthattheoverallachievementofgeneraleducationstudentsisnotlikelytobe
negativelyimpactedbytheco-teachingmodel.
MurawskiandSwanson(2001)conductedameta-analysisofthedatacollectedon
co-teachingeffectiveness.Theypointedoutthedifficultywithgatheringaccuratedataasit
hasbeenmostlyanecdotal.Thereisalsoalackofconsistencybetweenuseofdifferentco-
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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teachingmodelsaswellasbetweencontentareas.However,theresearchersfoundthatco-
teachingwasslightlyormoderatelyeffectiveforimpactingstudentoutcomes.These
outcomesincludebehavior(socialskills,referrals),academicachievement,peer
acceptance,attendance,andtheattitudesofthoseinvolved.
Thelimitedamountofdatasupportingtheefficacyofco-teachingismostlikely
impactedbythelackofconsistencyacrossclassrooms,schools,subjectareas,andteachers.
Becauseofthislackofconsistency,therecontinuestobeagapintheresearchidentifying
co-teachingasaneffectivemodelforstudentswithlearningdisabilities.However,the
researchthathasbeencitedhasfoundthat,whencomparedtoresourceor“pullout”
classrooms,studentsperformathigherlevelsintheco-taughtenvironment.
BestPracticesinCo-teaching
Becausethereareavarietyofmodelstoco-teaching,itisoftenunclearwhichmodel
isthemosteffectiveorwhichwillbestfitthecurriculumthattheteamisteaching.
Researchershavetakenacloserlookatwhichco-teachingteamsarethemostsuccessful
andhowtheycanensurethattheyaremeetingtheneedsofallstudentsintheir
environments.
AuthorsMagieraandSimmonsdevelopedtheMagiera-SimmonsQualityIndicator
ModelofCo-Teachingbasedonthemesofeffectiveco-teachingteamshighlightedseveral
studiesconductedbyFriendandCook,2003;Dieker,2001;RiceandZigmond,2000;
Wallace,etal.,2002.Theindicatorsthatwereselectedtomeasuresuccessfulco-teaching
instructionatthesecondarylevelincluded:sharedresponsibilityforpresentationof
instruction,followingaccommodationsforstudentswithdisabilities,bothteachers
providingsubstantialinstructiontoallstudents,andtheprocessoflearningisemphasized
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
20
inadditiontotheparticularcontent.Theseindicatorssupporttheideathattheco-teaching
partnershipisonethatisatruepartnership,wherebothmembersshareresponsibilityfor
allaspectsofclassroominteractions.
Walther-Thomastetal.(1996)discusstheimportanceofmulti-levelpreparation
andsupportforeffectiveco-teaching.Asidefromhavingvoluntarymembersofstafffor
eachco-teachingteam,itisintegralthatthereisdistrictandschool-wideplanning.This
typeoftypeofplanningincludestheappropriateallocationofresourcesandfundingfor
staff.Additionally,initialandongoingprofessionaldevelopmentshouldbeprovidedfor
thoseprofessionalsinvolvedinco-teachingteams.Principalsandotheradministrativestaff
shouldbeawareoftheelementsofco-teachinginordertosharethisinformationwith
parentsandcommunitymembers.Teachersshouldbeprovidedwithcommonplanning
timeandcontributeasintegralmembersofeachIEPteam.
Riceetal.(2007)conductedastudytodeterminewhichskillsorattributesmight
assistspecialeducatorswhenworkinginaco-teachingpartnershiporwhenworkingas
consultants.ThisstudyalsofocusedonhowaK-12districtsustainedapolicyofinclusive
educationforover12years.Researchersconductedfocusgroups,interviews,and
observationswereconductedinordertogatherdata.Fromthecollecteddataandfeedback,
theauthorsofthestudywereabletodeterminethattherewereseveralmajorstrengths
thatspecialeducatorspossessedwhenworkingeffectivelywithgeneraleducationteachers
inaco-teachingpartnership.Thecasestudiesandinterviewsoutlinedthatmaintaining
professionalismthroughcommunicationandsharingofexpertisewasoneofthebestways
thatsupportedpartnerships.Additionally,idealco-teachingpartnerswerearticulateand
wereabletomodelinstructionandmeetstudents’needs.Additional,strengthsincluded
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
21
accurateassessmentofstudentprogress,beingabletoanalyzeteachingandteaching
styles,workingwithawiderangeofstudents,andgainingknowledgeofcoursecontent.
Theauthorsstressedthatbeingreflective,flexible,andopen-mindedwereimportant
attributesforco-teacherstoembraceinordertomaintainsuccessfulpartnerships.
Inorderforco-teachingteamstobehighlyeffective,Dieker,(2001)maintainsthat
rolesandresponsibilitiesofboththespecialeducatorandthegeneraleducationteacher
mustbeclearlydefined.Furthermore,Walther-ThomasandBryant(1996)statethatin
orderforco-teacherstoeffectivelyteachtheymustspendtime:(a)gettingtoknoweach
other;(b)sharingteachingskills;and(c)co-planninginstructionalstrategies.Supporting
this,Friendetal(2010),citedatathatindicatesthatitisimperativethatteachersengaging
inco-teachingcomewillinglyandvoluntarilytothepartnership.Researchcitedfrom
(Scruggsetal.2007)foundthatthemostsuccessfulteamsfoundwaystomotivatestudents
andincreasedsharingofindividualexpertise.Additionally,whenteamswerenot
voluntarilyplaced,theytendedtostrugglewithcollaborationaswellashaveincreased
conflictinrelationtoteachingstyles.Often,thespecialeducatorsassumedtheroleofa
teachingassistantratherthanapartofateachingteam.
Professionaldevelopmentandadministrativesupport.
Throughoutmuchoftheresearchonco-teaching,theimportanceofadministrative
supporthasbeenacommonfactor.Co-teachingteamsfindthat,whentheyhavethe
supportandguidanceoftheiradministrativeteams,theyareabletoengageinmeaningful
co-teachingandpositivelyimpactstudentoutcomes.However,whenadministrative
supportandprofessionaldevelopmentarenotinplace,co-teachingteamsoftenhave
negativeexperiencesandfeellessvalued.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
22
MagieraandSimmons(2007)recommendthatco-teachingpracticesbenefitfrom
pairsofco-teachersthatvolunteertoworktogether.Theysuggestthatthesepairsshould
begiventrainingonco-teachingandthoserelationshipsshouldbefosteredforalong-term
relationship.Inordertofurthersupporttheirpractice,co-teachersshouldalsovisitand
observeotherco-teachingpairsinordertoexchangeideasandinstructionalpractices.
Commonplanningtimealsoleadstomoreconsistent,thoughtful,anddifferentiated
instruction.Anadditionalsuggestionincludedtheimportanceofdepartmental
membershipinthecontentareabythespecialeducationteacher,whichprovidesthese
teacherswithopportunitiestoshareideasandnetworktofocusonneedsofthestudents
withdisabilitiesinastrategicway.Friendetal(2010)alsopointsoutthat,despitethe
ultimateunderstandingthatco-teachingshouldbeandcanbeabeneficialmodelforall
students,itisimportanttorealizethatprofessionalsrequiretrainingandongoing
professionaldevelopmentinorderforbenefitstobefullyreached.
Inorderforco-teachingteamstoengageinmeaningfulandwell-informedpractice,
itisimportantforthemtohavethesupportoftheiradministrativeteam.Teachersshould
alsobevolunteersandbegivenopportunitiesforspecifictrainingrelatedtoco-teaching.
SecondaryLiteracyInstructionBestPractice
Inordertoincreasetheeffectivenessofco-teachinginthesecondarylanguagearts
classroom,teachersshouldusebestpracticeliteracyinstruction.Malgren,K.andTrezek,B.
(2009)discusstheimportanceandnecessityofliteracyinstructionforstruggling
adolescentreaders.TheyciteScammeccaetal.(2007),whodeterminedthatadolescenceis
nottoolatetoprovidereadingandliteracyintervention.Additionally,olderstudentswith
disabilitiesarepositivelyimpactedfromexplicitliteracyinstruction—particularlyatthe
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
23
wordandtextlevel.Areasthatassiststudentthemostinclude:wordstudy,word
meanings,andcomprehensionstrategies.Theauthorsconcludedthatsecondaryreaders
couldalsobenefitfrominstructionrelatedtodecoding,segmenting,andspellingwhen
providedwithgraphosyllabicanalysis.Graphosyllabicanalysisreferstodirectinstruction
relatedtobreakingwordsapartbysyllableaswellasprovidingvocabularyinstruction.
Strugglingreadersalsobenefitfromexplicitinstructionincomprehension
monitoringstrategies.InapracticebriefaddressingadolescentliteracybytheCenteron
Instruction,authorssuggestthatactivatingpriorknowledge,usinggraphicorganizers,
teachingcomprehensionmonitoringstrategiesandteachingsummarizationskillsare
effectivewaystohelpstrugglingstudentsbecomesuccessfulreaders.Modelinggood
readinghabitsthroughthink-aloudsisanotherwaytohelpstudentstolearntothinkabout
theirownreadingandthoughtsduringreading.Interventionsthathavedemonstrated
promiseinassistingstrugglingreadershaveincludedteachingstudentstorecognize
differentstructuresoftexts.Studentsshouldbetaughthowtodistinguishbetween
narrativeandexpositorytexts.Additionally,teachingstorygrammarelementshelpsthem
tohaveabasisfordifferentpartsofastory.
Wordstudy.
Directvocabularyinstructionisnecessarywhetheritiscontent-specificorwords
theymaybeparticularlydifficultorcomplex(MalgremandTrezek,2009;Armbrusteretal.,
2001).Itissuggestedthatspecificwordinstructiontakeplace.Thisinvolvesdefinitions,
non-examples,synonyms,antonyms,andanalogies.Increasedvocabularyandword
understandingisanintegralparttobecomingaproficientreaderastheconnectionsthat
studentsmakewithpreviouswordsanddefinitionsultimatelybecomeapartofastudent’s
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
24
backgroundknowledge.Readingdevelopmentisgreatlybenefitedfromwordsbeingtaught
insemanticclusters(RoskosandNeuman,2014).
AuthorandteacherKellyGallagher(2004)alsostressestheimportanceofword
studyinordertoincreasecomprehensionforsecondaryreaders.Thefirstwaythathe
engageslearnersinwordstudyisthroughhavingstudentsmemorizeprefixes,suffixes,
roots,andtheirmeanings.Thishelpsstudentslearntobreakwordsapartanddevelopand
understandingofthewordbasedonpartialmeanings.Additionally,Gallagherhasstudents
breakwordsaparttoseeiftheycanlocate“sound-alikes”whichgivesstudentsan
opportunitytodiscernevenapartialmeaningandmakeaneducatedguess.Authors
Harvey“Smokey”DanielsonandStevenZemelmenciteresearcherIsabelBeck(Becketal.,
2013)intheirbookSubjectsMatter:Exceedingstandardsthroughpowerfulcontent-area
reading(2014).Beckdevelopedatieredmodelrelatedtovocabularyacquisition,which
helpsteacherschoosewhichwordsstudentsshouldspendthemosttimelearningrelated
totheirimportanceandusagefrequencyinthefuture.HarveyandDanielsonalsooutlinea
varietyofvocabularyinstructionlessonsandmodels.Eachoftheseaddressesneedsofthe
studentbefore,during,andafterreading.
Cognitivestrategiesforcomprehension.
Alverman(2002)citedastudybyShoenbacketal.,(1999)thatfoundthatstudents
whoweretaughtcomprehensionstrategiesgainedconfidenceintheirreadingabilities.
Alvermanexpandedthisbydiscussingtheimportanceofengagingstudentsin
“metacognition”—essentially,teachingthestudentstothinkabouttheirthinkingasthey
readandreacttotext.Teachersencouragethisbydiscussingwithstudentsreadinggoals,
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
25
fix-itstrategiesforunderstandingtext,andhowtoextendtheirknowledgebeyondwhat
thetextsaysexplicitly.
Tofurthersupporttheideathatstudentsareaidedbylearninghowtomonitortheir
thinkingduringreading,MalgremandTrezek(2009)refertofindingsfromtheNational
ReadingPanel(NRP)andsupportedbyArmbrusteretal.,2001;BiancarosaandSnow,
2006)thatsuggestthestrongestcomprehensionstrategiesincludecomprehension
monitoring,theuseofsemanticorganizers,questiongenerating,understandingand
recognizingstorystructure,andsummarizing.Thesestrategiesareeasilytransferableto
othertextsandsituations.Additionally,itbenefitsstudentstolearnandunderstandstory
elementssuchas:character,setting,conflict,resolution,andtheme.Studentsmayalsobe
encouragedtouseagraphicorganizerwiththestorystructurethroughoutthereading.
Thishelpstosupportthestudent’sabilitytocheckforunderstanding.
MalgremandTrezek(2009)additionallyciteVallecorsaanddeBettencourt(1997)
whofoundthattheuseofgraphicorganizershasbeenbeneficialinrelationtostudents’
abilitytorecallinformation.Gallagher(2004)providesavarietyofgraphicorganizersin
ordertodeepenstudents’comprehensionthroughmetaphoricalthinking.Hesuggeststhat
studentsarebetterabletoreachdeepermeaningoftextswhentheycanunderstand
metaphorandthatthroughpracticetheycangeneralizethisskilltoother,morecomplex
texts.Thesegraphicorganizershelptoguidestudentstoadeeperunderstandingthrough
guidedandscaffoldedthinkingwithspecificgoalsforeachorganizer.Itisimportanttonote
thatgraphicorganizersareonlyonetooltohelpstudentsreachdeeperunderstandingof
text.Theyshouldbeselectedcarefullyandintroducedinameaningfulwaythathelps
studentstotakeownershipoftheirownlearning.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
26
Rereading.
RoskosandNeuman(2014)supporttheideathatstudentsshouldanalyzeandlook
moredeeplyatindividualwords,details,organization,anddeterminehowsupporting
detailsilluminatetheoverallthemeofatext.TheyciteShanahan(2012)whoreferstore-
readingas“close-reading”—whichshouldoccurbothduringandafterreading.Roskosand
Neuman(2014)gotociteresearchsupportingthatre-readingincreasescomprehension
andimprovesastudent’sabilitytomonitorandassesshisorherownunderstandingwhen
engaginginunfamiliarornewmaterial.
Gallagher(2004)stressesthenecessityofrereadingtextsforhigherlevelsof
understanding.Hereferstothisasfirstandseconddraftreading.Manycomplextextsare
oftentoodifficulttounderstandafteraninitialreading.Hestressestheimportanceof
reducingstudentanxietybyreferringtothefirstreadthroughasa“firstdraftreading”.In
thisdraft,Gallagherencouragesstudentstogetthebasicsfromthetext.Theseinclude:
characters,setting,thelanguageandhowthetextislaidout,aswellasthemajorplot
elements.Healsostressestheimportanceofframingthetextbybuildingthestudents’
backgroundknowledgetopreparethemforreadingthedifficulttext.Inthe“seconddraft
reading”studentsareaskedtoanalyzewhatthetextisreallysaying—makeinferencesand
usetextualevidencetosupportthem.Throughcreatinganatmosphereinwhichre-reading
isexpected,rewardedandvalued,studentsaregiventheopportunitytogeneralize
rereadingasanecessaryskillthatstrongreadershave.
StudentEngagement.
Alvermann(2002)suggeststhateffectiveliteracyinstructionforadolescentsshould
especiallyfocusonself-efficacyandstudentengagement.Theauthorstressesthe
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
27
importanceofastudent’sself-conceptofhisorherabilityasareaderasbeingasignificant
factorthatimpactshowmotivatedheorsheistolearninanysubjectarea.Furthermore,
adolescentliteracyinstructionshouldengageandbuildonstudentbackgroundknowledge.
Teachersshouldfindwaystoincludestudents’culturalbackgrounds,feelings,and
experiencesintotheliteracyinstruction,aswellastogivestudentsavarietyofwaysto
respondandengageincooperativelearningwiththeirpeers.Anadditionalsuggestionfor
increasedengagementforadolescentreadersinvolvestheutilizationofhypermedia
projects,journalwriting,andstudent-leddiscussions.
RoskosandNeuman(2014)citeresearchthatdigitalreadingisanincentivefor
bothyoungerandlowerachievingstudents.Thisresearchstatesthatthemoreimmediate
feedbackfrome-booksandappscanaidinkeepingstudentsengagedandmotivated
(Grinshaw,Dungworth,McKnight,andMorris,2007;Zucker,MoodyandMcKenna,2009).
Withincreasedtechnologyinclassroomsandworkingwithstudentswhoare“digital
natives,”ithasbecomeincreasinglyimportanttoengagestudentsintasksthatarerelevant
tothemandtheirculture.Thisalsoprovidesopportunitiesforengagingstudentsincritical
literacyactivities.
Researchershavealsofoundtheneedtobuildrelevancythroughscaffoldingandthe
useoflinkedtextsets(LTS).AframeworkforLTSincludesengagement,exploration,and
expansionphases.Ineachofthesephases,studentsareintroducedtosupplementary
materials(videos,shortstories,novels,movietrailers,songs,newsarticles)inorderto
supportoverallthemeandessentialquestionsforaliteratureunit.Ineachphasethe
materialsareutilizedtoengagestudentsinmeaningfulconversations,deeperthinking,and
makingconnectionstotheirownexperiencesandbeliefs.TheideaofLTSistoscaffoldhigh
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
28
schoolstudents’readingofcomplextextsaswellastoincreaseengagementandhigher
levelthinking(Elish-Piper,Wold,Schwingendorf,2014).
Collaborationwithpeersisalsoameaningfulstrategytoguidestudentstodeeper
meaningandhigherlevelthinking.Whenstudentsareabletoshareideasandchecktheir
understandingwithotherstudents,theyhaveincreasedownershipintheirownlearning.
Gallagher(2004)pointsoutthatitisintegralthatstrugglingreadershavetheopportunity
tohavemeaningfulconversationsaboutwhattheyarereadingwiththeirpeers.Hebegins
theschoolyearbyassigningvariousrolessuchasdiscussionleader,note-taker,and
organizerinordertofocusgroupdiscussions.Thisisoftenbecausestudentshavenotbeen
explicitlytaughthowtoengageinmeaningfuldiscussions.Healsoincludesavarietyof
grouptasksthathelptofocusstudentdiscussionandtomeetlessonobjectives.Suggestions
thatheincludesare:double-entryjournals,envelopeswithguidingquestions,groupexams,
conversationlogs,themetriangles,silentexchanges,andtroubleslips.
Intheco-taughtclassroom,twoinstructorscanbestimplementthesupports
outlinedabove.Specificwordstudyandcognitivecomprehensionstrategiescanbe
adaptedtomeetindividualstudentneedsorbetaughtasawholeclass.Additionally,
throughgivingstudentsopportunitiestofurtherengageintextsbycollaboratingwiththeir
peersandincreasingtheirabilitytoreread,theyaregivenopportunitiestothinkona
higherlevelandreachdeepermeaningofwhattheyread.
Summary
Co-teachingisamodelthathasevolvedovertimeinordertoaddresstheneedsof
studentswithlearningdisabilitiesandmeetexpectationsoutlinedbyfederalandstate
mandates(IDEA2004,NCLB2001).Thereareavarietyofmodelstoco-teachingthatcan
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
29
beutilizedtomeetlessonobjectivesandstudentneeds,aswellastobuildonthestrengths
oftheindividualteachers.Despitethewidespreadimplementation,therecontinuestobea
gapintheresearchprovingco-teaching’seffectiveness.Thisismostlikelyduetothewide
rangeofmodels,students,andsubjectareasacrosswhichco-teachingisused.However,
therearesomestudiesthathaveindicatedaslightincreaseinstudentoutcomes.Many
authorshaveaddressedthecomponentsnecessaryforasuccessfulco-teaching
partnership.Thesecomponentsinclude:commonplanningtime,clearrolesand
responsibilities,supportiveadministrativestaff,professionaldevelopment,shared
resources,sharedexpectationsrelatedtostudentoutcomesandbehaviors,andvoluntary
partnerships.
Inordertoeffectivelysupportstudentsinthesecondaryliteracyclassroom,the
previouslyaddressedresearchandliteratureindicatedthatsecondarystudentsbenefitfor
explicitteachinginavarietyofareasaswellasopportunitiestocollaborate.Students
especiallybenefitfromvocabularyinstructionandwordwork.Atthesecondarylevelthis
involvesteachingacademicvocabularyaswellasteachingstudentswordpartsandtheir
meanings.Studentsshouldalsobeinstructedinmetacognitivestrategiesinorderto
monitortheirthinkingbefore,during,andafterreading.Thismayinvolvetheuseof
graphicorganizerstohelpscaffoldstudentsthinking,readinggoals,summarizing,
paragraphshrinking,understandingstorystructureandstorygrammar,andteachingfix
upstrategiestomonitorcomprehension.Inthenextchapter,Iwilldescribethemethods,
datacollectionprocedure,anddataanalysistechniquesthatIwillusetoanswermy
researchquestion:Whichco-teachingandliteracypracticesaremosteffectiveinthe
secondarylanguageartsclassroom?
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
30
ChapterThree:Methodology
Thisstudyexaminedtheresearchquestionofwhichmodelsofco-teachingand
literacyinthelanguageartsclassroomarethemosteffectiveatthesecondarylevel.My
researchwillhelptoinformthepracticesofninthandtenthgradeEnglishandspecial
educationteachersatafirstringsuburbanhighschoolintheMidwest.
Thisresearchwasbasedonanonymousquestionnairescompletedbytwo
secondarylanguageartsteachersandonespecialeducationteacheratthisschoolwho
teachgradesnineandtenabouttheirco-teachingexperiences.Researchalsoincludedat
leasttworecordedinterviewswithselectedco-teachersinorderpaintapictureofwhatthe
co-taughtclassroomlanguageartsclassroomlookslikeforeachofthem.Anonymous
questionnaireswerecompletedbystudentswithintheco-taughtlanguageartsclassboth
withandwithoutspecialeducationservices.Interviewsoftheschool’sassociateprincipal
wasconductedabouthisunderstandingofco-teachingandliteracytechniques,aswellas
expectationsandoutlookforthefuture.Inordertoprovidestatisticalperspectivesonthe
efficacyofco-teachingandvariousliteracystrategiesinthesecondarylanguagearts
classroom,datawasalsogatheredonstudentgrowthandoutcomesonstatereading
assessmentsaswellasareviewofacademicgradecomparisons.
OverviewoftheChapter
Thischapteroutlinesthemethodologiesthatwereusedinordertoanswerthe
researchquestion.First,thequalitativeresearchparadigmwasdescribedaswellaswellas
thereasonsinformingmydecisionstousethiskindofresearch.Descriptionsofthe
participantsandthesettingofthisresearchareincluded,aswellaspresentthethreedata
collectionmethodsthatwereutilizedtofindtheanswertomyresearchquestion.To
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
31
concludethischapter,adescriptionoftheprocedurebywhichthedataontheco-teaching
practicesandliteracyinstructioninthisschoolwasanalyzed.
ResearchParadigm
Theresearchparadigmtoaddresstheresearchquestioninvolvedmixedmethods.
Mixedmethodsresearchinvolvesgatheringandanalyzingbothqualitativeandquantitative
data.Thistypeofresearchprovidesbothopenended(qualitative)andclosed
(quantitative)setsofdata(Creswell,2014).Inthefieldofresearchandanalysis,mixed
methodsisafairlynewmodel.WhileJohnCreswell(2014)suggeststhatqualitativedatais
themostbeneficialformofdatacollectiontoanswermyresearchquestion,Ifeltthata
reviewofclassroomgradesaswellasstatetestingscorescouldaddanadditional
perspectiveand,perhaps,moreconcretedata.
Qualitativedatawasgatheredbywayofanonymousquestionnairesandinterviews.
Questionnairesweredistributedtotwosetsofco-teachingpartnersaswellasbetween20
and30sophomorestudentsenrolledinco-taughtlanguagearts.Manyofthesestudents
hadaco-taughtEnglishclassin9thgrade.Studentrespondentswerebothwithandwithout
IndividualEducationPlans.Basedonthereviewofthevariousstudiesandliterature,
gatheringquantitativedataonco-teachinghasmanylimitations.Theselimitationsinclude
butarenotlimitedto:lackofconsistentuseofco-teachingmodelsbetweenclassrooms,
lackofconsistentuseofliteracystrategiesandinstructionbetweenclassrooms,andlackof
consistentstudentneedsbetweenclassrooms.Becausethereissomuchvariability
betweenco-taughtclassrooms,gatheringqualitativedataisdifficultandoftenfilledwith
gaps.Manystudiestendtoendwithmorequestionsthansoliddataandsignificantdata
supportingwhichmodelsarebest.However,gatheringsomestateassessmentdataand
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
32
makingcomparisonsbetweenco-taughtandnon-co-taughtcoursescouldprovidesome
valuabledatainordertoanswermyresearchquestionsinamorecomprehensivemanner.
SettingandParticipants
ThesettingofthisstudywasatahighschoolintheMidwestwithapproximate
enrollmentof2,200studentsduringthefalltrimesterofthe2015-2016schoolyear.This
highschoolislocatedinafirst-ringsuburbandisconsideredurban.District-widestudent
ethnicityisreportedas:50%white,21%Asian,16%Black,11%Hispanic,and1%
AmericanIndian.28%ofstudentsenrolledinthedistrictspeaklanguagesotherthan
Englishathome.Primarily,theselanguagesinclude:Spanish,Karen,andHmong.Atthe
highschool,studentsofvariousethnicitiesandracesmakeupthefollowingpercentages:
2%Twoormoreraces,1%AmericanIndian,16%Asian,11%Black,8%Hispanic,and63%
White.38%ofstudentsattendingthisschoolreceivefreeorreducedlunch.Basedonstate
assessmentsinreading,41%ofstudentsmeetstandards,28%exceedstandards,and16%
partiallymeetstandards.Approximately10%ofstudentsattendingthishighschoolhave
individualizededucationplans(IEPs).
Theparticipantsofthisstudyconsistedoftwogeneraleducationlanguagearts
teachersandonespecialeducationteacherwhoworkwithbothninthandtenthgrade
students.Additionalparticipantswereapproximately20to39studentswithintheco-
taughtenvironment.Thesestudentsweretenthgradestudentswithandwithoutspecial
educationservices.Theschool’sassociateprincipalwasalsointerviewedasapartofthis
studyinordertoprovidemorecomprehensiveandwell-roundedperspectivesofco-
teachinginthisenvironment.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
33
DataCollectionandRationale
Datacollectiontechnique1:Interview.
Oneofthequalitativeresearchmethodsthatwasutilizedinthisstudywillinvolve
interviews.Structuredinterviewswithpredeterminedquestionswereconductedwithboth
co-teachersaswellaswiththeassociateprincipalinthebuilding.Theseincludedquestions
addressingvariousaspectsofco-teachingandliteracyinstruction.GeoffreyMills(2013)
suggeststhatusingstructuredandformalinterviewsallowstheresearchertoask
consistentquestionsacrossparticipants.Byusingthismethod,questionsweredeveloped
insuchawaythatelicitedinformationthatwillbestaddresstheresearchquestion.John
Creswell(2014)suggeststhatthereareavarietyofwaystointerviewparticipants.
However,hesuggeststhatface-to-face—one-on-one,in-personinterviewsprovide
historicalinformationandallowstheresearchercontroloverthequestions.Thisprovided
avarietyofperspectivesandinformationaboutco-teachingpracticesinthelanguagearts
classroomatthisschool.
Datacollectiontechnique2:Questionnaire.
Togatherfurtherdatarelatingtotheresearch,anonymousquestionnaireswere
distributedtobothco-teachingpartnersaswelltostudentsenrolledinco-taughtEnglishin
gradeten.Thisallowedforthecollectionoflargeamountsofdatainarelativelyshort
periodoftime.OneconcernthatCreswellmentionsregardingquestionnairesinvolvesthe
students’abilitytoreadandwrite.Thoughthisisavalidconcern,workingwithsecondary
studentsenrolledinageneraleducationlevelclassensuresthatthestudentswereableto
readthequestionsandanswerinwrittenform.Inordertogatherdataefficiently,the
questionnaireincludedaLikertscale.Questionnairesweredistributeddigitallyasthis
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
34
schoolusesone-to-oneiPadsandallstaffhaveiPadsaswell.AsCreswellsuggests,the
surveyalsoincludedan“othercomments”section.Afewadditionalfollowupquestions
wereincludedinthequestionnaireaswell.Challengeswiththismethodcouldinvolvelack
ofcompletionorreturningthequestionnaire.Inthecaseofstudents,somemaynotfindthe
purposevalidorengagingandtheymaynottakethetaskseriously.Itmaybenefitthe
researchtoofferasmallincentive,suchaschocolateorcandyaftercompletingthe
questionnaire.Questionsinthisquestionnairehavebeenadaptedfromotherresearch
relatedtosimilartopics(Conderman,2011;Smith,2012).
Datacollectiontechnique3:Statetestingandgradereportreview.
Thequantitativesectionoftheresearchinvolvedareviewofstatetestingdatafrom
specificstudentshavingbeenenrolledinclassesthatwerebothco-taughtandwithouta
secondteacher.Atthesecondarylevel,thestaterequiresonestatereadingtestduring
tenthgrade.Reviewofthesescoreswasfocusedprimarilyonstudentswhomet,exceeded,
partiallymet,ordidnotmeetstatestandards.Areviewofstudentswhohavebeenenrolled
inco-taughtlanguageartsinbothninthandtenthgradesoccurred.Additionally,areview
ofseveralnon-co-taughtsampleclasseswithothergeneraleducationteachersinboth
ninthandtenthgradewasconducted.Bygatheringthesetwotypesofdata,itwasexpected
tohelptriangulatewhetherornotperspectivesandqualitativedatamatchwithstudent
outcomesthroughbothstandardizedtestingandreportcardprogress.
Ethics
Inordertoprotecttheparticipants’rightsaswellastoensurethattheirresponses
andfeedbackwereanonymous,severalguidelinesandprocedureswerefollowed.Human
SubjectsResearchProtocolsfromHamlineUniversitywerealsofollowed.Additionally,
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
35
safeguardsthattheschooldistricthasinplacetoprotectstudentandstaffwereadheredto.
Therefore,aletteroutliningthepurposeandproceduresofthestudyaswellasan
informedconsentwasprovidedtoeachparticipantinthisstudy.Questionnaireswere
administeredthroughananonymouswebservice.Additionally,interviewswereconducted
privately.Areviewofstatetestingdataandstudentgradeswasusedsolelyforthepurpose
ofdatacollectionandnamesorotherspecificidentifyingattributeswerenotutilizedinthe
dataanalysis.Allofthisdatawaskeptinasecurefilingcabinetwhennotinuse.Interview
andquestionnairedatawascoded.Individualstudentnameswerenotgathered.Oneyear
afterthecompletionofthisresearchproject,allcollecteddatawillbedestroyed.
Summary
Theprimarysourceofdatacollectionforthisstudywasgatheredthrough
anonymoussurveystostudentsandinterviewswithadministratorsandteachers.
Additionalstatisticaldatawasgatheredfromstatetestingscoresandacademicgrades.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
36
ChapterFour:Results
Thepurposeofthisstudywastodeterminewhichmodelsofco-teachingandliteracy
inthelanguageartsclassroomaremosteffectiveatthesecondarylevel.Inordertoanswer
thisquestion,bothqualitativeandquantitativeresearchwasconductedatafirst-ring
suburbanhighschoolintheMidwest.Anonymousaggregatedatawascollectedtocompare
10thgradestatereadingscoresbetweenco-taughtsectionsandnon-co-taughtsectionsof
English.Togatherqualitativedata,interviewsandanonymoussurveyswereconducted.
Studentsinoneco-taughtsectionof10thgradeEnglishcompletedananonymoussurvey.
Co-teacherscompletedshortquestionnairesandthenparticipatedinrecordedinterviews
relatingtoco-teachingandliteracy.Finally,oneadministratorwasinterviewedabouthis
knowledgeofandgoalsrelatingtoco-teachingandhowthemodelimpactsstudent
outcomes.
OverviewoftheChapter
Thischapterreviewsthedatacollectedfrombothqualitativeandquantitative
research.First,studentstatereadingscoresfromco-taughtsectionsofEnglishclassesare
comparedtonon-co-taughtsections.Next,areviewofstudentresponsesfroman
anonymousquestionnairegivenina10thgradeco-taughtlanguageartsclassisdiscussed.
Aninterviewwithanadministratorregardingperceptions,support,andeffectivenessofco-
teachingwasreviewed.Co-teacherquestionnairesandinterviewswerealsoexamined.
StudentOutcomes
Inordertogatherfurtherinformationonstudentoutcomes,statereadingtest
scoreswerepulledforstudentsfromtwoconsecutiveschoolyears(AppendixF).A
comparisonwasthenmadeofallninthgradeEnglishclassesbetweenco-taughtsections,
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
37
non-co-taughtsections,andsectionswherestudentsreceivedthreetrimesters(year-long
instruction)ofninthgradeEnglish.Inthechartbelow,percentagesofstudents
experiencinghigh,medium,orlowgrowthsince8thgradeareincluded.Theoverallresults
fromthiscomparisonarevaried.
Inthreeofthefourco-taughtsectionsofEnglish9,thereisalargerpercentageof
studentsexperiencinghighgrowththanintheentiregradelevelcombined(includingsix
othernon-co-taughtsections).However,inthreeofthefourco-taughtclasses,thereare
alsoalargerpercentageofstudentsachievinglowgrowththaninallofthegradelevel
combined.Therewasalowerpercentageofmediumgrowthinco-taughtsectionsthanin
theclassasawhole.Thisdatasuggestthattherewasalargergapbetweenhighgrowth
studentsandlowgrowthstudentsthaninalloftheclassescombined.Withinthedata
collected,itwasdeterminedthatstatereadingscoresareneithersignificantlybetternor
significantlyworseforstudentswhoareinco-taughtclassescomparedtothosewhoare
not.
Thisdatawassimilartootherquantitativestudiesofco-teachingeffectiveness.
Friendetal.(2009)foundthattheco-teachingmodelpositivelyimpactedstudent
attendanceandacademicgrades.WhileinstudiesbyMcLaughlin,Rea,andWalther-
Thomas(2002)andIdol(2006),showedthatnosignificantgainswerefoundon
achievementinhighstakestesting
Co-taughtStudentPerceptions
Anonymousquestionnairesweredistributedtoatenthgradeco-taughtclass
consistingof34students.Nineofthesestudentswereidentifiedashavingindividualized
educationplans.Twoofthesestudentshad504plans(provideaccommodationsinthe
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
38
learningenvironmentforstudentswithdisabilitiesorsignificanthealthconcerns).
Seventy-fourpercentofstudentscompletedaquestionnaire.Whenaskediftheyhad
learnedmoreintheco-taughtclassthaninotherclassesthatarenotco-taught,nearlyhalf
ofthestudentrespondentsindicatedthattheywereunsure,while10otherstudents
respondedthattheyagreeorstronglyagreethattheylearnedmoreintheco-taughtclass.
Studentswerealsoaskedtoindicateareasofreadingandwritingwheretheyfelt
thattheyhadmadethemostgrowthoverthetrimester.Themostcommonareasthatwere
indicatedasgrowthareasincluded:readinglevel,fluency,andcomprehension.Several
studentsalsosharedthattheyfeeltheirvocabularyincreasedaspartofthiscourse.64%of
studentsrespondedthattheyfelttheybecamebetterwritersasaresultofbeingintheco-
taughtclass.Mostcommonareasthatwereidentifiedasbecomingstrongwere:using
evidence,organization,developingathesisstatement,andeditingtheirwork.
Severalstudentsalsowrotethattheyfeltthat“all”oftheirwritingskillsincreased.
Studentrespondentsidentifiedwritingasahighergrowthareathanreading.Over60%of
studentssaidtheystronglyagreedoragreedwiththeideathattheygottogettoknow
theirteachersandclassmatesbetterintheco-taughtsectionthanintheirotherclasses.The
followingtableindicatesthatthemajorityofstudentsstronglyagreedthattheyfeltthey
werebetterwritersasaresultofbeingintheco-taughtclass.
Table1-StudentResponsesRegardingWritingSkills
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
39
Table2
StudentResponsesRegardingReadingSkills
Astheabovechartdemonstrates,studentsagreedorwereunsureaboutwhetheror
nottheirreadingskillsgotbetterasaresultoftheco-taughtclass.Anothersignificantarea
ofpositivityincludedthestatement,“IfeellikeIhavereceivedmorehelpinthisclassthan
inothernon-co-taughtclasses.”Approximately73%ofstudentsagreedorstronglyagreed
thattheyfeltthisstatementwastrue.Infollowuptothisstatement,studentsalso
respondedwithapproximately73%whostronglyagreedoragreedtothefollowing
statement,“IfeltlikeIgottoknowmyteachersandclassmatesbetterinthisclassthanin
otherclasses.”
Whenrespondingtothestatement,“Iparticipatedmoreofteninthisclassmore
oftenthaninothernon-co-taughtclasses,”students,over50%ofstudentsidentifiedthat
theyfeltthiswasatruestatement.Studentswrotethataspectstheylikedbestaboutthe
classwere:theteachers,thenovelFlight(2007)byShermanAlexie,gettingtoworkwith
theirfriends,gettingtohavediscussions/workwiththeirpeers.Ingeneral,student
responseswereeitherneutralorpositive.Acrossallstatements,nomorethanfour
studentsrespondedwith“stronglydisagree”or“disagree”.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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Therewereseveraloutlyingsuggestionsfromstudentswhenaskingwhatteachers
coulddobetter.Theseinvolvedcommentsonhowtheyfeltthattheteachersshouldbeless
strictregardingbehavioralexpectations.Specificexamplesincluded:“pleasehaveless
chaoticstudentsandmakethesilentonestalkmore;”“Belessstrictandlessusdowhatwe
want”;“Don’tbetooweird”and“Givememoretimetocompleteexitslips.”Onlyhalfof
studentswhocompletedthesurveyleftspecificwrittencomments.
Generally,studentresponsessuggestedthattheyfelthavingtwoteachersallowed
formorequestionstobeanswered.Theyalsorespondedthattheywereabletoreceive
morehelp.Morestudentsrespondedthattheywereunsureorundecidedabouttheir
readingskills.Abouthalfoftherespondentsidentifiedspecificareasofgrowthincluding
fluency,comprehension,andvocabulary.Somestudents,however,respondedinwritten
formthattheyfelttheywerealready“goodorverygood”readerstobeginwith,sotheydid
notseeamajordifferenceinreadingability.
Studentsurveyresultsindicatedthatmoststudentsfoundthattheco-taught
environmenthasapositiveimpactontheirliteracyskillsrelatedtowritingaswellas
reading.Studentsrespondedthattheyfeltthattheco-taughtenvironmentallowedfor
increasedattentionandhelpwhenneeded.
AdministratorInterview
Theadministratorinterviewedaspartofthisstudyhasbeenworkinginan
administrativeroleatthisschoolforthepastsixyears.Duringhisfirstthreeyearsatthis
schoolheworkedasaDeanofStudentsandwasthedirectsupervisortotheSpecial
EducationDepartment.Hehasabackgroundinschoolpsychology,whichhelpedhiminhis
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
41
leadershiprolewiththisdepartment.Hewas,andcontinuestobeastrongproponentofco-
teaching.Whenaskedwhatco-teachinglookedlikeinhisbuilding,hesaidthat,
Thereareavarietyofpartnershipsatdifferentstagesofdevelopmentbetweenboth
specialeducationandgeneraleducationaswellasbetweenEL(EnglishLanguage)
andgeneraleducation.However,theidealpartnershipwouldbeonewhereanyone
couldwalkintotheclassroomandnotbeabletotellwhothecontentareateacheris
andwhothespecialeducationorELteacheris.(E.Singer,personalcommunication,
November30,2015)
Healsosuggestedthattherearethreedifferentlevelsofpartnershipsinthis
schoolbasedonthelevelofexperience:
1. Seamless,fluidenvironmentwithbothteachersinstructing,
2. Contentteacherprimarilyinstructing,whiletheELorSpecialEducationteacher
providesre-teaching,review,andenrichment
3. Burgeoningpartnershipswhereeachpartnerisworkingtoidentifytheirroles
withintherelationship
Thisadministratorthenwasasked,“Howdoyouthinkco-teachinginthelanguagearts
classroomcanimpactstudentliteracy?”Heresponded,
ThisisassumingIknewatonaboutliteracy,butyoucanmeetstudentswherethey
are.Youcanbreakituptomeeteachstudent.Youcanprovideenrichmentonboth
endsofthespectrum,andhavedifferentiationtimetoworkonliteracyskills.We
canmeetmorestudents’needs.Notjuststudentswithspecialneeds.Allstudents
areenrichedinthatenvironment.(E.Singer,personalcommunication,November
30,2015)
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
42
TheAssistantPrincipalwentontodiscusshowhewouldliketoseeanexpansionof
interdisciplinaryco-teachingpartnerships.Healsostatedthatongoingprofessional
developmentandcommonpreparationtimeareimportantcomponentswhenconsidering
co-teachingpartnershipsuccess.Hediscussedtheideaofhavinganinterdisciplinaryco-
teachingprofessionallearningcommunityfocusedondifferentiation.
Theviewpointsrepresentedbythisadministratorfocusedonvoluntary
partnershipswhereeachpartnerisabletotakeovertheentireclassasneeded.Hestressed
theimportanceof“buyin”andrecruitmentinordertocreatesuccessfulandlong-lasting
co-teachingpartnerships.Further,headdressedtheincreasedabilitytodifferentiateand
meetmorestudentneedsatavarietyoflevelswhenaclassroomisbeingrunbytwo
teacherswhoaccesstheirareasofexpertise.Finally,hesuggestedthatprofessional
developmentforco-teachersshouldbeongoing.
TeacherInterviewandQuestionnaire
Threeteachersweregivenaquestionnaireandinterviewedaspartofthisresearch.
Theseteacherswereselectedbecausetheyaretheonlyteachersinthebuildingwho
currentlyco-teachlanguageartsclasses.Therearenoeleventhortwelfthgradelevelco-
taughtlanguageartscoursesoffered.Twooftheseteachersarelanguageartsteachers.The
otherisaspecialeducationteacherwhohasbeenworkingwiththeEnglishdepartmentas
aco-teacherforthepastfiveyears;thisspecialeducatorworkswithbothofthelanguage
artsteachers.ShehasaBachelor’sdegreeinbothcreativewritingandSpecialEducation
andhasworkedatthisschoolforsixyears.Sheprimarilyworkswithninthandtenthgrade
students.Languageartsteacheronehasbeenteachinginthedistrictforthepasttwenty
years.Shehasworkedwithavarietyofstudentsandiscurrentlycurriculumleaderfora
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
43
programtotargetat-riskstudentsandprovidethemwithmoresupportatschool.Shehas
beenco-teachingwiththespecialeducationteacherforthepastsixyears.Shehasa
Master’sdegreeinEducationandhastaughtsomemulti-disciplinaryclassesinthepastand
primarilyteachesninthandtenthgradestudents.Thesecondlanguageartsteacherhas
beenteachingatthisschoolforthreeyears.Oneofthoseyearswasinalong-term
substituteposition.Sheprimarilyteachestenth,eleventh,andtwelvegradestudents.
Twoco-teachingmodelswereidentifiedthroughtheinterviewprocessasbeingthe
mostpopularandviewedasthemosteffective.Theseweretheteamteachingmodeland
thealternativeteachingmodel.Teachersfoundthesetobethemostusefulbecauseit
allowedthemtobothbeseenasequalpartnersbyeachotheraswellasbythestudents.
Perceptionofinstructorsbythestudentswassomethingthatintervieweesidentifiedas
beingveryimportantwhenestablishingapartnershipandmaintainingpositive
relationshipswithstudents.Thefollowingtablesummarizesintervieweeperspectives
relatedtoco-teachingexperiences.
Table3TeacherPerspectivesRegardingCo-teachingExperiencesPositivePerspectives ChallengesHavingthesupportofanotherprofessionalintheclassroom
Lackofcommonplanningtime
Learningfromtheotherperson Challengeswhenpartnershipsareassignedbyothersandnotapersonalandprofessionalchoice
Developingcurriculumandmakingadaptationstogether
Classeswithhigherproportionsofstudentswithincreasedneeds.
Positivestudentoutcomes(comprehension,writtenlanguage,grades,behavior,attendance,academicsuccess)
Lackofongoingprofessionaldevelopmentorsupport
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
44
Intervieweesindicatedthattheyaddressedliteracyinavarietyofways.Becausethere
isawiderangeofabilitylevels,teachersdirectlyteachreadingstrategies.Someofthese
strategiesinclude,directlyteachingvocabularyandwordparts,previewingthetext,
accessingpriorknowledge,andprovidingmultipleopportunitiesforre-reading,and
providingreadingguideswhenstudentsareexpectedtoreadindependently,andusing
think-aloudstomodelhowgoodreadersthinkaboutandrespondtotext.Somequestions
andresponsesareincludedbelow.
Whatdoestheco-teachingmodellooklikeinyourownclassroom,howdoyouincorporate
itintopractice?
LanguageArtsTeacher#1:Myco-teacherandIsharetheteachingroleswithinour
classroom.Oneteacherleadsalesson,whiletheotheraddstothediscussion,asks
clarifyingquestions,orassistsstudentswithcontentunderstandingandbehaviors(J.
Johnson,personalcommunication,November10,2016).
LanguageartsTeacher#2:It’shardtopinpointwhichmodelspecifically,butwetendto
bothdotheteaching.Ithelpsthatstudentsseebothofusasteachers.Insteadofasone
personsupportandonepersontakingthelead(B.Stahlman,personalcommunication,
December1,2015).
Doyoufeelliketherehasbeenanymodelthathasbeentheleasthelpfulornotas
helpfulasothers?
Languageartsteacher#1:Allmodelshaveatimeandplace,dependingontheneedsof
thestudentsLeasthelpfulisprobablyparallelteaching(J.Johnson,personal
communication,November10,2016).
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
45
Languageartsteacher#2:Inmypastexperiencethemodelofpullingstudentsout
orjustwhenonepersonsupportsitreallyturnsintojustabehaviorcheckandother
studentsarekindofjustlike,“whoisthislady?(B.Stahlman,personalcommunication,
December1,2015)”
Doyouandyourco-teachersharetheteachingroles?
Languageartsteacher#1:Myco-teacherandIsharetheteachingroleswithinour
classroom.Oneteacherleadsalessonwhiletheotheraddstothediscussion,asks
clarifyingquestions,orassistsstudentswithcontentunderstandingandbehaviors(J.
Johnson,personalcommunication,November10,2016).
Languageartsteacher#2:Asmyco-teacherislearningthecontentit’salittlelessso,
butIhaveconfidenceinthefuturethatwewillsharemoreteachingespeciallyaswetry
tointegratealittlemorereadingskillsfocus(B.Stahlman,personalcommunication,
December1,2015).
Languageartsteacher#1:Myco-teacherstartsclassoffbygettingtheclasssettledand
thenreviewingdailyexpectationsaswellasfutureassignments.Shethengoesintothe
vocabularylessonfortheday.Itendtointroducethenewmaterial,butwebothsupport
eachotherandarerespectfulofwhenandhowweaddinformationtowhatweare
talkingabout(J.Johnson,personalcommunication,November10,2016).
Specialeducationteacher:Itisdifferentwitheitherofmyco-teachers.Onepartnership
isolderandmoreestablished,soIfeelmorecomfortablewiththecurriculumandmore
abletojumpinandoutoftheinstructionalprocess.Intheotherenvironment,I’mstill
learningthecurriculum,soItendtodomorereviewandre-teachingaswellasspend
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
46
moretimewithadaptationsanddifferentiation(A.Robenhorst,personalreflection,
November12,2016).
Howdoyouandyourteachingpartnerassessstudentsandmonitortheirprogress?
Languageartsteacher#1:Dailyassignmentsandactivities,observation,formativeand
summativeassessments,individualmeetingswithstudents(J.Johnson,personal
communication,November10,2016).
Languageartsteacher#2:Inourclass,weusedailyexitslips.Studentsaregivena
guidingquestionforthedayandaskedtodemonstratetheirknowledgeorskillatthe
endofclass.Wealsohavesmalldailyformativeassignmentsandlargeunit-based
summativeassignments.Manyofthesesummativeassessmentsareessays(B.
Stahlman,personalcommunication,December1,2015).
Specialeducationteacher:Itdependsontheclass.ButIreallyenjoytheexitslipsthat
wedoinourtenthgradeclass.Itisalotofdaily“grading,”butitisagreatwaytokeepa
pulseontheclass.IfeelthatIhavereallygottentoknowthestudentsmuchbetter
throughtheexitslipsaswell.Inbothclassesweusesformativeassignmentsand
summativefinalprojects,essays,orexams.Thekeyforbothclassesisthatwecheckin
withallofthestudentsalot.Itisnicetohavetwobodiesforthis(A.Robenhorst,
personalreflection,November12,2016).
Allthreeintervieweesrespondedthattheymonitorstudentprogressthroughformative
andsummativeassessments.Oneco-teachingpartnershipusesdailyexitslipstoaddressa
varietyofskillsonaday-to-daybasiswhileassessinggrowththroughlargersummative
assessmentsthatincludeexams,essays,andprojects.Theotherco-teacherindicatedthat
sheandherco-teacherusealargervarietyofdailyassignmentsandsummative
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
47
assessmentsthatincludeessays,projects,andexamsaswell.Theyfindthathaving
studentsengageinagreatdealofeditingandrewritinghasbeenoneofthemostbeneficial
strategieswhenitcomestothisskillarea.Theyalsodoone-to-oneconferencingabout
writtenlanguageskills.Theysharedthatthisissomethingthatislesstime-consumingwith
twoteachers.
Allco-teachersrespondedthattheyfeltthatco-teachingisaneffectiveservice
deliverymodel.However,theystressedtheneedforadministrativesupportinorderto
havetheappropriateratiosofstudentswithintheco-taughtenvironment.Finally,they
discussedtheneedforapositiveandvoluntaryrelationshipbetweenco-teachingpartners.
Oneco-teacherhadhadnegativeexperiencesinthepastwhereherpartnerdidnotfeel
comfortablewithteachinganentireclass;thereforetheteamteachingmodelwasnot
somethingtheywereabletouse.This,inturn,resultedinfeelingthatthepartnershipwas
imbalancedandnotassupportiveforallstudents.
Overall,thethreeco-teachersthatwereinterviewedrespondedthattheyviewco-
teachingasamodelofteachingthatcanbehighlyeffectivewithworkingwithallstudents.
Whenaddressingliteracy,theyrespondedthattheyusedavarietyofstrategiesincluding:
activatingpriorknowledge,usingthink-alouds,providingopportunitiesforre-readingor
closereading,andprovidedavarietyofwaysforstudentstorespondandreceivefeedback.
Whenaskedhowtheyaddressliteracyintheirco-taughtclassroom,theyshared:
LanguageartsTeacher#2:Definitelydoadirectinstructionofvocabularyincluding
wordpartsandpartsofspeechaswellasgrammar.Ialsoliketoteachmetacognition
relatedtoreading.Monitoringreading.Iliketomodelquestionaskingwhilereading.Iused
todomoreclosereading,buttimehasgotteninthewayofthat.OnethingthatIhavebeen
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
48
wantingtodopushingforwardisworkingonsmallpracticing.Insteadofdoingaclose
readingoffiveparagraphsdoingaclosereadingonasentenceortwosoyoucanworkon
thosestrategieswhileitsnotsotimeinvolving(B.Stahlman,personalcommunication,
December1,2015).
Theyalsocommentedontheimportanceofvoluntarypartnershipswhereeachpartner
feelsasiftheyareabletoshareequitablyinallresponsibilities.Languageartsteacher#2
responded,“Co-teachingissomethingthatshouldbeseenassomethingtoaspireto,not
somethingthatissimplyachore.Itisavaluableandenjoyableprofessionalopportunity
thatbenefitsallstudents(B.Stahlman,personalcommunication,December1,2015).”
Allthreeteachersfocusedontheimportanceofexperiencedteachersworkingwith
otherexperiencedteachersaswellastheimportanceofvoluntarypartnerships.Other
similarthemesincludedcommonpreptimeandsharingoftheinstructionalload.
Summary
Severalcommonthemescametothesurfacethroughthisresearch.Student
perceptionsarepositivelyimpactedintheco-taughtclassroom.However,student
academicprogress,whenmeasuredonlythroughhighstakestesting,appearstobehighly
variablebetweensections(teachers).Additionally,thereappearstobea“feastorfamine”
discrepancyintheco-taughtsectionsofEnglish.Thismeansthat,intheco-taughtsections,
thereappearstobehigherproportionsofstudentsonthe“highgrowth”and“lowgrowth”
endsofthespectrum.Administrativeperceptionsofco-teachingtendtoalignwiththe
beliefsofco-teachingpartnershipsinmostareas.Theseareasincludetheideathat
partnershipsmustbeenteredintovoluntarilyandbesupportedbyadministrationthrough
professionaldevelopmentandmaintenanceofclassroomsize(ratioofstudentswith
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
49
specialneedstogeneraleducationstudents).Whenexploringwhichmodelsofco-teaching
andliteracyinthelanguageartsclassroomaremosteffectiveatthesecondarylevel,
quantitativedatagathereddoesnotdirectlysupporttheeffectivenessofco-teaching,the
qualitativedatasuggestthatco-teachingiscomplexandrequiresmorethanonevariableto
measureitssuccess.Thelearnings,limitations,andconclusionsofthisstudywillbe
discussedinthefollowingchapter.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
50
ChapterFive:Conclusions
Thepurposeofthisstudywastodeterminewhichmodelsofco-teachingandliteracy
inthelanguageartsclassroomaremosteffectiveatthesecondarylevel.Inthischapter,I
sharemypersonallearningasaresearcherandwriter,andwillpresentmajorfindingsof
thisresearchaswellasitslimitationsandimplicationsforteachers,administratorsaswell
asareasforfurtherresearch.
MajorLearning
Literaturereview.
Theliteraturereviewofthiscapstonewasthemostchallengingandmostrewarding
partoftheprocess.Theimplicationsofthevariousresearchstudieshelpedtosetupmy
ownframeworkfordatacollectionaswellastohonemyownresearchquestion.Authors
thatIfoundtobethemostrelatedtomyresearchquestionaswellasthemostcompelling
includedMarilynFriend(2010)whoseresearchfocusesspecificallyonco-teachingfrom
thespecialeducationmindset.Muchofherresearchandpublicationsfocusesonvarious
modelsofco-teachingaswellaschallenges,implicationsandguidelinesforteachers.
WendyMurawskiandLisaDieker(2004)havealsopublishedavarietyofguidelinesand
researchstudies.Thesepublicationsincludeinformationforbothteachersand
administrators—emphasizingtheimportanceofbuy-inandsupportfrombothareas.They
outlinefivemainactionswhenpreparingtoco-teach:assessingthecurrentenvironment,
moveinslowly,involveanadministrator,gettoknowyourpartner,andcreateaworkable
schedule.Further,theypointoutthat,“Thismethodofinstructionislikelytoincreasethe
outcomesforallstudentsinthegeneraleducationsetting,whileensuringthatstudents
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
51
withdisabilitiesreceivenecessarymodificationsyetareprovidedinstructionbyacontent
expert”(52).Bothauthorsstresstheimportanceofthoughtfuldevelopmentofco-teaching
partners,interestandbuy-infromteachers,supportfromadministrators,aswellas
commonplanningtime.
Eachauthorspendstimefocusingontheimportanceofdifferentiationwithinthe
classroomforstudentswithavarietyofstrengthsandneedsandhowco-teachingcan
provideanenrichedenvironmentforallstudents.Friendfrequentlystressedtheideathat
itisdifficulttogatherspecificdatabecauseitisnotbeinggatheredinacontrolledclinical
setting.Teachers’styles,curriculum,studentdemographicsallimpacttheenvironmentand
makeitverydifficulttogatherconclusivedatabecauseofthesefactors.Gatheringgrowth
datafromyeartoyearisalsodifficultbecauseofthesereasonsevenifthestudentshave
hadthesameteacherovertime.
ResearchQuestionandConclusions
Inordertodeterminewhichmodelsofco-teachingandliteracyinthelanguagearts
classroomaremosteffectiveatthesecondarylevel,student-basedfeedback,anonymous
surveyswereconductedintwoco-taughtclassesoftenthgradeEnglishandinterviews
wereconductedwithtwolanguageartsteachersandonespecialeducationteacherwhoco-
teachinthatenvironment.Additionally,aninterviewwasconductedwithone
administrator.Inrelationtothestudentfeedback,herewasnotmuchvarianceinthe
responsesinregardtostudentperceptionoftheirownreadingandwrittenlanguageskills.
Morestudentsrespondedfavorablytofeelingthattheyhadbecomebetterwritersthan
thosewhobelievedtheyhadincreasedtheirreadingskills.Alargepercentageofstudents
respondedthattheyfelttheyreceivedmorehelpintheco-taughtclassthanintheirother
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
52
non-co-taughtclasses,whichdemonstratesalevelofsupportthatisespeciallybeneficial
forstudentswhorequireincreasedrepetitionofnewmaterialsinordertoachievemastery
basedontheirindividualeducationplan(IEP)adaptationsandgoalsteachersandthe
administratorfeltthatco-teachingcanbeaverypositiveexperiencethatleadtopositive
outcomesforstudents.Themodelthatteachersindicatedthatwasmosteffectivewasthe
teamteachingmodelwherebothteachersareresponsiblefordirectinstructionofstudents
onadailybasis.Thesharedrolewasseenasawaytocreatesharedresponsibilityaswell
astoallowstudentstoseebothteachersinrolesofauthorityratherthanonemainandone
support.
Limitations
Onemajorlimitationofthisstudywasthelackofstudentresponses.Alongerperiod
oftimefordatacollectionwouldhavehelpedtoyieldadditionaldatafrombothninthand
tenthgradestudents.Thisstudywaslimitedbecauseoftheavailablesampleofstudentsat
thetimebasedonco-taughtclasssectionsbeingoffered(therewereonlytwotenthgrade
sections).Anothermajorlimitationcouldbemyownpersonalbiasrelatedtothetopic.Asa
co-teacherwithaspecialeducationbackground,myperspectivesandexperiencesmay
haveimpactedhowIchosetocollectdata,thequestionsthatwereasked,andmyown
feelingsandthoughtstowardsthedatathatwascollected.Also,becausebothco-teachers
areteacherswhoIworkwithpersonally,myinterviewsandquestionnairescouldhave
beenskewedbecauseIwouldbethepersoncollatingallofthedata.
Futureresearch
Becausethefocuswillcontinuetobeoninclusiveclassrooms,itwillbeimportant
continuetoexploretheimplicationsofco-teachingaswellastoprovideresearch-based
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
53
anddatadrivenguidelinesforallofthoseinvolved.Individually,itisimportanttogather
studentfeedbackaswellastrackstudentgrowthinavarietyofways.Thisis,ingeneral,
goodpractice(cite).However,gatheringmyownlongitudinaldatawillhelptosupport
positiveimpactsofco-teachingaswellastohelpinformcurriculumandinstructional
decisionsthatImayneedtomake.
Sharingthedata
Theresultsofthisstudyhavehighlightedareasofstrengthwithinteaching
partnershipsaswellassomeareasthatcontinuetobeachallengetobothstudentsand
professionals.Itisimportanttosharethedata,conclusions,andlimitationswithstake
holdersaswellasdecisionmakerswithintheenvironmentwherethestudytookplace.As
thepushforincreasedinclusionforstudentswithavarietyofneedscontinuestogrow,itis
importantfordecisionstobemadebasedfromstudentandteacherfeedbackaswellas
withtheoutcomesofstudentsinmind.Iwillsharethisdatawiththeadministratorsaswell
aswiththelanguageartscurriculumreviewcommittee(ofwhichIamamember).
Additionally,resultswillbesharedwiththeteacherswhoutilizetheco-teachingmodel—
especiallythosethatworkwiththeLanguageArtsdepartment.
Summary
Thecapstonewritingprocesshasbeenoneofthemostdifficultacademic
experiencesthatIhaveevergonethrough.Inmanyways,ithasbeentransformativeand
hashelpedmetodiscovermyownlimitations,strengthsandareasoffuturegrowth.I
chosearesearchquestionthat,whileverymuchtiedtomyownpracticeanddailyteaching
experiences,wasnoteasilyanswered.Thiswasdiscoveredthroughouttheliterature
review.Whiletherewereseveralotherstudieswithsimilarquestions,theconclusions
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
54
werenearlyalwaysthesame.Otherstudiesconcludedthat,thereisnooneclearand“best”
co-teachingmodel.However,basedonstudentfeedbackinthisstudy,itcanbeconcluded
thattheco-taughtliteracyenvironmentisapositiveone.Though,therearemanyvariables
thatimpacttheoutcomesofstudents,including:studentpopulation,teacherbackground,
teacherexperience,behavioralexpectations,instructionalmaterials,classsize,andthe
relationshipbetweentheteachingpartners.Theseshouldalsobeconsideredwhen
determiningtheeffectivenessofteachingmodels.Co-teachingcanbeapowerfultooltouse
inordertohelpallstudentsincreasetheirliteracyskillsandtoensurethatstudentswith
disabilitiesarebeingprovidedsupportintheleastrestrictiveenvironmentpossible.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
55
AppendixA
Co-TeacherQuestionnaireWhatgradedoyouteach?Whatis/areyourlicensurearea(s)?Withinyourco-teachingteam,whichteacherareyou?_______GeneralEducationTeacher _______SpecialEducationTeacherWhatmodeldoyoufollowmostasaco-teacher?Oneteach—oneassist StationTeaching ParallelTeachingAlternativeteaching TeamTeachingWhatdoesthismodellooklikeinyourownclassroom,howdoyouincorporateitintoyourpractice?Doyoufeelthatyouandyourco-teachersharethedeliveryofinstructioninanequitableway?Pleaseexplain.Whatisyourrelationshiplikewithyourco-teachingpartner?Whatdoyouthinkitmeanstobeaco-teacher?Howdoyouandyourco-teachingpartnerteachliteracy?
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AppendixB
LanguageartsCo-TeacherInterviewQuestionsAdditionalquestionsmaybeaddeddependentonanswersgivenbasedonthefollowing
questions.
1. Whichmodelsormodelsofco-teachingdoyouthinkyouandyourco-teacherutilize
themostoften?
a. Arethereanythatyoufindtobethemosthelpful?
b. Leasthelpful?
Whatdoesthismodellooklikewithinyourclassroom?
2. Doyouandyourco-teachersharetheteachingroleswithinyourclassroom?Please
explain.
3. Howmanyyearshaveyoubeenco-teaching?
4. Whatisyourrelationshiplikewithyourco-teachingpartner?
5. Whatdoyouwishyouwouldhaveknownbeforeyoubeganco-teaching?
6. Whatkindsofprofessionaldevelopmenthaveyoureceivedtohelpsupportyourco-
teaching?
7. Whatkindsofprofessionaldevelopmenthaveyoureceivedtoaddressyour
students’literacyneedsinyourclass?
8. Howdoyouaddressliteracywithinyourco-taughtclassroom?Forexample,doyou
directlyteachvocabulary,comprehension-monitoringstrategies,closereadingor
re-reading,doyouincreaseengagementthroughcollaboration?
9. Howdoyouandyourteachingpartnerassessstudentsandmonitortheirprogress?
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
57
10. Doyouseeco-teachingasaneffectiveservicedeliverymodel?Whyorwhynot?
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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AppendixC
AdministrativeInterviewQuestions
1. Whatdoesco-teachinglooklikeinyourbuilding?
2. Whatwouldlikeco-teachingtolooklikeinyourbuilding?
3. Doyoufeelthatco-teachingisaneffectiveservicedeliverymodel?
4. Whatisyourvisionforco-teachinginthisbuilding?
5. Howareco-teachingpartnersselectedinthisbuilding?
a. Wouldyouliketoseeitbedonedifferently?Ifyes,howso?
6. Howdoyouthinkco-teachinginthelanguageartsclassroomcanimpactstudent
literacy?
7. Areyouawareofthedifferentmodelsormodelsundertheco-teachingumbrella?
8. Whatwouldchangeswouldyouliketoseeregardingco-teachinginthisbuilding?
9. Doyouthinkthatco-teachingpartnershipsgetenoughcommonplanningtime?
Professionaldevelopmentaroundco-teaching?
10. Whatwouldasuccessfulco-teachingpartnershiplookliketoyou?
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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AppendixD
StudentCo-TeachingQuestionnaireIfeellikeIhavereceivedmorehelpinthisclassthaninothernon-co-taughtclassesSA A U D SDIlearnedmoreinthisco-taughtclassthaninmyotherclassesthatarenotco-taught.SA A U D SDIenjoyedcomingtothisclassmorethanmyothernon-co-taughtclasses.SA A U D SDIfeelthatmyreadingskillshavegottenbetterbecauseofbeinginthisco-taughtclass.SA A U D SDWhataresomethingsrelatedtoyourreadingskillsthatyouthinkhavegottenbetter?IfeelthatIamabetterwriteasaresultofbeinginthisco-taughtclass?SA A U D SDWhichpartsofwritingdoyoufeelyouarebetterat?Behavioralexpectationsinthisclasswereclearerthaninmyothernon-co-taughtclasses.SA A U D SDAssignmentandinstructionalexpectationsinthisclasswereclearerthaninmyothernon-co-taughtclasses.SA A U D SDDidyoufeelthatyoucouldaskmorequestionsinthisclassthaninatypicalclass?Icouldaskmorequestionsinthisclassthaninatypicalclass?SA A U D SDIcollaborated(workedwith)otherstudentsmoreofteninthisclassthaninothernon-co-taughtclasses.SA A U D SDIhadmorefuninthisclassthaninmyothernon-co-taughtclasses.SA A U D SDWhatwasthemostfun?IfeltlikeIgottoknowmyteachersandclassmatesbetterinthisclassthaninotherclasses.
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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SA A U D SDIparticipatedmoreinthisclassmoreoftenthaninothernon-co-taughtclasses.SA A U D SDMyfavoritepartofthisclasswas:IfIhadonesuggestiontogivemyteachersaboutthisclassitwouldbe:
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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AppendixE
AdditionalStudentResponseTable
BestPracticesforCo-TeachingLiteracyintheSecondaryLanguageArtsClassroom
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AppendixF
StateTestingGrowthbyClassSectionSection HighGrowth LowGrowth MediumGrowthBlank 21.05% 31.58% 47.37%0001-01CT 36.36% 36.36% 27.27%0001-02 41.38% 13.79% 44.83%0001-03 38.46% 15.38% 46.15%0001-04 50.00% 20.00% 30.00%0001-05 27.27% 36.36% 36.36%0001-06 11.11% 44.44% 44.44%0001-07CT 66.67% 8.33% 25.00%0001-08 35.71% 28.57% 35.71%0001-09 42.86% 28.57% 28.57%0001CO-01 22.22% 33.33% 44.44%0001CO-02 25.00% 12.50% 62.50%0001CO-03 0.00% 50.00% 50.00%0002-01 20.00% 0.00% 80.00%0002-02 55.56% 44.44% 0.00%0002-03CT 26.67% 40.00% 33.33%0002-04 50.00% 10.00% 40.00%0002-05 50.00% 16.67% 33.33%0002-06CT 50.00% 35.71% 14.29%0002-07 16.67% 41.67% 41.67%0002-08 38.10% 33.33% 28.57%0002-09 62.50% 25.00% 12.50%0002CO-01 60.00% 0.00% 40.00%0002CO-02 10.00% 30.00% 60.00%0002CO-03 0.00% 60.00% 40.00%TOTAL 35.96% 27.68% 36.36%
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