The Inclusive Classroom: A Resource for Co-Teaching

Elizabeth Hoskins

PEDU 509

Longwood University

Overview● Establish a guiding resource for both general and special

education teachers for best practices in the middle school

inclusion classroom.

● Teachers at DRMS were asked what resources they think will

best aid them in creating a successful inclusive environment,

with emphasis on co-teaching strategies and differentiation.

● Research outside the division for ways to improve the

collaboration process.

● Creation of a uniform, school-wide resource for training

teachers

Research● 2015-2016 SOL Data

○ Math: 83% pass rate

○ Reading: 76% pass rate

● School Improvement Plan

○ Emphasis on co-teaching in reading and math

Goals

Success specifically related to this phase of the project was

measured by:

● Creation of a uniform co-teaching training resource

● Faculty professional development

● Co-teaching observations by 12/3/2016.

Co-Teaching Survey● Math, Language Arts, Special Education

● 17 total teachers

DRMS Co-Teaching Survey

Team Members● Principal

● Math Teacher

● Special Education Teacher

Training Resources● Co-Teaching Binder

○ Co-Planning, Co-Teaching, Co-Assessing

● Co-Teaching Workshops

○ Train the Trainer PLC

○ Two training sessions for teachers

Co-Teaching Observations● Classroom lesson

● Co-planning session

● Post-observation conference

NELP Standards● 4.1 The resource created aids in implementing data-driven

systems of co-teaching instruction in order to promote

academic success in response to diverse student needs.

● 4.2 The resource created allows teachers to promote

challenging and engaging instructional practices within the

co-teaching environment.

● 4.4 By implementing the co-teaching professional development

resources provided, teachers may employ effective and

appropriate technologies, structures, and other necessary

instructional practices to support equitable access to learning

for each student.

Reflection● Salisbury & McGregor (2002) identified shared characteristics

of administrators of successful co-teaching programs

○ Risk-takers

○ Reflect on their actions

○ Clear and committed to beliefs

○ Promote value of professional relationships

○ Accessible

○ Intentional with goals and expectations

Commitment and Modeling● Co-teaching buy-in

● Tried new strategies in my classroom and shared my

experiences

Collaboration● United all stakeholders in a common purpose (Kouzes &

Posner, 2012)

● Led team in faculty presentations

● Delegated responsibilities (Gorton & Alston, 2012)

Accessibility● Available by email, in person

● Visited classrooms, met with teachers

Intentionality● Leaders must invest time and resources in breaking away from

the status quo (Kouzes and Posner, 2012)

● From one co-teaching model to others

● Set school-wide goals and expectations for co-teaching

○ Implement a variety of styles of co-teaching

○ Utilize binders as a resource

● Followed up, reinforced co-teaching successes

Areas of Improvement● Failure breeds success, so leaders must learn from experience

(Kouzes & Posner, 2012)

● Follow-up survey at the end of phase one

● More data from post-tests to measure student growth

● Delegate others to observe co-teaching lessons

Goals

● Creation of a uniform co-teaching training resource

● Faculty professional development

● Co-teaching observations by 12/3/2016.

ReferencesDRMS. (2016). School improvement plan reporting form: Data-driven decision making for improving instruction. Retrieved 28

September 2016 from https://docs.google.com/ document/d/1j0w1RKIsXailk7odSm_9ty00Y7FUNUR-pCre5TwEHQg/edit

Friend, M. (2014). Co-Teach! Building and Sustaining Effective Classroom Partnerships in Inclusive Schools (2nd ed.).

Greensboro, NC: Marilyn Friend, Inc.

Gorton, R., & Alston, J. (2012). School administration and leadership: Important concepts, case studies, and simulations (9th ed.).

New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2012). The leadership challenge: How to make extraordinary things happen in organizations. San

Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Salisbury, C. & McGregor, G. (2002). The administrative climate and context of inclusive

elementary schools. Exceptional Children, 68, 259-270.