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Professional Development and Information Resources for Connecticut's Educators and the Families They Serve

Home Initiatives Teaching & Learning Co-Teaching Six Approaches to Co-Teaching

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Teaching & Learning InitiativeSix Approaches to Co-Teaching

In their book, Interactions: Collaboration Skills for School Professionals,Marilyn Friend and Lynne Cook identify "co-teaching as a specific servicedelivery option that is based on collaboration." As a service delivery option,co-teaching is designed to meet the educational needs of students withdiverse learning options. Students at all academic levels benefit fromalternative assignments and greater teacher attention in small-group activitiesthat co-teaching makes possible. Co-teaching allows for more intense andindividualized instruction in the general education setting increasing accessto the general education curriculum while decreasing stigma for studentswith special needs. Students have an opportunity to increase theirunderstanding and respect for students with special needs. Students withspecial needs have a greater opportunity for continuity of instruction as theteachers benefit from the professional support and exchange of teachingpractices as they work collaboratively.

Co-teaching involves two or more certified professionals who contract toshare instructional responsibility for a single group of students primarily in asingle classroom or workspace for specific content or objectives with mutualownership, pooled resources and joint accountability. (Friend & Cook 2000)

Six Approaches to Co-Teaching

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1. One Teach, One Observe. One of the advantages in co-teaching is thatmore detailed observation of students engaged in the learning process canoccur. With this approach, for example, co-teachers can decide in advancewhat types of specific observational information to gather during instructionand can agree on a system for gathering the data. Afterward, the teachersshould analyze the information together.

2. One Teach, One Assist. In a second approach to co-teaching, one personwould keep primary responsibility for teaching while the other professionalcirculated through the room providing unobtrusive assistance to students asneeded.

3. Parallel Teaching. On occasion, student learning would be greatlyfacilitated if they just had more supervision by the teacher or moreopportunity to respond. In parallel teaching, the teachers are both coveringthe same information, but they divide the class into two groups and teachsimultaneously.

4. Station Teaching. In this co-teaching approach, teachers divide contentand students. Each teacher then teaches the content to one group and

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subsequently repeats the instruction for the other group. If appropriate, athird station could give students an opportunity to work independently.

5. Alternative Teaching: In most class groups, occasions arise in whichseveral students need specialized attention. In alternative teaching, one

teacher takes responsibility for the large group while the other works with asmaller group.

6. Team Teaching: In team teaching, both teachers are delivering the sameinstruction at the same time. Some teachers refer to this as having one brainin two bodies. Others call it tag team teaching. Most co-teachers consider thisapproach the most complex but satisfying way to co-teach, but the approachthat is most dependent on teachers' styles.

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updated 09/14/2007

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