“There is no “I” in TEAM.” Somebody said this, but I don’t know who,
sorry.
A book would not
be able to cover this topic, but I do want to mention it since:
a.
I have done it for over five years.
b.
I believe in it wholeheartedly and feel it will
be used more in the future.
In the best case
scenario, if you teach collaboratively, you will be able to choose your
partner, but this is not always the case. I didn’t really get to choose my
co-teacher but god smiled on me and I got an angel. I don’t mention other
teachers in this guidebook, but you can see a picture of her if you go to my
website, hint, hint. www.gradesuccessinc.com
You need to
respect each other and acknowledge what each of you can bring to the teaching
table. It is important to divide and conquer whenever possible. If you think
that two people in the classroom reduces your workload, you are sadly mistaken.
You need to do
lesson plans together and constantly discuss students in depth. This is a
difficult job to do with someone else, but I think it is invaluable to the
students. Just think of all the things that have to be delegated.
Attendance
Grades
Lesson planning
Parental contact
And more…
There are many
collaborative teaching approaches.
1.
One teaches, one roams
2.
Both teach different parts of the lesson
3.
One does the content and one focuses on various
learning styles
Many times you
have to learn your rhythm, “on the fly”. You can not create this winning team
overnight. My co-teacher and I weren’t really comfortable until our third year
together. We are always in the process of tweaking and refining our approaches.
The most difficult
thing for me was to give up some of my territory. As I mentioned before, I tend
to be territorial. Now, I am happy to
let my co-teacher share the responsibility of delivering the lesson. It gives
me time to visit with each student personally during the class period. I feel
that I am truly bonding with the students. If done right, Collaborative
Teaching can improve the fluidity and functionality of any classroom.
