Piloting Co-Teaching for Undergrads: Collaboration Between a Pre-service Special Education Teacher and In-service Middle Grades Teachers

The inclusion model of teaching is the most commonly used method of educating high functioning students with disabilities. This model compels general education teachers and special education teachers to collaboratively instruct, assess, and manage students. However, many educators are unprepared to properly execute the co-teaching model upon entering the classroom. This presentation will examine one student\u27s experience with the collaborative model of field experience between a preservice special education teacher and two in-service middle grades teachers. The teachers will plan lessons, execute those lessons, provide feedback to students, manage behaviors, and decide on next steps to further student achievement together. This study will reflect on that experience. The proposed study will examine current literature on successful co-teaching and compare it to the experience. The researcher will also collect data through in-depth interviews, non-participant classroom observations and reflective journals maintained by participants. The study aims to further illuminate best practices in co-teaching at the middle grades level. Additionally, it is the hope of the researcher to contribute to the field of education by examining how collaboration in teacher education programs better prepares preservice teachers to jointly educate in the real world