Inclusion and Co-Teaching

1. Inclusion and Co-Teaching By Nicholas Braun

2. History of Inclusion • The history of inclusion for students with disabilities goes back a little over 200 years ago, but it has really picked up in the last 35 years. A brief history of inclusion is as followed: • In 1799, Jean-Marc Gaspard Itard formulated interventions for people with disabilities. • It was not until 1846 when Edourd Sequin introduced sensorimotor exercises to help students with learning disabilities learn better. This was the beginning of the special education movement. • In 1879, federally funded legislation was passed to support educational programs for blind students. • It was almost a hundred years before the next major shift for inclusion. In 1976, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act was passed. This states all public schools must provide an education for students with disabilities between the ages of 6-21. • In 1983, the Roncker vs. Walter case found that students with disabilities must receive their education in a non-segregated setting if they are able to receive the same education.

3. History of Inclusion Continued • In 1997 the Reauthorization of Individuals with Disability Act(IDEA) passed. This act focused on providing positive behavioral supports for discipline, tougher requirements to suspend students with behavior disabilities, transition plans at 14, and reassessing students with IEPs every three years. • Since 1997 there has been another push to make sure all students are in their least restrictive environment.

4. Rationale for Inclusion • It is hard to believe there would need to be a rationale for inclusion for all students, but some people still have strong beliefs how inclusion negatively affects some students educational experiences. • People around the world stated some common goals they feel all students should have the chance to reach (Villa & Thousand 42). • 1. Being able to develop friendships and feeling like they are valued part of their school community (belonging). • 2. Having the chance to develop skills to be a successful, well-rounded, life-long learner (mastery). • 3. Being able to develop skills that help students make their own choices, take risks, and accomplish tasks on their own (independence).

5. Rationale for Inclusion Continued • 4. Students who are accepting of other peoples differences and can put themselves in other students shoes (generosity). • All four of these components affect a student’s self-esteem and self-value and when students are excluded from school settings where they can learn these skills they feel like they have not earned the right learn these skills (Villa & Thousand 43). • Students with disabilities who are able to spend more time in regular education are more likely to be successful in school and have a bigger desire to be active participants in their learning (Villa & Thousand 46-47).

6. Benefits and Challenges of Inclusion • As previously stated in rationale for inclusion, all students benefit from inclusion and when students are excluded the effects for some students can be extremely consequential. This can lead to students having a negative image about themselves and they do not belong with their peers (Villa & Thousand 6). • There are so many benefits for inclusion it is almost hard to describe in words how beneficial it is. Students who are part included the general education setting have a much more positive viewpoint of themselves and the experiences they are having at school. This in-turn leads to students having a more positive outlook on life and are willing to take more risks.

7. Benefits of Inclusion Continued • One of the main benefits of inclusion is increasing the diversity of classrooms. When students graduate from school they will enter a world that is drastically different than educational experiences if they have not been part of inclusive classrooms. Not only do students have different life experiences, but students also have differences in how they learn (Villa & Thousand 136-141). • Most students fall somewhere in Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences (verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, visual/spatial, musical, bodily kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist). • All of these intelligences can be addressed under the universal design model because with this model lessons can be modified so the needs of all students are met no matter what level they are at.

8. Challenges • There may be challenges to inclusion, but none of these challenges are insurmountable. • Change can be hard for anyone and it can be especially challenging for someone to do who has had success doing it the same for years. This is the reason why schools have to have several components in place for inclusion to be successful. • 1. Vision – Where is the school now and where does it want to get to (Villa & Thousand 59). • 2. Skills – School personnel need the appropriate training for inclusion to run as smoothly as possible (Villa & Thousand 63). • 3. Incentives – Schools need to show the people involved in the inclusion process they are valued and their work is appreciated (Villa & Thousand 64). • 4. Resources – Resources need to be reorganized to ensure they are used as efficiently as possible

9. Challenges Continued • 4. Resources – Resources need to be reorganized to ensure they are used as efficiently as possible (Redefining roles and schedules of teachers)Villa & Thousand 68-69)). • Inclusion can be very hard for some schools to do, but with a lot of planning and communication it is an achievable goal.

10. Models of Co-Teaching • There are four main models for co-teaching and depending on the needs of the students some teachers may use several of the models (Villa, Thousand & Nevin 20-21). • 1. Supportive Co-Teaching – This approach is used with co-teachers who are just starting off and involves one teacher providing one-on-one assistance when needed. The other teacher leads a majority of the class. • 2. Parallel Co-Teaching – This occurs when co-teachers are both teaching at the same time. One teacher may teacher a certain part and the other may teach another part and then they flip.

11. Models of Co-Teaching Continued • 3. Complimentary Co-Teaching – This happens when co-teachers reinforce what the other teacher is doing (i.e. explaining a concept in a different way). • 4. Team Teaching – This occurs when both teachers plan, teach, and assess students equally. • There is a progression in co-teaching and it may be awhile before some co-teachers can co-teach effectively (i.e. team teaching will not occur right away).

12. Benefits and Challenges of Co-Teaching • When co-teaching is done effectively every student in class receives a better education (Villa, Thousand & Nevin 6-8). This is evident in many ways: • 1. Teachers have more energy when they are teaching because they are not responsible teaching all parts of the class. • 2. Teachers can teach to their strengths. Not everyone is going to be an expert at everything and it only enhances a student’s education when another teacher is able to teach about something they are passionate about. • 3. Allows teachers to share they have acquired from school, PD, and while teaching (i.e. a special education teacher may have a vast amount of knowledge about how to work with interfering behaviors).

13. Benefits of Co-Teaching Continued • 4. Students get learn from different teaching styles. For example, one teacher may like to teach through visual aids and another may like to teach through hands-on activities.

14. Challenges of Co-Teaching • Co-teaching can be very challenging for teachers who have never taught together and some of the challenges are as followed: • 1. Time – All teachers have what seems like an endless amount of work and finding the time to plan can seem like an impossible task. This can be especially difficult when teachers have different schedules and content to plan for (Villa, Thousand & Nevin133). • How planning time is used – Co-teachers may have differing views on how their planning time should be used. One teacher may want to focus on how to solve interfering behaviors while the other wants to spend most of the planning the content for the lesson.

15. Challenges of Co-Teaching Continued • 2. Differing opinions on what content should be taught and how it should be taught (Villa, Thousand & Nevin 136). • 3. Differing personalities – Some teachers may be very outgoing while others are more reserved and this may lead to one person’s personality dominating the other’s (Villa, Thousand & Nevin148).

16. Personal Growth in Inclusion and Co-Teaching • I have always been a big proponent of inclusion because I feel everyone has the right to the same education no matter what their individual differences are. Sometimes it can be very challenging when trying to make sure all students are included in the general education setting because even to this day some teachers do not see the benefits to including all students. For instance, over the past few years, there have been several times when teachers have said certain students should learn outside of the general education classroom because these students were distracting other students from learning. From my own personal growth I have been able to explain to these teachers how other students could benefit from these students in the classroom.

17. Personal Growth Continued • Other students can learn to be empathetic for students who struggle in the classroom by helping them be successful in the classroom. • In my years of teaching I have also noticed several of the students I work with are visual and hands-on learners and other students would get a chance to experience more activities related to these learning styles. • Students would be exposed to differing viewpoints and would have more chances to share personal experiences not shared by everyone in the class. • Helps everyone in the class feel like they are a valued member of the class community.

18. Personal Growth Continued • This past year I have moved even more towards inclusion for all students. Before this year I felt, in some cases, some students may learn best in alternative education environments. I felt these environments could better meet the needs of some students with severe interfering behaviors. After a lot of personal growth on this topic, I now feel these environments should only be used very infrequently and for the least amount of time possible. It should always be the goal to get a student back to their home school as soon as possible.

19. Personal Growth Continued • I have also learned a lot about co-teaching and how important it is to have as much communication as possible when you are co-teaching. When communication breaks, the effectiveness of co-teaching drops. • I have also learned how it is important to recognize your co-teachers strengths and how you value them because this allows for teachers to build off of each other. • One of the most important things I learned this year is effective co-teaching does not occur overnight. Teachers have to get to know each others learning styles and what works for their team. What works for one team may not work for another.

20. Personal Growth Continued • For example – There is one team of co-teachers who have been teaching together for the last ten years at my school and they know exactly what they want to achieve and teach for most lessons. This has helped me to realize that I can achieve this same level of team teaching. • I have always lived by the moto that nothing is impossible as long as you are willing to work to achieve it.

21. References • Villa & Thousand (2005). Creating an inclusive school.  Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development- 2nd edition.  ISBN-10: 1416600493. ISBN-13: 978-1416600497 • Villa, Thousand, & Nevin (2008). A Guide to Co-Teaching: Practical Tips for Facilitating Student Learning. Corwin Press - 2nd Edition.