Hanna Hollek

Coteaching Part I
Name: Hanna Hollek
Date: March 8th 2015
How does this project contribute to your understanding of coteaching?
This project has helped me grasp a deeper understanding of each of the
approaches to coteaching. It has made me consider the benefits and setbacks to consider
when choosing a type to implement in the classroom. Also, the type of lesson being
taught will determine the environment needed for the most effective coteaching approach.
Something else this project has made me realize is the importance of communication
between teachers. They need to be flexible and open minded to other possible options.
There must be careful considerations made pertaining the time each lesson will take in
order to have the smoothest transitions and the fewest distractions. All barriers need to be
pre-determined to the lesson so that accommodations can be made before to eliminate
possible setbacks in the instructional time. Although much thought goes into how to set
up a coteach lesson, it could maximize instructional time in the school day. It could also
allow for the teachers to focus on less material to cover and become familiarized with
their own specified material. Utilizing some of these approaches will assist in classroom
management due to smaller learning groups or keeping students on task.
On my honor, as an Aggie, I have neither given nor received
unauthorized aid on this academic work.
Signature____________________________________

Hanna Hollek
Co-teaching in Collaboration
Entry:
Coming into the classroom, I entered as a guest and observer of the classroom and
its practices. It was simply a teach and observe relationship between the mentor teacher
and myself. I made sure to arrive thirty minutes early in order to meet my mentor teacher
and get acquainted. During this time, she informed me of the class schedule and what
duties I would shadow her. After we walked the students from the gym to the class, she
introduced me as guest teacher that would be taking over some lessons on Thursdays and
Fridays. As a guest, I had to be careful not to overstep my boundaries by patiently
watching her personal style of classroom management. Before I could start teaching I
needed to observe the teacher and her usual classroom procedures and student
expectations. There were immediate initial barriers such as learning the classroom rules,
learning student names, and needing to set expectations for the students. I also noticed
resources available to my use such as a board, projector, small writing and reading
centers, and student resources such as counters, blocks, dominoes, and books.

Communication with Mentor teacher:

Communication between my mentor teacher and me happens often and is
effective and efficient. We have time before class, during lunch, recess, specials, and after
class to plan and have discussions. Most of our planning happens in a quiet environment
while the students are away. We make sure to do this at least a day in advance so that we
can both be prepared with any materials we need or teaching strategies that we prefer to
use for the lesson. We establish roles for both of us in our interaction with the students.

Hanna Hollek
Through this process, I am able to understand the importance of communication with
other teachers, in or out of the assigned classroom. Teamwork along with an open minded
attitude are essential since some teachers may have more experience or knowledge about
strategies that work versus those that do not. Some types of questions that I use pertain to
what resources are available and relevant for me to use during the lesson. I find that
asking the mentor teacher for recommendations has proven to be helpful. She has given
me advise as to which students to pay more careful attention to check for understanding
and other students that may need some reviewing before or after the lesson. I have found
that communication over email has not been as beneficial as other forms of
communication. Sometimes, emails result in delayed responses or none at all. Instead,
speaking and planning in person has proved the most efficient.

Types of co-teaching:
There are a variety of approaches to conduct co-teaching in the classroom during
instruction. There is not a right or wrong way, but instead different ways that work best
given the students needs and classroom environment. The first and most basic is the
teach/observe approach. This is simply when the main teacher instructs while the
paraprofessional observes the teacher. The observation includes the instructional
strategies chosen, classroom management, focus techniques, and other tactics the teacher
uses. The observer does not interact with the students, but instead acts as a bystander.
There does not need to be any communication between the paraprofessional and the
students during this approach.

Hanna Hollek
The next stage is teach/support. This one lets the paraprofessional become slightly
more involved with the students. The paraprofessional does not yet perform full
instruction, but instead specific instruction for individuals who may need extra support.
While one person teaches, the other can be drifting around to help many students
individually, or assisting a single student. This can be beneficial for creating a lower
student/teacher ratio and for providing extra assistance to make a more efficient lesson.
The disadvantage to this approach is possibly being a distraction to students during the
teachers lesson.
Station teaching is a different dynamic of co-teaching. In this approach, the
content material is divided amongst the two instructors. There will be different locations
inside or outside of the classroom that allow for two or more lessons to be taking place
simultaneously. After the lesson is done, the students rotate to a different station of
teaching. An advantage for using this style is that it allows for a lower student/teacher
ratio. A disadvantage is the careful planning that needs to be considered when timing the
lessons. If one finished earlier than the other, the students will take advantage of the free
time and get off track.
Next is Parallel Teaching. This approach is different in that the lesson is planned
jointly with both of the teachers involved. This instruction is not meant for an
introduction to new content. Parallel Teaching involved two different areas of instruction
like Station Teaching but is geared toward review or practice. Some disadvantages
include a possible timing issue as well as not allowing for new material to be taught. The
advantage to this approach is that is allows for the teachers to become more proficient in

Hanna Hollek
their specific material and helps the teacher to not have to focus on additional content to
review.
Alternative Teaching is utilized in the classroom when individual students need to
be considered. This involves pre-teaching, re-teaching, or teaching with a particular
sensory focus. Another way of using alternative teaching is developing a base set of
knowledge for the student prior to the lesson in case the student lacks the personal
experience to be able relate to the lesson. An advantage to this scenario, the instructional
teacher would be able to focus on the larger group with a general activity while the aid
would assist with the individuals. A disadvantage to this approach would be the
importance of timing and lesson coordination between the two teachers. They have to be
in sync and work in the correct sequence of events simultaneously.
The next approach is team teaching. In this approach, both teachers share the
responsibility of lesson planning and giving instruction. An advantage to this is the wideranging variety of instruction this allows for. The teachers can alternate who delivers the
instruction, one can instruct while the other models, or they may use each other to
demonstrate concepts for the class. However, again this requires the teachers to time their
lesson well together and requires a high level of trust between the two. They need to be
flexible for each other and allow the others input. They need to be able to react to meet
specific conditions that the teacher or class sets.

Type of co-teaching that I will use:

The type of co-teaching that I will use for this project is station teaching. The
mentor teacher and I jointly determined this type would be best based off of what worked

Hanna Hollek
most efficiently in the past. On Thursdays and Fridays, the students are to practice their
fluency through reading books on their level as well as a level ahead on alternating
weeks. This is to ensure that the students are on the reading level they need to be at by the
end of the year. However for this objective, students need to be instructed in groups of
other students that are at the same reading level. Otherwise, the instruction will be too
easy and will cause boredom or too hard and will overwhelm the student. While the
students are at their classroom stations, they rotate in and out of the reading station with
the mentor teacher and myself. It is common that the mentor teacher takes the lowest
reading groups while I take the highest. They are the students that are already above the
expected reading level and only need consistency and practice in order to maintain strong
reading skills and fluency. I am constantly provided with the resources needed for the
lesson. It is my job to pick the reading level and type of book to read and analyze for the
day. The barrier to this type of co-teaching is the complete seclusion from the mentor
teacher during the lesson. All instruction has to be determined prior to the lesson so that
she aware of the content and length of the lesson. The timing needs to be carefully
planned so that we switch out groups at the same time and avoid having one group
distract the other.