Running head: CO-TEACHING AS A BETTER ALTERNATIVE

Co-Teaching as a Better Alternative

Crystal Chavez
California State University, Monterey Bay

IST524 Instructional Technology

Professor Bude Su
November 22, 2016

CO-TEACHING AS A BETTER ALTERNATIVE

Co-Teaching as a Better Alternative

As the field of instructional design and technology vastly expands, the primary needs of
the learners must always be put first. Designers can easily overlook the basics as they attempt to
showcase their advanced skills. One of the easiest ways to ensure education does not get lost in
the technology is to adhere to the principle of co-teaching. While having one leader in the
classroom can be sufficient enough to spark engaging conversation, having an assistant or coteacher in the room can help guide discussion or bring it back if it happens to veer off on a
tangent. Designing a lesson plan and integrating technology in a hands-on environment adds the
need for further attention to the students. While technology can be a useful aid, it should not be
the sole focus in a teaching environment.
Co-educators designing a learning curriculum must work as a team to anticipate the needs
of their students. They can do this in a variety of ways. Lusk, Sayman, Zolkoski, Carrero, and
Chui lay out the various models co-teachers can utilize in table one: Models of Co-Teaching. The
multiple models of instruction set-up allow for co-teaching to be expanded to all learning
experiences. While students in the academia world generally only think about co-teaching in the
form of team teaching or one teacher and one assistant, it is beneficial to consider the benefits of
station teaching, parallel teaching, and alternative teaching. Station teaching uses all available
space to conduct learning stations so students can get up and be interactive with their learning.
Parallel teaching allows the equal teaching partners to break up the students into smaller groups
so that the learning becomes a more intimate environment. Alternative teaching approaches the
subject matter with one instructor guiding a small group of students, while the other instructor
teaches the larger group of students. This is useful when only a small group of students are

CO-TEACHING AS A BETTER ALTERNATIVE

struggling to learn the material. Alternative teaching embraces adaptive learning while
continuing to stick to mandatory and rigid educational standards.
Joint teaching allows a multitude of opportunities for everyone to benefit from. Whether
someone is auditing and taking notes, or standing in front of a classroom lecturing, or shadowing
the instructor to gain insight into a new teaching style, joint teachers who continuously
collaborate with one another ensure that they can reach out to any type of student needs. A
barrier that needs to be overcome in private before instruction begins is knowing who will be
responsible for what. When independent instructors come together for the first time to teach a
subject, it becomes painstakingly obvious when they have lacked preparation and
communication outside of the learning center. As a team, both teachers should analyze the risk
and benefits of each course of action and then choose the best course of action to help solve the
issue (Brown, Howerter, & Morgan, 2013). Working independently with the same students,
employees, or audience causes misunderstandings and frustrations. This increases the chances of
accidents occurring which can be dangerous once people transition from mistakes on a test to
mistakes on the job. Communication barriers are costly to the learners who may be missing
information and costly to the company or education system they are a part of.
Working in a supportive or industrial laboratory comes with challenges of multiple
superiors. It can become confusing as a new employee when multiple people are qualified to
train you in basic introductory job functions. As a learner, it becomes imperative to know who is
qualified to teach what skills. For example, using co-teaching in a laboratory with many qualified
teachers seems daunting to new learners as concerns expressed by the students included
confusion about which instructor to approach (Bacharach, Heck, & Dahlberg, 2010). Confusion
can easily be cleared with established roles and guidelines. If students are aware of the hierarchy

CO-TEACHING AS A BETTER ALTERNATIVE

in the laboratory, they can guide themselves to the most useful resource. Co-teachers should also
encourage students to explore knowledge with their peers. Instructors should attempt to foster an
environment of curiosity and learning. However, if one instructor is less qualified or less of an
expert in that subject, then it is in the students best interest to inform them of the balance of
knowledge.
Throughout the various fields of work, employees will encounter various forms of
hierarchy and it is confusing during the first few weeks in a new environment. While research
indicates that having a lower student to teacher ratio is beneficial, it comes with the obstacle of
learning how to include everyone when multiple teachers are overseeing the same students.
When students are confused about who to go to for help they can become discouraged and give
up on seeking guidance and clarity. Teachers are uniquely placed in the education system to
combine the formal, generic knowledge of education and must also incorporate practical and
personal knowledge emerging in day-to-day classroom experience (Rytivaara & Kershner,
2012). Collaborating with another instructor forces each instructor to be inclusive and honest.
Even with the teacher/assistant model, a successful team cannot function if there is a lack of
communication. Joint teaching puts pride aside and the students first. By acknowledging the
classroom dynamics in the first session, students can begin to feel comfortable knowing that they
can approach either teacher and always be sent towards the path of correct and useful
information.
Co-teaching is cost effective. Research shows higher success rates and faster learning
times, and both the private and public sector should adopt the practice. While it seems costly to
employ more than one leader it actually reduces the chance for error. Hiring a unified team to
host the instructional activities means more information is being transmitted in a shorter amount

CO-TEACHING AS A BETTER ALTERNATIVE

of time. Learners can work at their own pace, while the majority of the group continues on at the
intended pace, and advanced learners can press forward to further advance their field of
knowledge. Each learner, whether they are a student or employee, can achieve in a co-teaching
environment. Institutions reduce the time or resources lost by having large numbers of people
repeating sections that they did not master. Joint instruction allows for learners to master the
needed skills to become independent workers and to become graduated students.
Adopting any new mode of instruction takes time and effort. Co-teaching provides the
resources for growth and success in any organizational structure. The benefits of higher success
rates and better retention of information is indicative of the process that has been created by coteachers. Regardless of the type of industry this is being implemented in, success is expected to
follow. Instructors must work together to address challenges before they arise and must put on a
unified front when unexpected challenges present themselves. By actively collaborating, joint
teachers can cover the material that needs to be presented and can engage learners through
various forms of teaching styles. Co-teaching contains beneficial teaching styles for any field and
should be investigated and adopted by all industries who want to ensure learner success and a
mastery of skills.

CO-TEACHING AS A BETTER ALTERNATIVE

References
Bacharach, N., Heck, T. W., & Dahlberg, K. (2010). Changing the face of student teaching
through coteaching. Action in Teacher Education, 32(1), 3-14.
Brown, N. B., Howerter, C. S., & Morgan, J. J. (2013). Tools and strategies for making coteaching work. Intervention in school and clinic, 49(2), 84-91.
Forbes, L., & Billet, S. (2012). Successful Co-Teaching in the Science Classroom. Science scope,
36(1), 61-64.
Lusk, M. E., Sayman, D., Zolkoski, S., Carrero, K., & Chui, C. L. (2016). Playing Well with
Others: Co-Teaching in Higher Education. The Journal of the Effective Schools Project,
23, 52-61.
Rytivaara, A., & Kershner, R. (2012). Co-teaching as a context for teachers' professional learning
and joint knowledge construction. Teaching and Teacher Education, 28(7), 999-1008.
Causton, Julie. (2016). 11 things rocking co-teachers do. http://blog.brookespublishing.com/11things-rocking-co-teachers-do/