Co-teaching allows special education students to be integrated into regular classroom

From the Peoria Journal Star in Illinois. In the picture, Special education teacher Audra Hayes, left, and second grade teacher Sandy Rahn try to elicit a correct answer from a student during a math lesson last month at Hines Primary School. Both teachers have equal duties in the classroom as part of a new program that integrates special education students with other students.

Peoria School District 150 is hoping a marriage among teachers will provide the "I do" vows for increased student achievement.

A majority of Peoria's 200-plus special education teachers have paired up with regular grade-level teachers in classrooms districtwide this year, greatly expanding a years-old teaching model some say is long overdue and could propel the district to greater academic performance.

Called co-teaching or inclusionary classrooms, the two teachers share the same classroom and responsibility for teaching both special education and regular students. The teaching model eliminates, in many cases, separate special education classrooms where those students traditionally have been isolated throughout most of an entire school day.

"Too many students are identified as being in special education," says Manual High School assistant principal Taunya Jenkins.

Historically, nearly a quarter (24 percent) of all students at District 150 have been identified as needing special education. The statewide average, by contrast, hovers around 15 percent.

Three of District 150's schools also did not meet Adequate Yearly Progress this year specifically because special education "subgroups." Statewide, there exists a similar trend.

Both, Jenkins says, emphasize the need for the district to put more attention to its special education population.

"It makes sense ... for the sake of all our community, if these kids are not putting their best foot for

ward while they are in school what does that tell us what they will be like as citizens?" she asks. "Many of these kids can achieve - they've just not been pushed - I happen to prefer to err on the side of pushing too hard than not enough."

Jenkins, herself a former special education teacher and the former principal at Roosevelt Magnet School, implemented the co-teaching model at Roosevelt and managed to see testing standards increase there by more than 25 percentage points the last five years she was there. The school was recognized in 2008 because of its achievement gains. She hopes to adopt similar strategies at Manual High School for similar results.

Like a marriage, the success of the co-teaching model depends on how well the two teachers work together, school officials and educators say. Partners must establish trust, work on communication and share in the work to overcome the inevitable challenges, anticipate conflict and handle it in a constructive way.

Maybe then it's no surprise when Pam Guderjan finishes a sentence for her co-teaching partner Mary Ayler.

The fourth grade teachers both work on their shared lesson plans as well as teaching in front of the class.

"I think it benefits the whole class," Ayler said of co-teaching, something she's never done before. "Things I've done she does differently - we learn from each other - and everyone wins."

The two have more than four decades of teaching knowledge combined. To study the pair might take some time to determine who is the regular division classroom teacher and who is the special education teacher as they both move about the room, taking turns answering questions.

"I think (special education students) learn skills faster because they want to keep up with their peers," said Guderjan, the special education teacher. "This is the way to go, their self-esteem is higher, they are not isolated or singled out."

Adds Ayler: "They all learn from one another."

Teachers and many administrators say kids who are excelling benefit, including the experience of seeing not all students are the same or learn the same.

"For the kids who don't qualify for special education but are not at the level where they need, (the co-teaching model) provides extra help," said Michael Barber, principal at Irving Primary School.

By combining a special education teacher - whose specialty is adapting lesson plans to students depending on their abilities or disabilities - with a regular division teacher - who specializes in their grade-level content - Jenkins said "it's the best of both worlds."

Guderjan and Ayler admit lesson planning takes more time but more important, both teachers noted: "We are seeing growth."

At the lower grade levels, Debby Loyd and Mary Gillum are busy with a group of 25 kindergarteners.

"There are those who are reading and those who don't know the letters," said Loyd, a kindergarten teacher the past 22 years, noting the teaching model allows for greater intervention and more individual time with all students no matter their level.

Said Gillum, a special education teacher the past 14 years: "We bounce ideas off each other. I believe the special ed kids need to be with other kids - they're doing it, they're making progress - and they all learn we're all unique."

Jamie Brown, the new and young principal at Hines Primary School, agrees.

"In a self-contained (special education) classroom, we lower our expectations automatically whether we want to or not," Brown said, adding "and whether a kid as an (Individualized Education Plan - required by law for students identified as being special education) or not, every kid learns differently."

Hines moved from what might be considered the stereotypical, separate special education classroom to inclusionary classrooms, one at each grade level.

All of the students have shown academic growth, Brown said."Using the weekly progress monitoring, we have seen kids learning at accelerated rates. Some students have went up as many as 4.5 words per week versus the average of one word per weekfor their grade level."

Still, co-teaching does not come easy.

While the co-teaching model typically might require the need for more special education teachers - as not all special education students would be able to be taught in an inclusionary classroom and the number of special education students per classroom is limited by law - some of the schools have gotten by through scheduling. Brown described the scheduling at Hines as a nightmare in the beginning, though now it operates smoothly.

Success usually comes more often when teachers volunteer to be part of the program. And teachers ideally share some teaching principles; not too mention get along.

Why so many kids identified as being special education?

Mary O'Brian, District 150's director of special services, says she's not for certain having been at the school district for only three years. Still, she surmises some might have to do with past practice and how kids were determined whether needing special education or not. "Not much questioning of the practice," O'Brian said.

Some also may have to do with lead. Peoria County has one of the highest lead poisoning rates in Illinois.

Still, O'Brian admits the district has not pushed for much of any change to special education or the evaluation process until District 150 was cited nearly two years ago by the Illinois State Board of Education for having too many students identified as special education.

"I expect that number to go down," O'Brian said, a former special education teacher who also has taught using the co-teaching model. "I'm a convert."

O'Brian said District 150 has used co-teaching at a few of its schools but it was up to the individual building principal. Now, she said, "it's the administration choosing this method," noting the number of schools has more than doubled as well as support and teacher training. "I'm looking forward to ISAT (primary school tests, which are held in the spring), I'm interested to see what happens."