Co-Teaching Strategic Visit Conversation Guide
Co-Teachers
Date
Grade
Length of Visit
Look For:
Evidence: (Seen, Heard, and/or Reviewed)
Content Area
Recorder
Emerging Developing Sustaining
1. A heterogeneous classroom with flexible
grouping
Teachers: Use appropriate grouping relative to the
lesson and displays fluid movement among groups
Students: Are engaged in groups based upon
strengths, needs, and instructional level
2. Students with disabilities seated among their
classmates in a way that integrates them
naturally within the classroom
Teachers: Provide opportunities for students to
participate in groups with non-disabled peers
Students: Actively participate in a variety of groups
within the classroom that includes non-disabled peers
3. IEP accommodations, modifications, and
specialized instruction are provided
Teachers: Use technology or a variety of materials to
ensure student access to instruction/learning
Students: Make use of available resources to actively
engage in the instructional process
4. Collaborative planning by general and special
education teachers focused on SC grade level
content standards
Teachers: Provide lesson outcomes in student friendly
language that all students can achieve through the
use of a variety of instructional materials/methods
Students: Are able to express expectations regarding
their performance of the class’s instructional activities
This document was developed and produced by the Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services (June 2011) with funds from the
[U.S. Department of Education, Grant # H323A07000-10].
5. General and special educators sharing
instructional responsibilities equitably and
teaching collaboratively
Teachers: Both teachers are actively engaged in the
instructional process that is accessible by all students
and monitor/evaluate student understanding
Students: All students are actively engaged in
instruction and can demonstrate
understanding/mastery of content taught
6. Educational professionals sharing roles and
responsibilities for working with students in such
a way that the distinction between generalist and
specialist is not obvious
Teachers: Both teachers are actively engaged with
all students throughout the lesson through rigorous
content delivery, on time support, and classroom
behavior management
Lesson plans state an active role for both teachers in
differentiated instructional delivery, assessment and
data collection
Students: Students address questions and comments
about the lesson to both teachers.
When asked, students describe both teachers as their
teacher
7. Strategic use of co-teaching approaches
Teachers: Teachers use a variety of co-teaching
approaches appropriate to the content and needs for
differentiation.
Students: All students receive rigorous instruction and
support from both teachers through whole, small,
and/or individual groupings
1 teach, one assist_____
Station Teaching____
Alternative Approach____
Parallel Teaching____
Team Teaching ____
This document was developed and produced by the Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services (June 2011) with funds from the
[U.S. Department of Education, Grant # H323A07000-10].
Evidence:
1 Teach 1 Assist—one teacher
is responsible for teaching.
One teacher circulates
throughout the classroom
monitoring progress and
providing assistance to
students as needed. Both
teachers share roles and
responsibilities for working
with students over time in
such a way that the distinction
between generalist and
specialist is not obvious.
Look for assisting teacher to be
providing ongoing monitoring
of student performance
(through IEP goals, asking
clarifying questions,
benchmarks or chapter tests,
informal assessment)
throughout the lesson. This
approach should be used
routinely in conjunction with
other approaches.
Evidence:
Station Teaching—teachers
divide content and students.
Each teacher then teaches the
content to one group and
subsequently repeats the
instruction for the other group.
If appropriate, a third “station”
could give students an
opportunity to work
independently in a small
group, but all students receive
instruction from both teachers.
Look for a heterogeneous
classroom with flexible
grouping. Lessons should
incorporate student
participation through
discussion and activities. This
approach may be used
frequently if each station’s
content can be taught
independently from the other
and the sequence of the
instruction presented is
inconsequential.
Evidence:
Parallel Teaching—the teachers
are both teaching the same
information, but they divide the
class group and do so
simultaneously. This approach
allows for increased supervision
as well as increasing the
opportunities for students to
respond to teacher led
instruction. This approach can be
used frequently if noise level is
not distracting and both teachers
pace instruction accordingly.
Look for the same content with
IEP accommodations,
modifications, and specialized
instruction varied according to
the needs of the group. Teachers
should offer equivalent
instruction to students and ensure
participation of all.
Evidence:
Alternative Teaching—one
teacher takes responsibility
for the large group while
the other works with a
smaller group for a specific
instructional purpose. This
approach should be used
sparingly to avoid the
perception of a special
needs pullout within the
classroom for a select
group of students.
Look for collaborative
planning by general and
special education teachers
and small-group sessions
where enrichment,
remediation for
acceleration, assessment,
or pre-teaching where
teachers alternate
responsibilities between
the groups is varied.
Evidence:
Team Teaching—both teachers share
the delivery and have equally active
roles in leading the class. Both
teachers are actively engaged in the
delivery of core instruction. This
approach may be used frequently as
appropriate, with the caveat that it
does not eliminate the practice of
flexible grouping.
Look for general and special educators
sharing instructional, and assessment
responsibilities equitably and teaching
collaboratively. The classroom should have
a wide variety of instructional materials
available to meet the identified needs of
the students.
This document was developed and produced by the Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services (June 2011) with funds from the
[U.S. Department of Education, Grant # H323A07000-10].
Look For:
(Strategic Practices That Support Effective
Instruction for Diverse Learners)
8.
Evidence: (Seen, Heard, and/or Reviewed)
Emerging Developing Sustaining
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) embedded
within instructional practices
Teachers: Both teachers use a variety of instructional
materials/methods to engage students and provide
options for the students to demonstrate mastery of
the content.
Students: Students are actively engaged in the
instructional process and are able to demonstrate
mastery of their learning in a variety of ways
9. Differentiated instruction, practice activities,
and assessment procedures for all students
Teachers: Both teachers engage in pre/postassessment of student learning and use the
information to plan, implement and adjust future
instruction. Both teachers are actively engaged in
delivering content and assessing student learning
through flexible grouping and differentiated content,
processes and products. IEP accommodations and
modifications are implemented by both teachers.
Both teachers collect, analyze and use data to inform
instruction.
Students: When asked, students are able to describe
their preferred learning style. Students participate
inpre/post assessment activities. They are engaged in
constructing, processing and demonstrating
knowledge through varied content, processes and
products.
10. A wide variety of instructional materials
available in the classroom.
Teachers: Both teachers implement classroom
instruction that includes a variety of print, media,
electronic and technology resources aligned with
student needs.
This document was developed and produced by the Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services (June 2011) with funds from the
[U.S. Department of Education, Grant # H323A07000-10].
Students: Students access content, processes and
demonstrate knowledge through a variety of print,
media, electronic and technology resources
appropriate to their needs.
11. Ongoing monitoring of student performance
(through benchmarks or chapter tests, informal
assessment, and/or IEP goals)
Teachers: Both teachers provide clearly stated
learning goals accompanied by a scale or rubric that
describes the levels of performance relative to the
learning goal. Teachers routinely use informal
assessment strategies (such as asking questions to
check for understanding, exit tickets, thumbs
up/down) and formal assessments ( benchmarks, unit
or chapter tests) aligned to learning goals. Teachers
analyze learning data and use the information to
adjust instruction. Teachers help individual student
and /or the whole class track progress on the learning
goal.
Students: When asked, students can explain the
learning goal and describe their status relative to it.
12. Data collection procedures were evident or
identified for established outcomes.
Teachers: Both teachers monitor and /or facilitate
student tracking of their progress on the learning
goals through the use of rubrics, data collection
charts and procedures. Rubrics and data collection
forms are observed in use in the classroom.
Students: Students can describe or demonstrate the
tracking of their status relative to the learning
goal(s).
Other Feedback/Comments:
This document was developed and produced by the Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services (June 2011) with funds from the
[U.S. Department of Education, Grant # H323A07000-10].