WHAT IS THE ROLE OF THE SPecial EDUCATOR IN A CO-TAUGHT CLASSROOM?
There are 4 distinct areas of expertise that are unique to the general educator:
Source: Friend, M. (2014). Co-Teach! Building and Sustaining Effective Classroom Partnerships in Inclusive Schools (2nd ed.). Greensboro, SC: Marilyn Friend.
- Process of Learning - Special Educators "...provide learners with strategies, accommodations, modifications, language instruction, or other interventions to facilitate learning, and they offer remediation or deliver specialized instruction" (p. 14).
- Individualization - specialists are trained on providing a tailored education that meets the unique needs of students who have an IEP. Per IDEA, special education is specifically for delivering specially designed instruction to meet the unique needs of students with disabilities. This delivery option is carried out by education specialists, or special educators.
- Documentation and other accountability paperwork - "...the documentation - whether IEPs, records of student language learning, other student records, test reports, record of parent contacts, and so on - can have legal ramifications, and so it must receive focused attention from these professionals" (p. 14).
- Emphasis on mastery versus coverage, with pacing as a secondary consideration - specialists ensure that the student masters some of the content rather than be exposed to all of the content but understanding none of it. More specifically, following the notion that some is better than none increases the chances that the student will be successful in their next steps.
Source: Friend, M. (2014). Co-Teach! Building and Sustaining Effective Classroom Partnerships in Inclusive Schools (2nd ed.). Greensboro, SC: Marilyn Friend.
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