Collaborative Teaching in Secondary Schools: Making the Co-Teaching Marriage Work!

"This is like the ′Everything You Wanted to Know About Co-Teaching′ book that answers questions you did not even know to ask! Murawski′s wit, enthusiasm, and expertise are engaging and informative throughout. From the details of starting a co-teaching relationship to the fine art of sustaining the co-teaching union, this book has something for everyone." —Peggy King-Sears, Professor of Special Education George Mason University Create a successful partnership that provides the ultimate learning environment for every student! Many districts across the nation are incorporating co-teaching into their schools in order to create the best learning environment for all students. This practical, easy-to-use resource offers administrators and teachers a wealth of strategies and tools for setting up, conducting, and maintaining a successful co-teaching relationship that addresses the diverse needs in today′s inclusive classrooms. Offered in a lighthearted, humorous manner that compares the co-teaching relationship to a marriage, this comprehensive guide provides substantive, field-tested differentiation and application strategies strongly supported by research and years of expert, hands-on experience. Numerous replicable forms, worksheets, checklists, and examples are included as well as helpful references, Web sites, co-teaching scenarios and case studies, and much more. Each chapter is packed with straightforward ideas for: Dealing with difficult content Mastering scheduling challenges and personality conflicts Setting roles and responsibilities Various approaches for co-instruction Co-planning and co-assessement This resource is ideal for helping schools improve current programs or as a reference for teachers who have no experience with co-teaching and are ready to initiate a new relationship.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments About the Author Introduction: Why This Book? Part I. The Dating Scene 1. Understanding What It Means to Be in a Relationship 2. Dating, Living Together, and Marriage 3. General Educators Are From Jupiter, Special Service Providers Are From Saturn Self-Assessment #1: Are We Ready to Date? 4. Matchmaker, Matchmaker: The Role of the Administrator Part II. The Engagement 5. Getting to Know Your Partner 6. Registering for the Wedding 7. Discussing the Future Self-Assessment #2: Are We Ready to Get Engaged? 8. Matchmaker, Matchmaker: The Role of the Administrator Part III. The Wedding 9. For Better or Worse: Establishing Norms for Behavior and Academics 10. For Richer or Poorer: Sharing Space and Materials 11. Planning Quality Time Together: Why, When, and How to Plan Self-Assessment Part #3: Are We Ready to Marry? 12. Matchmaker, Matchmaker: The Role of the Administrator Part IV. The Marriage 13. Working Together to Wrangle the Lil′ Rascals 14. Teaching the Seven Dwarves 15. Are We Successful Yet? 16. Playing Nicely With Other Parents Self-Assessment, Part IV: Will We Be Able to Celebrate Our Anniversary? 17. Matchmaker, Matchmaker: The Role of the Administrator Appendix: Keeping the Honeymoon Going References Index

About the Author :
Wendy W. Murawski, Ph.D., MBA, MEd, EdS, is the Executive Director and Eisner Endowed Chair for the Center for Teaching and Learning at California State University, Northridge (CSUN), where she is also a Full Professor in the Department of Special Education and the Director of SIMPACT Immersive Learning. Dr. Murawski is the national Past President of the Teacher Education Division (TED) of CEC and an internationally known speaker and author, presenting in Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America. Her research focuses on co-teaching and inclusive practices nationally and internationally. She has published extensively around inclusive education, co-teaching, collaboration, and Universal Design for Learning, to include 18 books and numerous chapters, blogs, and peer-reviewed articles. She is the CEO of 2TeachÒ Global (www.2TeachLLC.com), an educational consulting company dedicated to promoting inclusive education around the world. In her personal life, Wendy enjoys traveling with her husband, learning languages, reading, drinking merlot, seeing movies, going to Book Club, visiting her college-bound son Kiernan, and pretending she is going to work out.

Review :
"The book is full of practical tips, suggestions, and tools to help you become a successful co-teacher. While the book is designed for secondary educators, the content can easily be applied to middle school and elementary educators. If you are looking for a valuable resource to guide you through the co-teaching process, I strongly encourage you to consider this as a first purchase." "The humorous comparison of co-teaching to marriage is the spoonful of sugar that makes the mass of information in this text go down smoothly. While this text is strongly supported by research and expert opinion, it is also written by someone who has practical experience." "A comprehensive, informative resource with enough humor to keep you reading and enough substance to get you started. The author shares her long experience with co-teaching and gives valuable strategies, forms, and charts to help make your foray into co-teaching as successful as possible.” "This is the most practical guide to teaching that I’ve read to date! Wendy Murawski has a true-to-life understanding of what really goes on in the K-12 schools and classrooms with teachers, administrators, students, and parents." "The book provides a fun, practical, and realistic approach to a complex issue in today’s secondary classrooms. The numerous forms provide quick access to remediate, enhance, or simply start a co-teaching relationship. Her approach to building the perfect co-teaching relationship is one that is not only essential, but practical and refreshing." "This is like an ′Everything You Wanted to Know About Co-Teaching′ book that answers questions you did not even know to ask! Murawski′s wit, enthusiasm, and expertise are engaging and informative throughout. From the details of starting a co-teaching relationship to the fine art of sustaining the co-teaching union, this book has something for everyone." "This is a compendium of the latest research and wisdom on co-teaching: where to start on the path, how to avoid the potholes, and what makes it work. Clearly, Murawski has established herself as a national expert on a topic of critical concern to special and general educators. This book is accessible enough for beginners yet detailed enough to provide experienced educators with new approaches and classroom-tested strategies." "Murawski’s engaging and witty book provides a practical approach to understanding the world of co-teaching. She defines ambiguous special education terms in an understandable format for classroom practitioners. Her use of the marriage metaphor is appropriate for describing the co-teaching process. Murawski’s writing is based on up-to-date co-teaching research that affords secondary co-teachers the ability to translate theory into practice. Through various assessment tools, case studies, and activities, co-teachers can go beyond the honeymoon and engage in successful co-teaching for many years to come. This book is a welcome addition to our field!"