What Is Team Teaching In Education?

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Michele Jacobsen Introduction and Purpose The purpose of this investigation is to identify various types of team teaching, to present views of experienced team teachers, to analyze the issues involved with team teaching, and finally to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of team teaching based upon research literature, teacher experiences, and student perspectives.

Independent inquiry into team teaching began to interest me during my community/workplace (C/W) experience. My C/W partner and I did a form of team teaching with some eager grade four students on the four Rs of recycling. We presented some information to these young recyclers, each taking turns for a few minutes at a time.

We later realized that this was a good way to keep the children’s attention and interest level up, as we each brought to light different aspects of those four Rs. In retrospect, we believed the children could also benefit from seeing adults collaborate and cooperate on a goal, which some students may not see in their regular, single-teacher classroom.

Another event that stimulated my interest in team teaching was a session I attended a year ago at the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Two teachers that team together collaboratively presented their method of team teaching in a particularly effective session.

A collaborative method of teaching strikes me as being learner-based, efficient and also fun. Further reading and research into a variety of team teaching resources has revealled to me that there seem to be as many types of team teaching as there are team teachers! Teaming To Teach: Operational Definitions Team teaching can be defined as a group of two or more teachers working together to plan, conduct and evaluate the learning activities for the same group of learners.

Quinn and Kanter (1984) define team teaching as “simply team work between two qualified instructors who, together, make presentations to an audience.” There appear to be two broad categories of team teaching:

Category A: Two or more instructors are teaching the same students at the same time within the same classroom; Category B: The instructors work together but do not necessarily teach the same groups of students nor necessarily teach at the same time.

When instructors team teach the same group of students at the same time (Category A), there are a number of different roles that these team teachers might perform. For monetary and spatial reasons, this type of team teaching usually involves two partners.

Traditional Team Teaching : In this case, the teachers actively share the instruction of content and skills to all students. For example, one teacher may present the new material to the students while the other teacher constructs a concept map on the overhead projector as the students listen to the presenting teacher. Collaborative Teaching : This academic experience describes a traditional team teaching situation in which the team teachers work together in designing the course and teach the material not by the usual monologue, but rather by exchanging and discussing ideas and theories in front of the learners. Not only do the team teachers work together, but the course itself uses group learning techniques for the learners, such as small-group work, student-led discussion and joint test-taking Complimentary / Supportive Team Teaching : This situation occurs when one teacher is responsible for teaching the content to the students, while the other teacher takes charge of providing follow-up activities on related topics or on study skills. Parallel Instruction : In this setting, the class is divided into two groups and each teacher is responsible for teaching the same material to her/his smaller group. This model is usually used in conjunction with other forms of team teaching, and is ideally suited to the situation when students are involved in projects or problem-solving activities, as the instructor can roam and give students individualized support. Differentiated Split Class : This type of teaching involves dividing the class into smaller groups according to learning needs. Each educator provides the respective group with the instruction required to meet their learning needs. For example, a class may be divided into those learners who grasp adding fractions and those who need more practice with the addition of fractions. One teacher would challenge the learners who grasped the concept more quickly, while the second teacher would likely review or re-teach those students who require further instruction. Monitoring Teacher : This situation occurs when one teacher assumes the responsibility for instructing the entire class, while the other teacher circulates the room and monitors student understanding and behaviour.

Category B team teaching consists of a variety of team teaching models, in which the instructors work together but do not necessarily teach the same groups of students, or if they do, they do not teach these students at the same time. This category of team teaching can take many forms:

Team members meet to share ideas and resources but function independently, An example arose during the Master of Teaching (MT) lecture series on November 9 th, 1999, when five recent MT graduates shared their experiences after 50 days on the job. Although these teachers were not teaching in the same class, they participated in daily meetings, ongoing discussions and planned their curriculum together. A recent article in Mathematics Teacher (Rumsey, 1999) describes cooperative teaching in which instructors share teaching ideas and resources but otherwise teach independently. This version of cooperative teaching entails weekly meetings and a teaching-resource notebook. The goals of the weekly meetings are to discuss the concepts to be covered during the following week of classes, to present ways of teaching and assessing these concepts, and to share new ideas among teachers. The resource notebook is a comprehensive collection of teachers best ideas that are ready to implement and use. Teams of teachers sharing a common resource center. In this form, teachers instruct classes independently, but share resource materials such as lesson plans, supplementary textbooks and exercise problems. A team in which members share a common group of students, share the planning for instruction but teach different sub-groups within the whole group, This appears similar to the way in which the Master of Teaching program is operated. The various professors share a common group, or cadre, but teach separate sub-groups of this cadre. One individual plans the instructional activities for the entire team, This model does not take full advantage of the team concept as only one individual’s ideas are incorporated. Sometimes, due to time or financial constraints, there may be no alternative to one person designing the entire program. The team members share planning, but each instructor teaches his/her own specialized skills area to the whole group of students, An example would be seven instructors teaching the seven different topics in Mathematics 30 to seven different classes and rotating throughout the duration of the course.

Discussions With Experienced Team Teachers In a school with an enrollment of almost 2000, students can easily lose their sense of identity. I had the opportunity to discuss team teaching with two experienced educators who shared some insights and observations based on their own practice in a large high school.

In part to help students feel less alienated, and in part to make more sense of how mathematics and chemistry are interrelated, these two high school teachers combined their skills and subject areas to teach the same cohort group of approximately fifty students from Grade 10 through Grade 12. This idea did not originate from administration; instead it evolved from the two teachers themselves.

The two happened to share an office and learned that they also shared common beliefs about learning and students. They discussed the idea for about a year before implementing a trial cohort teaching program. They report that the greatest organizational challenge was squeezing the cohort group into the master timetable, as the students and teachers involved in the program would be together for a two-period block of time, and for three instructional years.

The day-to-day running of the program began with separating the class into two groups: the math teacher would involve one group in math activities while the chemistry instructor would perform an activity with the other group. Later the teachers would switch groups. This model incorporated flexibility not usually available in a traditional high school class setting; small group sessions were formed as the need arose and the schedule could be altered to allow time for expanding a mathematical concept or finishing a chemistry experiment.

Contents

0.1 Team Teaching

1 What is the importance of team teaching?
- 1.1 What are types of team teaching?
  - 1.1.1 What is team teaching called?
2 Why is team teaching most preferred?
- 2.1 What is team teaching with example?
- 2.2 Team Teaching
3 Who started team teaching method?

Team Teaching

The chemistry teacher indicated that an advantage to this form of team teaching was akin to attending daily professional development seminars. This teacher was questioning his/her own teaching as well as learning from his/her teaching partner. In addition, his/her partner was listening and sharing; s/he was not isolated like so many teaching colleagues.

This teacher noticed that team teaching was more time-efficient with regard to content as s/he did not have to explain the various mathematical techniques required in chemistry. S/he could focus instruction more on the science of chemistry and the bigger picture of how topics connected to each other and how students might make sense of this information.

For the chemistry teacher, the advantages of the cohort program for the students were that common chemistry and mathematical concepts were first introduced in math class and then applied in the chemistry class. In his/her opinion, this interdisciplinary learning reinforced understanding of the new concepts.

This group of students had two human resources, and two different opportunities to understand new ideas. The students also observed the adults planning in front of them, perhaps in a sometimes disorganized fashion, but they knew that these teachers were trying to figure out the best approach to enable the students to understand the concepts presented to them.

Another advantage of this program was the increased opportunity for bonds to form among students in this very large school. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Gawel, 1997), a sense of belonging is one of the conditions that must be met in order to increase one’s desire to fulfill their potential.

A disadvantage to team teaching mentioned by the chemistry teacher was the general lack of support from his/her colleagues; they resented this program because they believed, albeit incorrectly, that the two cohort instructors had chosen elite students, which elevated the cohort class’s average and lowered the average mark in other classes.

The chemistry teacher admitted that the cohort program was set up for students following the academic stream, and also explained that no special selection process was used. From the students’ perspective, the main disadvantage was that they were exposed to only one teacher’s methods in each of the two subjects throughout the three grades.

These students were also grouped together for the three years, which meant that disagreements or personality conflicts among students had less opportunity to defuse than they might have in a non-cohort setting.
How does the teacher know when the students have integrated the material from both classes into their knowledge base? The chemistry teacher explained it this way: “the teacher can tell the students things, but it is only when the students independently use what was learned in an application that it makes sense to them”,

Accordingly, the two teachers would attempt to teach concepts so that the students would “trip over” these concepts when they needed to apply them. Combining the curricula was the vehicle for giving the students a chance to connect the chemistry and math understandings, and to obtain a bigger picture of their learning.

Unfortunately, this cohort program is not currently running as it created a timetabling fiasco that disrupted the schedule for other students and teachers.
In this case, the administrative and scheduling concerns outweighed the pedagogical advantages for students, and the cohort program was discontinued.

Reflections from a Grade 1 / Grade 2 Multi-Aging Team Teacher In order to balance my research, I also talked to an experienced teacher whose initial experience with team teaching was less than positive. This elementary teacher team-taught in the mid 1970s when walls were being torn down to make space for the open classroom era.

It was believed that the open area concept would enable children to live and learn from everybody in one giant area. At the time, this teacher was a recent education graduate with wonderful ideals of openness and fun, and happened to be partnered with a rather strict, traditional and more experienced colleague.

The two were to team teach a Grade 1 / Grade 2 split class, building upon the theory that younger children learn from older children. Unfortunately for these two teachers, there was not much time for professional development or training on team teaching approaches before the start of the school year.

This teacher admitted that it was difficult working with someone who had such a different philosophy, but that it is possible to turn this into a positive challenge and growth opportunity.
This teacher felt that the advantages of team teaching include the time available to observe students while the other teacher is instructing, the chance to work with smaller groups of students, and the possibility of learning a great deal from a fellow teacher.

As a result of the team teaching, this teacher believed that the students received more individualized attention, experienced two different approaches to teaching, and also learned from interacting with their older classmates. Unfortunately, for this teacher, the disadvantages of team teaching were great.

This teacher felt that the rift between two different teaching philosophies created a chasm in the team’s working relationship. The teacher insists that team teaching partners should be able to choose each other. Another potential concern is sharing the workload; each partner must contribute equally or the partnership will not function to its full capacity.

This teacher did not feel that an equitable workload arrangement was achieved in the team teaching partnership. This teacher also believes, in retrospect, that students must have felt overwhelmed by the size of the class; many of them came from a family setting with one or two children, and were enrolled in a classroom with more than fifty other children! Looking back, this teacher believes that the inevitably high noise level may have impacted the children with attention deficit disorders moreso than their peers.

This teacher had a negative team teaching experience, and believes that this less positive team teaching arrangement was partly a result of the differing sets of teaching beliefs and values, the inability to choose one’s own team teaching partner, and because of beliefs that the Grade 2 children could not help the Grade 1 newcomers very much.

As the year progressed, the two teachers ended up each taking one grade and teaching them independently. Issues Involved in Team Teaching Team Teaching: Voluntary or Imposed? An important variable to consider is whether the inception of the team teaching plan originated from the administrators or from the teachers.

With whom the idea originated appears to play an important role in the success of the team, based upon experiences of the team teachers in this research inquiry.
The cohort program team teachers developed their version of team teaching from the grassroots upward; they had known one another for several years and knew that they shared similar philosophies about learning and students.

From their common way of thinking evolved the conception of team teaching math and chemistry. Both team members were already in agreement about many team teaching issues and the team teaching journey became a positive learning experience for both the students and the teachers.

On the other hand, the school administration forced the Grade 1/Grade 2 Multi-Aging team together. The elementary teacher felt that they were thrown into in the same classroom without adequate training or prior knowledge of the rationale behind team teaching. Administration decided on the arrangement before these two teachers even had a chance to meet, let alone have an opportunity to talk to one another about their teaching philosophies, team roles and objectives.

From this teacher’s perspective, the team effort was not very successful as a result. Selecting a Team Teaching Partner Some teachers are convinced that there is only one perfect partner teacher for them; others feel that the philosophies of team teachers must be identical.

Others insist that team members should not be clones of each other as differences can contribute to creativity and growth of the individual team members.
In a study done in Washoe County School District, team teachers listed philosophies, classroom environments, methods of discipline and personality types as their main concerns when teaming up with another teacher (Northern Nevada Writing Project Teacher-Researcher Group, 1996).

Questions to ask oneself about a potential teaching partner include, are they child-centered or curriculum-centered? Does this person have a developmental view of children or a skills-oriented view? Is this a person I can work with in the upcoming school year? Robinson and Schaible (1995) recommend that collaborative team teaching be limited to two people, as good team teaching is too complex with more than two teachers.

They insist that the prospective team teaching partner be someone possessing a “healthy psyche”: someone who does not demand power or control as well as someone who is not defensive nor easily offended. Roles in Groups of Three or More Often there is need for a team leader when the team is larger than two or three members.

The team leader is in charge of internal operations of the team, such as setting up meetings and coordinating schedules. The team leader is also responsible for external operations, for example communicating with department heads to ensure that the team is meeting departmental goals or that the resources and support are in place.

The role of each team member is to participate in team discussion and planning sessions.
The members must act responsibly and follow through on decisions made by the team within the timeframe decided upon by the team.
Planning Prior to implementation, the team members should have sufficient professional development in the area of team teaching; they should understand the philosophy behind team teaching and the rationale of how it will fit with the rest of the departmental program.

Team teaching partners need time to foster a trusting and open relationship in which team-building discussions are encouraged, and as well they need to be clear about their responsibilities and the time requirements involved with their particular form of team teaching.

Following implementation of a team teaching program, educators must then continue to “identify, implement and analyze the variables needed for every student to succeed” (Brandenburg, 1997).
Team members teaching the same class at the same time should meet daily or weekly to make important decisions about: (1) what will be presented (e.g., the units, lesson objectives) and in what order, (2) how the material is to be presented (e.g., to a large or small group presentation), (3) who is to present the information, (4) how the students will be assessed, and (5) how small groups will be organized and which team teacher will be assigned to each small group.

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After the team teaching program has been in effect for a few weeks or months, the team members should focus on improving their team teaching program by posing questions such as: (1) How can the class activities be improved? (2) What problems have arisen? And, (3) How can these problems be solved? Dealing With Tension and Conflict Even when team teachers are great friends, team teaching situations are seldom without conflict.

Team teaching tends to expose each partner’s professional and personal points of view more than the traditional one-teacher-per-classroom setting.
These varying perspectives may lead to clashes.
The challenge is turning such conflict or tension into a constructive learning situation in which the differences between partner teachers can be used to improve their team teaching instead of corrupting it.

The team partners should attempt to acknowledge the team member’s strengths, interests and goals when conducting meetings and assigning responsibilities. Robinson and Schaible (1995) even recommend that team teaching partners “practice disagreeing amicably.” An example they provide vividly demonstrates the idea of an amicable disagreement: one team teaching partner was dominating the class until his partner delivered a “harmless yet firm kick under the desk” to refocus the soliloquizing teacher and remind him of the team teaching spirit.

Other concerns usually deal with procedural problems, such as setting agendas, keeping records and scheduling teamwork.
The concerns may shift toward student-related issues, such as planning to deal with individual students.
Later, concerns may become more inwardly directed: team members worry about their professional growth.

Team teaching partners need to be able to negotiate and discuss concerns in a way that is mutually beneficial. Advantages and Disadvantages of Team Teaching Team Teaching has a myriad of benefits and drawbacks from both the instructor’s and the student’s perspective.

The following section highlights the major advantages and disadvantages of team teaching from the teacher and student points of view. Advantages of Team Teaching for the Instructor Working as part of a team has a multitude of advantages: it gives the participating team teacher a supportive environment, allows for development of new teaching approaches, aids in overcoming academic isolation, increases the likelihood of sounder solutions regarding the discipline of problematic students and augments the opportunity for intellectual growth.

Team members are part of a supportive environment in which they are exposed to different styles of planning, organization, and class presentation. This gives the team members an opportunity to develop and enhance their own teaching approaches and methods.

Another benefit of team teaching is that working closely with one or more colleagues enables teachers to overcome the isolation inherent in teaching.
When an instructor teaches solo, she rarely has the time or the opportunity for interacting with her fellow teachers, even though she is surrounded by educational colleagues.

By working together, team teachers can discuss issues relating to students, such as behavioral expectations, student motivation and teaching policies, and end up with improved solutions. Robinson and Schaible (1995) describe each team member as a sounding board for sharing the joys and the disappointments of particular class sessions.

When team teaching involves interdisciplinary subjects, each member can gain enlightenment about lesser-known fields, and therefore grow intellectually. Disadvantages for the Instructor The primary disadvantage to team teaching appears to be the element of time: the time required prior to the implementation of the team teaching partnership for professional development, the many meetings needed during the running of the program as well as the numerous impromptu chats that are bound to arise from such an endeavor.

Ironically, the time factor that is so necessary to team teaching can also be divisive as it may lead to conflict. Long before the teachers begin their first class teaching together, intensive staff development in the area of team teaching may be necessary.

This training may involve learning the rationale behind team teaching, shared readings and discussion, learning cooperative skills to enable a positive partnership to evolve, as well as learning a variety of time management skills to ensure smooth operation in meetings and in the classroom. While the course is running, time will be taken up by innumerable planned and spontaneous meetings dealing with planning the course, agreeing on guidelines for such issues as consistency when grading writing or tests, how to deal effectively with difficult students, how to improve the content of lessons and the manner in which they are delivered.

Ironically, the time required to function effectively as a team may increase the probability of personality conflicts arising between team members. On one hand, these differences may lead to renewed insights and understanding between the team members, but on the other hand, an irreparable rift between the colleagues may result.

When mediation cannot mend the situation, separation is often the best alternative, as students can sense the negative tension between the educators in front of them and this awkward situation will detract from the students learning. Advantages of Team Teaching for the Student Team teaching can open a student’s eyes to accepting more than one opinion and to acting more cooperatively with others.

Team teaching may even provide educational benefits such as increasing the student’s level of understanding and retention, in addition to enabling the student to obtain higher achievement. Exposure to the views of more than one teacher permits students to gain a mature level of understanding knowledge; rather than considering only one view on each issue or new topic brought up in the classroom, two or more varying views help students blur the black-and-white way of thinking common in our society, and see many shades of gray.

In addition, diverse perspectives encourage students to consider the validity of numerous views. The variety of teaching approaches used by the team can also reach a greater variety of learning styles (Brandenburg, 1997). The cooperation that the students observe between team teachers serves as a model for teaching students positive teamwork skills and attitudes (Robinson and Schaible, 1995).

In a collaborative team teaching experience (when the two teachers present their respective content to the same class at the same time) the students witness and partake in a dynamic display of two minds and personalities. The benefits of collaborative learning include higher achievement, greater retention, improved interpersonal skills and an increase in regard for group work for both students and teachers (Robinson and Schaible, 1995).

Potential Disadvantages of Team Teaching for the Student While team teaching may prove advantageous for many students, some students may feel frustration and discontentment about having more than one teacher.
The potential for diversity and ambiguity within team teaching may prove disconcerting for some students who might be become confused by more than one way of looking at issues or grading assignments.

These students may be unwilling to try out new learning techniques, such as small-group work, in this different team teaching environment. When team teaching involves two instructors teaching the same class at the same time, the inevitability of larger class sizes may be a detriment for some students, particularly students with attention deficit disorders, or students who feel uncomfortable or anonymous in large group settings.

Also, a clever student may attempt to play one teacher against the other in order to improve his/her grades.
This is one of the many reasons that team teachers have to maintain a common and united front, and continually discuss the numerous team teaching issues and concerns in ongoing communication.
Concluding Remarks The issues surrounding team teaching are numerous and complex.

No single model of team teaching will automatically result in success for a given teaching situation. Any team teaching program must be customized to suit the curriculum(s), teachers and students. Even in situations where the team members are teaching a course that they have previously taught together, new and distinct groups of students will progress through the program from one semester to another.

The different learners will influence the focus of the curriculum, the direction of discussions, and the interaction of the instructors, which creates a new learning experience for all those involved.
Throughout the literature on team teaching, including the reflections by teachers who have teamed during their career, certain key elements appear to be necessary for a successful team teaching program: (1) compatibility of team members, (2) shared commitment to team teaching and ongoing communication, (3) a keen interest in connecting the content or curriculum to real life, and (4) a strong desire to ignite students thirst for knowledge.

Also, the program goals and philosophies, as well as the roles of the teachers and administration need to be well-defined. Although at the outset, team teaching will inherently require more time and necessitate more compromises than other educational approaches, the advantages to both the educators and the students appear to make team teaching enormously worthwhile.

The extra time taken up by staff development and daily or weekly meetings provide a richer learning environment for the students and the teachers. Team teaching can make learning a cooperative and growing process for both students and the teachers. For the students, being exposed to more than one teacher’s point of view might cause confusion and even bewilderment.

On the other hand, hearing two or more perspectives in the classroom likely encourages intellectual stimulation, reinforcement of new concepts, and openness to a variety of outlooks and interpretations, particularly as we recognize the need to respect the diverse perspectives and backgrounds of students.

Therefore, to promote a culture of intellectual inquiry and scholarship, the discomfort of a few may be to the ultimate benefit of the many.
As a student teacher in a junior high school classroom, I have recently experimented with various forms of team teaching with my partner teacher.
Although we were placed together by subject area rather than philosophical ideals, and our partnership is akin to that of mentor and pupil rather than equal partner teachers, this experience has been a positive one and has given both of us a taste of team teaching.

Team teaching may not be for everyone; many teachers prefer to be the only person in charge of their students’ learning. However, team teaching will be attractive to those who want to make learning a joint life experience between the team of teachers and their students.

References Gawel, J.
1997) Herzberg’s theory of motivation and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs,
ERIC Document Reproductive Service No.
ED 421 486).
Maroney, S.
1995) Team Teaching,
Available: http://www.wiu.edu/users/mfsam1/TeamTchg.html (14 October 1999) Northern Nevada Writing Project Teacher-Researcher Group.

(1996). Team teaching, Peterborough NH: Crystal Springs Books. Available: http://www.crystalsprings.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/5027W4.htm Quinn, S. & Kanter, S. (1984). Team Teaching: An Alternative to Lecture Fatigue, (JC 850 005) Paper in an abstract: Innovation Abstracts (Eric Document Reproductive Service No.

ED 251 159). Robinson, B. & Schaible, R. (1995). Collaborative teaching: Reaping the benefits. College Teaching, 43 (2), 57-60. Rumsey, D.J. (1999). Cooperative teaching opportunities for Introductory Statistics teachers. Mathematics Teacher, 92 (8), 734-737. Brandenburg, R. (1997). Team Wise School of Knowledge: An Online Resource About Team Teaching.

Available: http://www.uwf.edu/coehelp/teachingapproaches/team/ Van Vleck, J. and Bickford, D. (1997). Reflections on Artful Teaching. Journal of Management Education, November. These pages are maintained by Dagmar Walker © 2000 Karin Goetz and EGallery
View complete answer

What is the importance of team teaching?

Team teaching boasts many pedagogical and intellectual advan- tages: it can help create a dynamic and interactive learning environment, pro- vide instructors with a useful way of modeling thinking within or across disciplines, and also inspire new research ideas and intellectual partner- ships among faculty.
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What are types of team teaching?

There appear to be two broad categories of team teaching: Category A: Two or more instructors are teaching the same students at the same time within the same classroom; Category B: The instructors work together but do not necessarily teach the same groups of students nor necessarily teach at the same time.
View complete answer

What is team teaching called?

Introduction – Team-teaching (also often called “collaborative teaching”) is an opportunity to expose students to more perspectives and content knowledge than a single instructor may be able to provide. Co-teaching can also be a rewarding experience for faculty, who often learn more about the subject matter, different disciplinary approaches, and teaching in general as a result of developing and leading a course with a colleague.

Collaborative teaching can take a variety of forms, ranging from inviting a colleague to give a one-time guest lecture, to dividing responsibilities according to content areas, to working together on every aspect of the course. Collaborative teaching is a natural fit for interdisciplinary courses, in which two instructors represent different disciplinary perspectives.

However, it could also be beneficial in any course which relies on a diversity of viewpoints, or in service-learning courses, in which faculty could partner with community leaders to extend the students’ learning beyond the classroom (Plank, Idea Paper 55).

Team-taught courses require different preparation than courses taught by a single instructor. Even if two (or more) faculty divide the responsibilities for the course, each instructor should be prepared to explain the overarching framework of the course and to help students understand the connections between topics and assignments.

In terms of course organization, each instructor should be able to explain the policies and expectations, as well as the rationale for team-teaching, to students.
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Why is team teaching most preferred?

Team teaching: what is it and why use it? Team teaching – students receive instruction from multiple teachers who share teaching duties. Sometimes called co-teaching. Team teaching is a strategy that involves 2 or more teachers working together to teach a class. It is also known as ‘co-teaching’ or ‘shared teaching’. In this scenario, the teachers simultaneously work in the same classroom with the same students on the same topic, delivering the same activities and using the same resources.

improving the work environment, staff morale, job satisfaction and staff retention
teachers learning from one another (as otherwise, some teachers never see other teachers in action)
challenging students to respond more positively to a different teacher (due to personality type)
a shared workload in terms of planning, resource development and marking
the addition of more expertise (especially in specialty areas)
additional one-on-one and small group support from 2 or more teachers
the pairing or joining complementary teaching skills (for example, a maths teacher with poor IT skills pairs up with a maths teacher with good IT skills)
modelling teamwork and cooperation to students
the practicality of merging small(ish) classes (especially if they are scheduled in adjoining rooms)
additional support for behavioural issues
fewer issues if one teacher is absent
inexperienced or struggling teachers being matched with experienced teachers that act as mentors.

While working with teacher’s aides is not technically team teaching by definition, teachers regularly turn to them to provide educational, behavioural, personal care and logistical support. i Purely from a time management perspective, a teacher can only help so many students in any given lesson.

Additionally, many students with special needs require one-on-one support.
Teacher’s aides often have more experience with children (whether as a parent, in the classroom, or both) than the classroom teacher (particularly graduate teachers).
Ii Teacher’s aides are a lifeline for new teachers and for those operating in challenging classes.

Like 2 mechanics working together to fix a car, team teaching requires coordination, organisation, a good working relationship and a set of shared goals. The teacher’s aide also has the unintended and somewhat positive effect of reducing the class size (by working with a ‘table’ or group, the number of students under direct teacher supervision is reduced by the number of students in that group – this can be up to 20%).

The ratio of adults to students is also doubled (students, particularly younger students, don’t differentiate all that much between the teacher and the teacher’s aide – they just see 2 adults, particularly if the teacher’s aide is competent and enforces rules and consequences consistently with the teacher).

However, while teacher’s aides are common (around 30% of school staff or more), unfortunately teachers are rarely taught how to effectively manage and direct them. Teachers are excellent managers of children – but not necessarily of adults. Many are hesitant and struggle to manage teacher’s aides who are much older than themselves; they prefer not to address issues that may cause tension.

including all team members in planning and resource development activities
hiring only teacher’s aides that have qualifications from reputable providers and who agree to the tasks outlined in their job description (such as admin tasks)
holding regular team meetings and communicating throughout the day
clearly defining roles, expectations and tasks (such as administration tasks)
ensuring that there are no misunderstandings and resolving issues quickly
setting, enforcing and maintaining a high standard of professionalism (for example, in dress code, language use, organisation, not using mobile phones in class, only drinking water during class time, and so forth)
specifying exactly and how often all relevant tasks are expected to be undertaken in the teacher’s aide job description. There are many examples of issues arising from a teacher’s aide being asked to do non-instructional tasks such as admin work, shopping or cleaning. If this is part of their job (and it should be as it is part of the teacher’s job), it needs to be clearly stated in their job description (which should be read and signed by the teacher’s aide before they are offered a position).

Foot notes:

Harris, L.R., Aprile, K.T. (2015). ‘I can sort of slot into many different roles’: examining teacher aide roles and their implications for practice. School Leadership & Management, 35(2), 140-162. doi: 10.1080/13632434.2014.992774.
The average graduate age of a teacher’s aide is 37 according to data from the Institute of Teacher Aide Courses, whereas the majority of graduate teachers are in their early 20s.

Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to check his article for accuracy, information may be outdated, inaccurate or not relevant to you and your location/employer/contract. It is not intended as legal or professional advice. Users should seek expert advice such as by contacting the relevant education department, should make their own enquiries, and should not rely on any of the information provided.
View complete answer

What is team teaching with example?

Michele Jacobsen Introduction and Purpose The purpose of this investigation is to identify various types of team teaching, to present views of experienced team teachers, to analyze the issues involved with team teaching, and finally to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of team teaching based upon research literature, teacher experiences, and student perspectives.

We later realized that this was a good way to keep the children’s attention and interest level up, as we each brought to light different aspects of those four Rs.
In retrospect, we believed the children could also benefit from seeing adults collaborate and cooperate on a goal, which some students may not see in their regular, single-teacher classroom.

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A collaborative method of teaching strikes me as being learner-based, efficient and also fun. Further reading and research into a variety of team teaching resources has revealled to me that there seem to be as many types of team teaching as there are team teachers! Teaming To Teach: Operational Definitions Team teaching can be defined as a group of two or more teachers working together to plan, conduct and evaluate the learning activities for the same group of learners.

In part to help students feel less alienated, and in part to make more sense of how mathematics and chemistry are interrelated, these two high school teachers combined their skills and subject areas to teach the same cohort group of approximately fifty students from Grade 10 through Grade 12.
This idea did not originate from administration; instead it evolved from the two teachers themselves.

The day-to-day running of the program began with separating the class into two groups: the math teacher would involve one group in math activities while the chemistry instructor would perform an activity with the other group. Later the teachers would switch groups. This model incorporated flexibility not usually available in a traditional high school class setting; small group sessions were formed as the need arose and the schedule could be altered to allow time for expanding a mathematical concept or finishing a chemistry experiment.

Team Teaching

This teacher noticed that team teaching was more time-efficient with regard to content as s/he did not have to explain the various mathematical techniques required in chemistry. S/he could focus instruction more on the science of chemistry and the bigger picture of how topics connected to each other and how students might make sense of this information.

These students were also grouped together for the three years, which meant that disagreements or personality conflicts among students had less opportunity to defuse than they might have in a non-cohort setting.
How does the teacher know when the students have integrated the material from both classes into their knowledge base? The chemistry teacher explained it this way: “the teacher can tell the students things, but it is only when the students independently use what was learned in an application that it makes sense to them”,

Unfortunately, this cohort program is not currently running as it created a timetabling fiasco that disrupted the schedule for other students and teachers. In this case, the administrative and scheduling concerns outweighed the pedagogical advantages for students, and the cohort program was discontinued.

It was believed that the open area concept would enable children to live and learn from everybody in one giant area. At the time, this teacher was a recent education graduate with wonderful ideals of openness and fun, and happened to be partnered with a rather strict, traditional and more experienced colleague.

This teacher admitted that it was difficult working with someone who had such a different philosophy, but that it is possible to turn this into a positive challenge and growth opportunity. This teacher felt that the advantages of team teaching include the time available to observe students while the other teacher is instructing, the chance to work with smaller groups of students, and the possibility of learning a great deal from a fellow teacher.

With whom the idea originated appears to play an important role in the success of the team, based upon experiences of the team teachers in this research inquiry. The cohort program team teachers developed their version of team teaching from the grassroots upward; they had known one another for several years and knew that they shared similar philosophies about learning and students.

On the other hand, the school administration forced the Grade 1/Grade 2 Multi-Aging team together.
The elementary teacher felt that they were thrown into in the same classroom without adequate training or prior knowledge of the rationale behind team teaching.
Administration decided on the arrangement before these two teachers even had a chance to meet, let alone have an opportunity to talk to one another about their teaching philosophies, team roles and objectives.

Others insist that team members should not be clones of each other as differences can contribute to creativity and growth of the individual team members. In a study done in Washoe County School District, team teachers listed philosophies, classroom environments, methods of discipline and personality types as their main concerns when teaming up with another teacher (Northern Nevada Writing Project Teacher-Researcher Group, 1996).

They insist that the prospective team teaching partner be someone possessing a “healthy psyche”: someone who does not demand power or control as well as someone who is not defensive nor easily offended. Roles in Groups of Three or More Often there is need for a team leader when the team is larger than two or three members.

The role of each team member is to participate in team discussion and planning sessions. The members must act responsibly and follow through on decisions made by the team within the timeframe decided upon by the team. Planning Prior to implementation, the team members should have sufficient professional development in the area of team teaching; they should understand the philosophy behind team teaching and the rationale of how it will fit with the rest of the departmental program.

Following implementation of a team teaching program, educators must then continue to “identify, implement and analyze the variables needed for every student to succeed” (Brandenburg, 1997).
Team members teaching the same class at the same time should meet daily or weekly to make important decisions about: (1) what will be presented (e.g., the units, lesson objectives) and in what order, (2) how the material is to be presented (e.g., to a large or small group presentation), (3) who is to present the information, (4) how the students will be assessed, and (5) how small groups will be organized and which team teacher will be assigned to each small group.

Team teaching tends to expose each partner’s professional and personal points of view more than the traditional one-teacher-per-classroom setting.
These varying perspectives may lead to clashes.
The challenge is turning such conflict or tension into a constructive learning situation in which the differences between partner teachers can be used to improve their team teaching instead of corrupting it.

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Other concerns usually deal with procedural problems, such as setting agendas, keeping records and scheduling teamwork.
The concerns may shift toward student-related issues, such as planning to deal with individual students.
Later, concerns may become more inwardly directed: team members worry about their professional growth.

Another benefit of team teaching is that working closely with one or more colleagues enables teachers to overcome the isolation inherent in teaching.
When an instructor teaches solo, she rarely has the time or the opportunity for interacting with her fellow teachers, even though she is surrounded by educational colleagues.

When team teaching involves interdisciplinary subjects, each member can gain enlightenment about lesser-known fields, and therefore grow intellectually.
Disadvantages for the Instructor The primary disadvantage to team teaching appears to be the element of time: the time required prior to the implementation of the team teaching partnership for professional development, the many meetings needed during the running of the program as well as the numerous impromptu chats that are bound to arise from such an endeavor.

This training may involve learning the rationale behind team teaching, shared readings and discussion, learning cooperative skills to enable a positive partnership to evolve, as well as learning a variety of time management skills to ensure smooth operation in meetings and in the classroom.
While the course is running, time will be taken up by innumerable planned and spontaneous meetings dealing with planning the course, agreeing on guidelines for such issues as consistency when grading writing or tests, how to deal effectively with difficult students, how to improve the content of lessons and the manner in which they are delivered.

When mediation cannot mend the situation, separation is often the best alternative, as students can sense the negative tension between the educators in front of them and this awkward situation will detract from the students learning. Advantages of Team Teaching for the Student Team teaching can open a student’s eyes to accepting more than one opinion and to acting more cooperatively with others.

In addition, diverse perspectives encourage students to consider the validity of numerous views.
The variety of teaching approaches used by the team can also reach a greater variety of learning styles (Brandenburg, 1997).
The cooperation that the students observe between team teachers serves as a model for teaching students positive teamwork skills and attitudes (Robinson and Schaible, 1995).

Potential Disadvantages of Team Teaching for the Student While team teaching may prove advantageous for many students, some students may feel frustration and discontentment about having more than one teacher. The potential for diversity and ambiguity within team teaching may prove disconcerting for some students who might be become confused by more than one way of looking at issues or grading assignments.

Also, a clever student may attempt to play one teacher against the other in order to improve his/her grades.
This is one of the many reasons that team teachers have to maintain a common and united front, and continually discuss the numerous team teaching issues and concerns in ongoing communication.
Concluding Remarks The issues surrounding team teaching are numerous and complex.

The different learners will influence the focus of the curriculum, the direction of discussions, and the interaction of the instructors, which creates a new learning experience for all those involved.
Throughout the literature on team teaching, including the reflections by teachers who have teamed during their career, certain key elements appear to be necessary for a successful team teaching program: (1) compatibility of team members, (2) shared commitment to team teaching and ongoing communication, (3) a keen interest in connecting the content or curriculum to real life, and (4) a strong desire to ignite students thirst for knowledge.

The extra time taken up by staff development and daily or weekly meetings provide a richer learning environment for the students and the teachers. Team teaching can make learning a cooperative and growing process for both students and the teachers. For the students, being exposed to more than one teacher’s point of view might cause confusion and even bewilderment.

Therefore, to promote a culture of intellectual inquiry and scholarship, the discomfort of a few may be to the ultimate benefit of the many.
As a student teacher in a junior high school classroom, I have recently experimented with various forms of team teaching with my partner teacher.
Although we were placed together by subject area rather than philosophical ideals, and our partnership is akin to that of mentor and pupil rather than equal partner teachers, this experience has been a positive one and has given both of us a taste of team teaching.

References Gawel, J. (1997) Herzberg’s theory of motivation and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, (ERIC Document Reproductive Service No. ED 421 486). Maroney, S. (1995) Team Teaching, Available: http://www.wiu.edu/users/mfsam1/TeamTchg.html (14 October 1999) Northern Nevada Writing Project Teacher-Researcher Group.

Who started team teaching method?

The concept of team teaching is attributed to William Alexander, known as the ‘father of the American middle school,’ who delivered a presentation at a 1963 conference held at Cornell University.
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What is the difference between co-teaching and team teaching?

In parallel teaching, a type of co-teaching, both teachers are teaching the same information to different groups of students within the classroom. In team teaching, teachers are working together and equally to deliver content to the whole class (McDuffie, Mastropieri and Scruggs, 2009).
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How many steps are of team teaching?

Conclusion – Thus, in the Procedure of Team Teaching there are three stages which are Planning execution and the evaluation. If a teacher does not follow these steps of teaching he may not succeed in. A complete blueprint must be design before he enters to the class.
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What are the 5 C’s of team approach?

At Rhythm Systems, we are all about helping companies and teams achieve their dreams and goals. We have the right systems and skills to help them remain focused, aligned and accountable to getting things done. Developing accountable leaders and teams is a big piece of the puzzle for companies that want to consistently achieve their growth goals.

You can be lucky for a while, but for sustained, predictable success, you need the right people operating off the right playbook. That’s why we’ve built out a framework for Team Accountability, We call it the 5 Cs: Common Purpose, Clear Expectations, Communication and Alignment, Coaching and Collaboration, and Consequences and Results.

On the surface, it’s a simple framework but in practical application, it can really change the game for teams and leaders. I love this model, because you can apply it universally and gain value from looking at just about any situation or project through this lens.
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What are the advantages and disadvantages of team teaching?

Advantages and Disadvantages of Team Teaching:

1	Low cost	Acceptance of change by teachers
2	Support for teachers	Rigidity in teachers
3	Closer integration of staff	Bad team management
4	Variety of ideas	Personality conflict
5	Better involvement of students	Inability to complete curriculum

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What is the importance of teaching teams and what makes a strong teaching team?

Characteristics of Strong Teaching Teams – When teachers are part of a team, they all have an equal stake – and share equally in the risks – when it comes to ensuring the success of their team and their students, added McNeely, who is principal at Hayden Lawrence Middle School in Deville, Louisiana.

Most schools, whatever their grade spans, use some degree of academic teaming. Teaching teams can be structured in many different ways. Click to read how teaming works in the schools of principals who contributed to this article. There you will also find the “Ten Commandments for Effective Teams” and a list of teaming’s benefits.

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The strongest teams have members who have open minds, strong work ethics, creativity, and good leadership,” she said. “There’s no room for personal agendas when it comes to teaming.” At Kirbyville (Missouri) Elementary School, principal Addie Gaines reports that whole staff meetings have become largely unnecessary because of the school’s efficient network of strong teaching teams.

The important characteristics of a strong team are that the members work together, acknowledge and use each other’s strengths and talents, and allow and encourage individuality,” said Gaines.
Team members are dedicated to their common goals and they also care about the other members of the team.
If a team is focused on its goals, then everyone has a single language and a single focus, which allows the goals to be accomplished.

Our teams work together to see all students as ‘our students’ rather than ‘my students’ and ‘your students’.” Team members feel supported by their peers, added Gaines. “Strong teams help create better teacher morale because each individual teacher always has others on whom he or she can rely.” When principal Larry Anderson creates teaching teams at Gunther School in North Bellmore, New York, he seeks to pair teachers who have complimentary styles.

genuine and sincere respect for and trust and confidence in their colleagues;
willingness to share ideas and resources;
desire to establish common grade-level goals and protocols;
willingness to divvy up responsibilities in a fair, equitable way;
strong and positive endorsement of the notion of inclusion; and
an embrace of a collegiality mindset. (In other words, they’re not going to try to show up the colleague; they don’t think “I’m better or more talented than you are.”)

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What is the importance of the team?

5-second summary –

Research shows that collaborative problem solving leads to better outcomes.People are more likely to take calculated risks that lead to innovation if they have the support of a team behind them. Working in a team encourages personal growth, increases job satisfaction, and reduces stress.

Anyone who thought the rise of remote and hybrid work would would be the downfall of teamwork has probably changed their tune by now. The truth is, teamwork is more important than ever. “The use of teams and collaboration expectations have been consistently rising,” says Dr.

Scott Tannenbaum, a researcher and president of the Group for Organizational Effectiveness.
And when I say teams, I’m talking about all types of teams, whether it’s stable work teams whether it’s teams that now, in the current environment, are operating virtually.” Subscribe to Work Life Get more stories like this in your inbox Teamwork is essential to a company’s success, says John J.

Murphy, author of Pulling Together: 10 Rules for High-Performance Teamwork, “Each individual has unique gifts, and talents and skills. When we bring them to the table and share them for a common purpose, it can give companies a real competitive advantage.” But here’s the real magic of teamwork: when done right, it has benefits that go far beyond boosting the company’s bottom line.
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Why team teaching is important in the early years?

A collaborative approach offers educators an opportunity to learn from and support each other and importantly share the daily workload. Working together with other educators is an important feature of effective early childhood education and care.
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What benefit can we get from team teaching in a school?

Advantages – Students do not all learn at the same rate. Periods of equal length are not appropriate for all learning situations. Educators are no longer dealing primarily with top-down transmission of the tried and true by the mature and experienced teacher to the young, immature, and inexperienced pupil in the single-subject classroom.

Schools are moving toward the inclusion of another whole dimension of learning: the lateral transmission to every sentient member of society of what has just been discovered, invented, created, manufactured, or marketed.
For this, team members with different areas of expertise are invaluable.
Of course, team teaching is not the only answer to all problems plaguing teachers, students, and administrators.

It requires planning, skilled management, willingness to risk change and even failure, humility, open-mindedness, imagination, and creativity. But the results are worth it. Teamwork improves the quality of teaching as various experts approach the same topic from different angles: theory and practice, past and present, different genders or ethnic backgrounds.

Teacher strengths are combined and weaknesses are remedied.
Poor teachers can be observed, critiqued, and improved by the other team members in a nonthreatening, supportive context.
The evaluation done by a team of teachers will be more insightful and balanced than the introspection and self-evaluation of an individual teacher.

Working in teams spreads responsibility, encourages creativity, deepens friendships, and builds community among teachers. Teachers complement one another. They share insights, propose new approaches, and challenge assumptions. They learn new perspectives and insights, techniques and values from watching one another.

Students enter into conversations between them as they debate, disagree with premises or conclusions, raise new questions, and point out consequences. Contrasting viewpoints encourage more active class participation and independent thinking from students, especially if there is team balance for gender, race, culture, and age.

Team teaching is particularly effective with older and underprepared students when it moves beyond communicating facts to tap into their life experience. The team cuts teaching burdens and boosts morale. The presence of another teacher reduces student-teacher personality problems.
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Grady A. Lowry