Collaborating with another teacher or a paraprofessional to co-teach helps to meet the unique needs of all students in an integrated setting. Learning how to develop positive relationships, share responsibilities, plan, and implement instructional delivery together can be challenging, but has a multitude of benefits. How teachers make decisions about behavior management, classroom routines, and delivery of instruction can directly affect the learning of the students as well as the overall classroom climate.
Imagine you have a fifth grade student, Joel, in an inclusive class. Joel is 11-years-old and has autism, and he is struggling with working in groups, getting along with other students, and interacting at age-appropriate levels within groups. Group work is used regularly for assignments. You find that Joel has meltdowns during every group work session. Sometimes he even has these meltdowns before students are put in groups, as he anticipates the overstimulation before it even occurs. Other students have expressed concerns and have asked to not be in his group. When meltdowns occur, they affect the entire classroom for several minutes. The outbursts range from mild to moderate, from tantrums to crying or shutting down.
Create a plan, in a 500-750 word narrative, to share with the co-teacher. Explain the following in your plan:
Intervention:
- How you would intervene and de-escalate Joel when he has an outburst.
- How you would collaborate with the co-teacher to intervene and debrief the other students in the class after one of Joel’s episodes.
- Proactive ways to soothe Joel and prevent such episodes in the future.
Collaboration:
- How you would collaborate with the co-teacher to continue support for Joel and his peers in the classroom.
- What you and the co-teacher could do to support peer interactions for Joel.
Ethical and Legal Concerns:
- Ethical and legal concerns related to sharing Joel’s personal information with the class and other professionals, including guidelines on how to handle students’ personal information.
Support your findings with a minimum of two scholarly resources.
