Coteaching: New Variations on a Not-So-New Practice

Abstract

Two factors, inclusion and diversity, have resulted in new collaboration between special educators and general educators. As students with disabilities began to receive services in the general education classroom, special educators and general educators began to move into coteaching relationships. The purpose of this article is to give educators an overview of the model as it is presently being reported in the literature. Topics include the development of the coteaching model presently used by special educators and general educators, description of various forms of coteaching used by these teachers, analysis of reported effectiveness in the education of students with disabilities, and recommendations for the future. Reports containing accounts of positive coteaching experiences and guidelines for engaging in this activity are appearing in the literature, but less evidence of its effectiveness regarding student outcomes is available. In this paper, 10 articles describing coteaching activities are reviewed, and group composition, primary goal and purposes, components, activities, and evidence of effectiveness are considered.