Developing and Using a Co-Teaching Model within a Middle Level Education Program

Oct 15, 2026

Middle level educational frameworks historically rely on collaborative teaching such as interdisciplinary teaming with coplanning, co-teaching, and co-assessing. Federal mandates for supporting diverse learners have increased co-teaching across special educators, bilingual/bicultural specialists, and regular classroom teachers. Because middle level inclusion, differentiation demands, and teacher education preparation depend on teachers working together, integrating co-teaching into middle level teacher preparation is pragmatically grounded. This study evaluates professional growth, benefits, and drawbacks for candidates, classroom teachers, and university faculty, offering a framework to strengthen teacher preparation and instruction for middle grades students.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages28

Reading Time1 h 11 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Developing and Using a Co-Teaching Model within a Middle Level Education Program

Literature Review

Running head: DEVELOPING AND USING A CO-TEACHING 0 Developing and Using a Co-Teaching Model within a Middle Level Education Program Ellis Hurd Illinois State University Gary Weilbacher Illinois State University DEVELOPING AND USING A CO-TEACHING 1 Abstract Middle level educational frameworks have historically used collaborative forms of teaching. Exemplary middle schools use interdisciplinary teaming which often involves some level of coplanning, co-teaching, and co-assessing. In addition to this collaborative foundation, federal mandates for supporting students have led to frequent co-teaching between special educators, bilingual/bicultural specialists, and regular classroom teachers. This increased attention to differentiated instruction and curriculum demands that incoming professionals be proficient in meeting the needs of every student. Given that middle level educational frameworks, current inclusion practices, and demands for differentiation are all dependent upon teachers working together, increasing the presence of co-teaching within middle level teacher education program is both pragmatically sound and connected to foundational theories of middle level education. Middle school teachers and university faculty members who engage in co-teaching with teacher candidates can provide candidates with practical experiences tied closely to the work that will be expected of them as public-school teachers. Early exposure to co-teaching models can better equip our students for their future work in today’s schools. This study critically explores the professional growth possible from the implementation of a co-teaching model within a middle level education program. Potential benefits and drawbacks of co-teaching for middle level teacher candidates, classroom teachers, and university faculty are explored. The results of this study may provide a unique framework of co-teaching which enhances interactions among educational constituents for improved teacher preparation, professional development for practicing teachers, and improved instruction for middle grades students. DEVELOPING AND USING A CO-TEACHING 2 Developing and Using a Co-Teaching Model within a Middle Level Education Program As middle level teacher educators, we believe our main task is to help prepare our teacher candidates to not only function effectively in schools for young adolescents but to also implement practices that are founded on middle grades ideals (National Middle School Association [NMSA], 2010) . One foundational practice in middle schools involves using collaborative forms of teaching (Beane, 1997; Stevenson & Carr, 1993; Vars, 1993) . To ensure the implementation of collaborative teaching, exemplary middle schools use interdisciplinary teaming which is characterized by co-planning, co-teaching, and co-assessing with two or more teachers coming from different subject areas (Beane, 1997 ; Conderman, 2011 ; Hurd, 2013). By requiring our teacher candidates to have endorsements in two subject areas, we provide them with the knowledge they need to make basic interdisciplinary connections and the flexibility to contribute to interdisciplinary teams. However, placed in clinical sites, the actual amount of collaboration candidates experience depends entirely on the willingness of their cooperating teacher to work collaboratively. In other words, we may not be doing enough to prepare them how to collaborate and co-teach with others, and this skill seems to be an essential component of schools today. In addition to this collaborative foundation within middle schools, the need for coteaching is tied to federal mandates supporting students with disabilities as well as mandates tied to teacher education, in general. As caseloads for special education teachers continue to rise and with more students with disabilities enter the regular education setting (U.S. Department of Education, 2016, p. xxvii), the need for co-teaching is considerable. The incr

FAQs

Why do middle level teacher education programs focus on co-teaching?

The study links co-teaching to collaborative teaching traditions in middle schools and to federal and programmatic mandates that require teachers to meet diverse student needs. It also emphasizes that candidates need practical preparation to collaborate in schools.

What forms of collaboration characterize interdisciplinary teaming in middle schools?

Interdisciplinary teaming is described as involving co-planning, co-teaching, and co-assessing with two or more teachers from different subject areas. Candidates’ clinical experiences depend on cooperating teachers’ willingness to collaborate.

What is the purpose of the study?

The study examines professional educational benefits and drawbacks of co-teaching for teacher candidates, middle grades classroom teachers, and university faculty. It builds on prior work by discussing both benefits and drawbacks with the same constituent groups.

Oct 15, 2026

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