Team Teaching Responses

Team teaching is the process of teaching several subjects and then switching off with another teacher (co-teacher) for the other subjects. This process may allow teachers to teach what they know and are confident in, give them someone to plan lessons with, or figure out ways to incorporate learning from subject to subject with support.
An ideal situation to me would be to have middle school and high school teachers work together to connect subjects to continue this trend as students transition to those grades. I think it would also be helpful in college settings; sometimes it is hard to see where subjects connect, especially when textbooks aren't necessarily in context.
Team-teaching: would you do it? 67% said yes, 18% said no, and 15% said they would consider it.


Reasons for Team-Teaching:

• Cross-subject units help students make connections and retain information that is taught.
• Sharing ideas and having different options.
• Helps with prep time.
• It offers students the ability to learn from one another/have differentiation in instruction.
• It eases the burden of one educator being responsible for a group of students.
• Less chance for burn-out.
• Keeps teachers actively involved in their area of expertise.
• For students, it gives them the opportunity to have two teachers that may have very different personalities and teaching styles.
• Teachers can focus their skills and teaching time, so that real learning can take place.
• It allows teachers to give students their best by being able to concentrate on only the topics they have to cover.
• More time to plan good quality lessons and more freedom for integration working with a co-teacher.
• "More hands make light work. We need to have more of a community approach to education instead of closing the door and keeping others out of our classrooms."

Reasons against Team-Teaching:

• Personality clashes.

There really weren't any other reasons given against team-teaching.

Teachers in middle school where I live generally teach on teams so that they have the same set of students all day. They plan together and have their team for support when they're doing things or have troubled students. While they all teach a single subject, it is still nice to be able to talk to other teachers and coordinate lessons that will fit together, in my opinion.