Reflection 6

The biggest concept that I learned this week was the difference between collaboration and consolation. Consolation is when you have two professionals bouncing ideas off of one another in order to find a solution, where as collaboration- there usually is different qualifications and experiences that influence ones opinions or problem solving skills, but they are not professionals. Both are needed. Collaboration helps to have different perspectives and opinions, especially from other specialists, family members, or other people involved in the Child’s life.

Something that links to consolation and collaboration is something called co-teaching.

Co teachers share ideas and materials to enhance the learning environment of the students. In m second grade class I had 2 co teachers, one taught in the mornings and one taught after lunch. The first block teacher was names Mrs. Smith. She had a young family and was very enthusiastic and fun. She was kind and everyone loved her. The second block teacher was much older, she was close to retirement and was not nearly as enthusiastic as Mrs. Jones, yet we still adored her and she was very kind. Even though there were two teachers- they worked in unity so well. Their discipline plans and structure of the classroom was identical so we all knew exactly what was expected of us and how the classroom ran. From my perspective the classroom ran so smooth because of the communication even though the two teachers didn’t have much time to communicate when they “passed the baton”.

When co-teaching, it can involve side by side, taking turns, or station teaching. The most important thing about co teaching is the communication and organization so both teachers are equal. The students need to view the teachers and respect both of them equally.

In my future classroom I want to receive support from other teachers, in the education setting, it is encouraged to borrow and steal ideas from other teachers if it is working. I want to collaborate with other teachers in order to receive the best advice and support in knowing how to accommodate and change.