The Arkansas Department of Education, Special Education, will provide a variety of trainings on the use of "co-teaching:" a strategy that supports general education teachers in their efforts to successfully teach students with special needs in regular content classrooms. Training opportunities are available for district personnel who are beginning Co-Teachers as well as experienced Co-Teachers who are seeking to improve their programs.
BASIC CO-TEACHING
These trainings will focus on the roles and responsibilities of general and special education teachers in a co-teaching relationship, common "co-teaching" structures, lesson planning, and strategies for successful implementation. Although geared toward professionals that have not attended a previous training, experienced co-teachers may find it beneficial to attend with new co-teaching partners.
The training will be available to districts that are currently using "co-teaching" as well as to districts that are interested in developing a program. It will begin at 8:30 AM and conclude at 3:30 PM. Registration deadline is October 6, 2000. Training dates and locations are:
Little Rock October 12, 2000
Ft. Smith October 18, 2000
In order to take full advantage of the time available for the training, it will be helpful for participants to have some working knowledge of "co-teaching." To assist participants, a brief informational article about co-teaching will be supplied to registered teams for their review before the training. The training will be interactive in nature and participants will be asked to develop an implementation action plan at the conclusion of the workshop.
DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION IN THE CO-TAUGHT CLASSROOM
This training is designed for experienced Co-Teachers who are seeking to improve the effectiveness of their classroom instruction. It will serve as an introduction to the philosophy of Differentiated Instruction and provide information on several strategies that will enable the Co-Teachers to vary classroom content, instructional methods and assessment to better meet the student differences in readiness, interest, and learning needs typically found in a general education classroom.
The training will begin at 8:30 AM and conclude at 3:00 PM. Registration deadline is November 3, 2000. The training date and location are listed below:
Springdale November 15, 2000
MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES IN THE CO-TAUGHT CLASSROOM
This training is also designed with experienced Co-Teachers in mind. It will focus on theory of Multiple Intelligences and how it can be applied to instructional practices used in a typical general education classroom to better meet the diverse needs of ALL students.
Trainings will be offered in two regions of the state. Each training will begin at 8:30 and conclude at 3:00 PM. Dates, locations and deadlines are listed below:
North Little Rock December 1, 2000 Registration Deadline 11/20/00
Ft. Smith February 15, 2001 Registration Deadline 1/29/01
Districts that choose to participate in any of these trainings should send their personnel in "co-teaching" building teams. These teams must consist of a special education teacher and at least one general educator. Since administrative support is critical to the success of this strategy, building administrators are asked to attend. If an administrator cannot attend the training, he/she is asked to submit a letter of support with the team's registration application.
The training is provided to districts at no charge. Reimbursement for up to six substitutes per district will be available, if needed. To qualify for the reimbursement, both participants must attend the entire session. Any additional expenses will be the responsibility of the participating school district.
There will be limited space available, so reservations will be on a first-come, first-served basis. To register, complete the attached registration form and return it by mail, FAX or email attachment. Applicants will receive a written confirmation with more details about the training locations.
If you have questions about any of the trainings or want additional information about "co-teaching," please contact Rose Merry Kirkpatrick at 1-800-482-8437 or (501) 633-3835 or by email at rkirkpatrick@arkedu.k12.ar.us.