Pacing Guide - strategies for co-teaching

Most student teaching placements extend across a significant period of time, such as a full 15-week semester. This example pacing guide represents how a cooperating teacher and a student teacher may plan for assuming instructional responsibilities across the placement period.

The guide shows a semester progression that allows for initial observation and "orientation," so that the two partners can develop a relationship, the student teacher can become familiar with the curriculum and the student population, and, as a novice teacher, receive feedback on basic teaching strategies. The student teacher and cooperating teacher then increase co-planning and co-teaching tasks as they move toward working as instructional partners, while also establishing some independent teaching time for the student co-teacher to satisfy university evaluation needs. Ultimately, the co-teachers will share the leadership related to instructional responsibilities. The guide also illustrates that as the semester draws down, the student co-teacher relinquishes co-teaching tasks to shift the classroom back to the singular management of the classroom teacher.

Week in the Semester Student Teacher Experience Focus
   
1 Planning and orientation to school and classroom culture
2-3
  1. Observe cooperating teacher teaching
  2. Plan and co-teach short lessons throughout the day
4
  1. Plan and co-teach across most of the day
  2. Observe co-teacher using new approaches/strategies
5-11
  1. Plan and co-teach throughout the day
  2. Designated time for independent teaching with cooperating teacher observing
12-13 Plan and co-teach throughout the day
14-15 Reduce co-teaching, as a way to "return" class back to the cooperating teacher