Co-Teaching for English Learners

A Guide to Collaborative Planning, Instruction, Assessment, and Reflection

"Supporting one of the fastest growing segments of the nation’s student population can be challenging, particularly when educators work in isolation. Maria Dove and Andrea Honigsfeld show us how to support English learners through collaborative practices that work. This must-have book draws from the most current research and provides multiple practical examples, protocols, and essential questions to guide us in making collaborative practices a reality in our own particular settings."

"Dr. Dove and Dr. Honigsfeld articulated it very clearly when they presented to our teachers of ELLS in Western New York: 'You cannot have successful co-teaching without co-planning.' Their new books continues the much-needed conversation on how to co-teach by looking carefully at the relationships and the school-based opportunities required for success. All teachers have the need to refine new practices in our profession that lead our students effective academic outcomes. Dove and Honigsfeld have a unique ability to define with ease the why and the how of tackling effective co-teaching for ELLs. We must change the ways we have always done our work as teachers. There is no going back when we know more because of the work of these two important researchers."

"Dove and Honigsfeld have captured the essence of co-teaching through the recommended practice of collaborative teamwork using Model 7: Multiple Groups Two Model/ Teach.  One example of this model demonstrated how both teachers are engaged in small group instruction and plan for independent activities where students explore grade level content with the scaffolding of and modifications to age appropriate readings. To ensure success when using this co-teaching model, the research shared by the authors demonstrated the necessity of students to be involved in highly engaging activities while discovering new information. This hands-on learning approach allows English learners to develop new language skills through the application of speaking, reading, and writing tasks."

"As a large and diverse urban school system, our district needed to create a service model structure to meet the needs of over 15,000 English Learner students (ELs), representing over 120 languages. We selected co-teaching as one of the service models because this model allowed students to remain in the content class with their native English-speaking peers while receiving their required EL services. Co-teaching is an ideal model for our district because it allows for students at all levels of English language proficiency access to the complex grade-level content, tasks, and standards while acquiring productive and receptive language skills. With the support of Dr. Dove and Dr. Honigsfeld, our district is in our second year of implementing the EL co-teaching model. We started by analyzing the data and grouping students based on their language needs and allowing the EL teacher to co-teach in sheltered ELD/English Language Arts classes. In this classes, we saw over 2 years growth as evidenced by text level assessments. At the middle and high school level, co-teaching expanded to content classes to support English learners through an integrated approach alongside the content teacher. Both models proved to be successful for our district as we added another 29 EL co-teachers this school year. Dr. Dove and Dr. Honigsfeld's new book provides a deep dive into the advantages and challenges of each co-teaching model along with low-prep strategies for the partners. This is essential in helping the content and EL teacher select the appropriate model for their setting and to implement high-yield strategies in the integrated language and content setting. The authors highlight the importance of collaboration among EL teachers and content teachers to have shared accountability for the academic, linguistic and social emotional success of ELs."

"This important follow-up volume is just what we need, just in time! It will invigorate co-teachers of English Learners while urging them to refocus their attention from 'just co-teaching' to the truly effectual work of teacher collaboration throughout the entire instructional cycle.  At the same time, best practices for student engagement and focused English language development are clearly described within a deep analysis of the seven co-teaching models. Co-teachers will return to this volume again and again for the practical tips and authentic examples to mix and match models to the benefit of their English Learners."

"From the get-go, Dove & Honigsfeld present a clear call to action. We have an obligation to provide the best, most consistent, and aggressive support to a growing population with very specific needs. And what better way to do that than by collaborating and co-teaching with intentionality and precision? Offering structures and strategies for each of 7 key models of co-planning and co-teaching, the authors have given us all we need to meet our common goals in a compelling, detailed, and inescapably helpful resource. The rest is up to us."

"Working in a very large, linguistically diverse school board, where top priorities include the goals of ensuring equity and high expectations for all students, it’s exciting to find a text which commits on practically addressing the complexity of co planning, co teaching and co assessing to support the success of English learners, through and through. It is with respect of educators of the field that the authors have truly demystified how successful partnerships unfold honoring the power of the whole collaborative planning cycle. By providing in depth illustrations and real life scenarios with several variations to highlight a variety of contexts, this book allows for multiple entry points. Honestly, in all my roles in education over the last 22 years, including ESL/ELD teacher, classroom teacher, resource teacher and even now as a leader supporting over 250 schools to address the needs of ELs, I have never found a resource that does what Dove and Honigsfeld have achieved here.  This book is ideal for school teams, teachers with their administrators, ready to roll their sleeves up. I have always believed that supporting linguistically diverse students to achieve academic should not be beyond our reach and would wonder why many districts share the experience that they cannot get there effectively. Dove and Honigsfeld have revealed where the link has been broken.  Their research is focused on intentionally orchestrating conditions in classrooms for students to learn the content while acquiring the language of instruction this to happen in tandem. Now that is true rocket science!"