How can instructional leaders foster authentic collaboration among co-teachers in a full inclusion model?

Nidia Castro • Cahn Fellow 2021

Northridge Academy became a full inclusion school in August of 2019. Philosophically, the staff and leadership believed in the inclusivity of the full inclusion model and the power/impact it has on the entire student-body, general ed students and special ed students, alike. However, the instructional implications and the rate at which this was to occur was really unique to the chemistry and relationship between both teachers. Ultimately, this was the single most influential factor to a partnership’s ability to execute. The transition occurred too fast and thus presented many challenges with the co-teaching partnerships. Administration was faced with the responsibility of making sure that the partners were supported and effectively collaborating as equal professional partners. Perhaps, more importantly, their perception of one another needed to be that they feel they are each “pulling their weight”—some partnerships exhibited this, while others had to be coached and guided, and one had to be dismantled. The process was long but also very informative. We only touched the surface of what defining impacts a relationship between two colleagues can have on the delivery of instruction.  This journey has been further analyzed and scrutinized as a result of this CAHN process. Knowing that we would share this experience beyond the scope of our school, applied an additional sense of accountability. This helped us to be even more reflective and enabled us to view this experience from both on-site administrators and from the coaching lens of our CAHN peers.