Co-teaching literacy strategies for the inclusion of second-language learners: possibilities for professional development

Abstract

This narrative study, set in lower-secondary school (grades 7–9) in Finland, explores a co-teaching initiative aimed at developing inclusive education for second-language students by integrating literacy strategies in content-area teaching. The co-teaching was realized by three experienced content-area teachers working in dyads with a resource teacher with competence in literacy strategies. Co-teaching among experienced teachers at higher grade-levels and with the purpose of including second-language students is a relatively under-researched field. Data was collected through seven teacher–researcher conversations over two school-years. Word images were constructed from the field texts to represent four narrative themes, depicting the teachers’ narration of their knowledge construction and role formation: daring to share, extended expertise, fine-tuning roles and increased well-being. Results suggest benefits such as well-being through shared responsibilities along with increased expertise to support all students’ learning of both language and content in the co-taught classroom and beyond. Trust, being open to change and daring to share one’s knowledge landscapes and classroom space were seen as crucial in the negotiation of educational priorities and teacher roles. Co-teaching is suggested to be a viable option for the professional development of inclusive practices in the form of integration of literacy strategies across the curriculum.