Student achievement in a co-teaching service delivery model in special education

Federal legislation requires that all students with disabilities have access to the general education curriculum and be included in teachers’ accountability for achievement outcomes. The co-teaching service delivery model is one model to address access to the general education classroom. This service delivery model allows students with disabilities to have access to the general education curriculum and still receive the specialized instructional strategies necessary for them to be successful. The purpose of this study was to investigate the outcomes of students with disabilities in a co-teaching classroom by examining performance on state-mandated assessments in language arts and mathematics. The perceptions of teachers involved in the implementation of co-teaching models of instruction were also investigated. Federal law requires the successful integration of students with disabilities into the general population and accountability for student performance on standardized assessment. The literature suggests that co-teaching strategies represent a potentially valuable approach to access the general education curriculum and accountability issues.