Instructional practices in co-teaching classes for meaningful learning

The purpose of this mixed method study was to examine instructional practices in the Integrated Co-teaching classes and the roles of the Co-teachers in each class to determine if the instructional practices support meaningful learning.;The participants in this study were two special education teachers and two general education teachers from two fourth-grade Integrated Co-teaching classes who were chosen to participate in the qualitative study. The two schools are located in an urban public school district in the northeastern part of the United States. A paired sample t-test (N = 34) was used to determine the academic gains on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills Reading Comprehension section for students with disabilities in the ICT class. Qualitative data from questionnaires, interviews, teacher observations, and artifacts were analyzed to identify and determine if the instructional strategies supported the theory of meaningful learning.;The results indicated that students with disabilities placed in the Integrated Co-teaching classes made significant gains in the area of reading comprehension. The results from the qualitative data identified the instructional strategies and practices that were implemented to facilitate meaningful learning.;Results of this study add to the existing research that identifies the instructional practices and strategies that promote meaningful learning in Co-teaching classes.