Jack Reed: “today I introduce the Co-Teaching Educator Professional Development Act of 2007 to help improve the education of…”

“today I introduce the Co-Teaching Educator Professional Development Act of 2007 to help improve the education of children with disabilities. A result of the enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act, NCLB, and the 2004 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, IDEA, is that States, districts, and schools in Rhode Island and nationwide have increasingly begun utilizing a ``co-teaching'' model to make sure that students with disabilities have the highest quality teachers. Co-teaching is a term that describes a general education teacher and a special education teacher jointly teaching students with and without disabilities in the same classroom. Co-teaching ensures that students with disabilities receive not only the special instruction, supports, and services they are entitled to under IDEA, but also are taught the same rigorous academic content as any other students. However, achieving this is no easy task. Successful co-teaching requires that educators truly work together so their knowledge and skills truly complement one another. At the end of the day that requires that specialized professional development is provided to these teachers.”