Running head: A BROKEN ARM

A Broken Arm
Jennifer Cady
University of Kansas

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2
A Broken Arm

The key characters in this activity are Helen (general educator), Mary (special educator),
and Jim (student). Helen Williams is a 20 year veteran who has a reputation for high standards,
efficiency, and assigning hard work. She was hired to take the place of the co-teacher who had
worked alongside Mary in previous years.
Mary King has taught for fifteen years total. She is soft spoken, sensitive, and she values
building student relationships. Her classroom is a welcoming and safe place for students with
disabilities. In addition, families have come to trust and count on Mary. Marys colleagues
indicate that she has a very calm and collaborative demeanor.
Jim OHara, is a high school student and athlete. He does well in all subject areas except
for spelling. He has received special education services, since second grade, for language
learning delays and auditory processing deficits. Jims mother is Mrs. OHara. She is a
supportive mother.
Case Problems
Helen is motivated by years of previous success with her students. Her thoughts and
actions display her inability to effectively collaborate, for the sake of her struggling learners,
because she believes her high standards drive student success when it comes to high stakes
testing and life beyond school. In addition, Helen has never been asked to co-teach so she is
unaware of the specific characteristics that drive effective communication for the benefit of the
students.
Mary, on the other hand, tends to have thoughts and actions that drive student support,
but because she is soft spoken and sensitive, this places a barrier between her and Helen when it
comes to advocating for Jim. Marys thoughts are aligned with supporting Jim, but her actions

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are timid, because she does not want to cause conflict that might be irreversible. While Mary has
attempted to advocate for Jim, she allowed Helens bold opinions to stop her from further
advocacy, because she wanted to avoid further conflict. She also waited until it was near grade
card time to make any true attempts to remedy the situation. This was more than likely because
of her personality.
Jims thoughts and actions were driven by Helens inability to properly modify and
accommodate his individualized needs. Furthermore, Jims actions of skipping class were
brought on by the fact that he was embarrassed that Helen posted his failing grades for the entire
class to see. Therefore, he probably felt that there was no need to try if he could not succeed. In
the past, he had the proper supports in place so he was a motivated learner, but not in this
scenario, because his current teacher was unwilling to support his needs.
Co-Teaching Common Issues
The issues in this scenario are two-fold. Helen is unwilling to truly do what needs to be
done to see Jim through to academic success. This stems from her stubbornness to think beyond
what she has always done. However, Mary is also responsible in this communication failure,
because she is fearful of creating discord between herself and Helen. She should have advocated
for Jim, from the beginning of the school year, and not waited until grade card time. The moment
Helen was unwilling to meet Jims individualized needs, Mary had a responsibility to hold a
team meeting, to include the administrator, for the sake of getting Helen on board with the
support that Jim needs. If both Helen and Mary had conducted themselves in a professional
manner, a manner to resolve the barriers for Jim, it is assumed, based on past data, that Jim and
his mother would have upheld their end of the educational process as well. Unfortunately, this
was not the case.

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The aforementioned is a common theme when it comes to the co-teaching relationship
between general educators and special educators. Too often, there is little effective
communication that transpires through collaborative efforts. Instead, the general education
teacher tends to do things the way she feels led to do, for the sake of the whole, and the special
educator is often times left to function as an island for the struggling students. Frequently, the
students voices go unheard, when in reality, they are more than capable of being part of the
collaborative process, too. After all, they know their needs, as do their parents, better than
anyone.
To combat these issues, the following steps should guide the co-teaching process. First,
co-teachers should build in weekly plan time together. This plan time may need to include other
stakeholders like the administrator, social worker, school psychologist, so on and so forth.
During the first few meetings, co-teachers should get to know one another by discussing their
personal strengths and weaknesses. This might include sharing about classroom management,
classroom behavior, instructional approaches, and overall teaching styles. In addition to getting
to know one another, and the classroom environment, co-teachers should determine what their
goals and objectives are, based on standards and high stakes testing demands.
The individualized goals and objectives of those with special needs should also be an
important aspect of the on-going conversation. This includes defining and assigning specific
roles and responsibilities, for each co-teacher, within the learning environment. Finally, coteachers should be able to share what is working well, and what needs adjusted, at the weekly
meetings. In essence, the final step in the co-teaching process is to have a flexible plan in place,
where collaboration is on-going and adjusted based on student needs.

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Accommodations/Modifications
The appropriate time to make accommodations and/or modifications derives from the
point in time when a student is academically or behaviorally unsuccessful. That is, he or she is
unable to produce satisfactory results. Therefore, if there is evidence from previous years, that a
learner needs support, then co-teachers should be proactive and not wait to see the learner fail.
That is, there should be supports in place from the get go.
To ensure success for all, educators can utilize Universal Design for Learning (UDL) as
the primary platform to modify instructional methods and materials. UDL involves the use of
teaching through multiple means of representation, multiple means of action and expression, and
multiple means of engagement. These three areas target the what, how, and why of learning, but
they do so in a manner that allows for varied approaches, and in a manner that supports everyone
in the learning environment.
Mary attempted to accommodate and modify Jims spelling instruction, but was
unsuccessful. For example, she tried to give Jim half of the words on Monday and half on
Tuesday. She also made him flashcards with the words. Further, she attempted to teach him
spelling rules. Mary also tried to have Jim write the words repetitively, but none of these
attempts proved successful when it came to his academic performance in spelling, because he
continued to fail his spelling tests. Shortly before grade cards, and after repeated failure, Mary
suggested to Helen that Jim be allowed to select the correct spelling word out of three choices or
that he be allowed to match the spelling word to the correct sentence, but Helen refused.
Therefore, both educators failed to assist Jim with his academic needs, but at least Mary tried
whole-heartedly.

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Communication/Collaboration
The importance of communication and collaboration, for the sake of interaction among
students, parents, and school community personnel is that, without both, students suffer. As
witnessed in the case at hand, because Mary and Helen were unable to effectively communicate,
and collaborate for the sake of Jim, Jim was ultimately unsuccessful.
When communication and collaboration are effectively in place, among all stakeholders,
the benefits not only positively impact learners, but also enhance relationships among everyone
in the process. Again, in the case of Jim, had Helen and Mary been effective at creating a
supportive learning environment, Jim would have had the proper modifications and
accommodations to see him through to success. Therefore, both effective communication and
collaboration are key if all students are to succeed to the best of their personal abilities. When
one or the other falls short, ultimately, it is the students who suffer.