Building the Foundation of Thought: Planting the Seeds for Collaborative Teaching

: A year-long study in two teacher education courses investigated preservice teacher beliefs about collaborative teaching and the collaborative efforts of two professors. Two professors taught an introductory education course during the Fall 2013 semester and an upper-level professional development education course in Spring 2014. Professors modeled collaborative teaching practices, and preservice teachers engaged in collaborative teaching experiences. Responses about collaborative teaching were collected from preservice teachers in both courses. Professors maintained journals about the collaborative teaching experience during both semesters as well. Recurring themes were qualitatively analyzed. It was found that the collaborative teaching experience varied greatly depending upon the developmental levels of those involved. Also, the data revealed key components of collaborative teaching: acknowledging each other’s strengths and weaknesses, having genuine respect for the teaching partner, understanding time constraints, and honoring open mindedness.