Workshop trains dozens of mentor teachers

On July 27, the Professional Development School District sponsored its annual Co-Teaching with Teacher Candidates Workshop for Clarke County School District mentor teachers. Offered each summer, the workshop trains mentor teachers in co-teaching strategies to best support their teacher candidates.

Based on the St. Cloud State University model, co-teaching involves sharing the planning, organization, delivery, and assessment of classroom instruction.

Bethany Hamilton-Jones, clinical associate professor in the department of communication sciences and special education, led the workshop for 31 Clarke County elementary and secondary mentor teachers.

Now in its sixth year, these workshops have trained more than 300 teachers in the district. Follow-up includes a pairs workshop, in which mentors and teacher candidates meet to discuss ways to implement the co-teaching strategies they have learned.

Feedback from mentor teachers has been positive. One participant responded, "The session was great. It was a whole new way to think about student teachers, and I really felt ready after this training."