Comparison of co-operation, interaction and school development in team teachingschools and schools where teachers teach alone

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to compare cooperation, communication and school development in team teaching schools versus schools in which teachers teach alone. In team teaching schools two or more teachers are responsible for planning and operating teaching to a larger group of students. The data for this research comes from a multi method research project conducted in twenty Icelandic compulsory schools in 2009–2013 (Gerður G. Óskarsdóttir, 2014). Four electronic questionnaires were emailed to teachers and other academic school staff in the school year 2009–2010 with a response rate of 80–92%.

 

The analysis presented in this article is based on answers from 15 of the schools, omitting responses from schools in which both team teaching and teaching where teachers taught alone was found. The findings reported here are based on responses from 590 teachers and other academic staff; 324 from the team teaching schools and 266 from schools in which teachers teach alone.

An electronic questionnaire was administered to a sample of 2,119 students in grades 7–10 in 14 of the participating schools; that is, all of the 20 schools offering instruction in these grades. The sample was randomly selected if there were three or more class divisions in each year. However, all students participated in smaller schools. The response rate was 86%. Three of the team teaching schools offered instruction in grades 7–10, whereas all the schools where teachers teach alone offered teaching in these grades. Answers were received from 402 students in the team teaching schools and 694 students in the schools where teachers teach alone.