Exploring co-teaching through teachers' perspective in primary education in Greece

Abstract

Aim: This study aims to examine the socially constructed nature of co-teaching through the perceptions of a pair of teachers who worked together in an inclusive classroom. This study focuses on the elementary level of education in Greece. Theory: Social constructivism builds the theoretical framework for this research. It has provided a great baseline for the research on how knowledge is constructed and how social interactions influence the construction of each other’s ‘reality’. The two teachers coming from different backgrounds and having different beliefs and interpretations, through their exchange of behaviours and language, between them and the rest of the world, concluded on having a common objective world of co-teaching in their classroom. Method: The study used a qualitative approach based on in-depth dyadic interviews. Non probability convenience sampling was used for the selection of the participants. The data was collected from a pair of teachers, transcribed, coded, and categorised through qualitative content analysis. Results: The results revealed that the two teachers interpreted the world through their interaction with one another and with all the elements surrounding them, constructed their co teaching world based on their own beliefs and conceptions. Moreover, this study revealed the discrepancies between inclusion policies and practical implementation in classrooms. Notably, the current situation in inclusive classrooms in Greece does not provide any evidence showing that it meets the goals set by national policy. On the other side, the teachers are influenced by all the different elements around them, such as people, social structure, standard process, ministry of education and institution, which affected their beliefs and consequently their behaviour and collaboration.