FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
S
TATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
F. PHILIP HANDY,
Chairman
T. WILLARD FAIR,
Vice Chairman
Members
DONNA G. CALLAWAY
JULIA L. JOHNSON
ROBERTO MARTÍNEZ
PHOEBE RAULERSON
LINDA K. TAYLOR
John L. Winn
Commissioner of Education
MEMORANDUM
DATE:
July 13, 2005
TO:
District School Superintendents
FROM: Linda
Champion
SUBJECT:
Use of Co-Teachers to Reduce Class Size
On June 21, 2005, the State Board of Education established policy regarding the use of co-
teaching to meet the requirements of the constitutionally mandated class size reduction
amendment. Co-teaching is an instructional strategy whereby two or more teachers in a
classroom share responsibility for planning, delivering, and evaluating instruction for
all
students
in a class. Co-teaching is provided whenever a class/subject is taught by two or more teachers
and continues for the entire class period. While co-teaching may be a valuable strategy for
delivering instruction, it is not an acceptable approach to meet the requirements of the Class Size
Amendment.
In light of the State Board of Education’s policy decision, the following guidance should be used
when calculating class size:
1.
In the 2005-06 school year, co-teaching will be included in the calculation of district
average class sizes; however, the percentage of classes taught using the co-teaching
strategy in each district for each of the grade groupings may not increase over that
calculated for 2004-05. The attached spreadsheet reflects each district’s 2004-05 co-
teaching percentage.
2.
Beginning in 2006-07, co-teaching will not be used in calculating compliance with the
school average class size.
LINDA CHAMPION
ASSISTANT DEPUTY COMMISSIONER, FINANCE AND OPERATIONS
325 W. GAINES STREET • SUITE 1214 • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0406 • www.fldoe.org
Suncom 205-0406 • FAX (850) 245-9099
District School Superintendents
July 13, 2005
Page Two
Currently, both co-teachers and multiple use facilities, such as pods, are identified on the K-12
Automated Student Database by scheduling method code “C.” To more accurately report
scheduling, a new scheduling method code “M” has been created to let districts designate
classrooms as multiple-use or pods. This code should be used rather than “C” to designate
rooms in which more than one class is being held. The “M” code will be used in the same
manner as the “C” code; that is, the unduplicated number of students in the classroom/period will
be divided by the number of teachers coded “C” or “M.” In the case of co-teachers in a multiple-
use facility, the teachers should be coded “M.”
A new report has been created that matches the district classrooms with scheduling method “C”
or “M” to the Florida Inventory of School Houses (FISH) design code to verify whether or not
the classroom is designated on the FISH file as a multiple-use facility. The FISH data will be
used to validate the “M” code. Additional details for accessing the report will be provided to
district MIS contacts and school district finance contacts in the near future.
If your district is using co-teaching as a strategy for class size reduction, other scheduling options
should be reviewed and put in place prior to the 2006-2007 school year. To be in compliance,
school averages must meet the class size caps by grade grouping, i.e., 18 in grades K-3; 22 in
grades 4-8; and 25 in grades 9-12; or be reduced by two students from the previous year. A
technical assistance document will be provided regarding implementation of this memorandum.
Questions regarding this matter should be directed to Linda Champion at
Linda.Champion@fldoe.org.
cc: District Finance Officers
MIS Contacts
Facilities Directors
District Charter School Contacts
Charter School Administrators
