Power Dynamics, Common Pitfalls, and Successful Strategies Associated with Co-Teaching

As the professoriate grows increasingly diverse and contingent, the co-teaching relationship must be examined. There are often salient power differentials between and among co-teachers associated with their position in the academic hierarchy and their social identities. This related power can affect the co-teaching professional relationship, student learning, and the retention of faculty from under-represented backgrounds in academia. This paper identifies power-related pitfalls in team teaching and offers specific strategies for avoiding them.