The Fine Art of Collaborating

Collaborating a fine art?? Yes, in my book it is. Sometimes, it is a song and dance or a complicated tango. In any case, collaborating can be a tricky passage through personalities and preferences.  Members of a collaborative need to practice tolerance and flexibility, while they share their own ideas and methods. The key to success is mature, professional assertiveness. Unfortunately, not everyone on your team will rise to meet the challenge. There will be some that adhere to old methods and ideas and refuse to try something new. And, there will be those members that want to try everything they read on the internet. How do you find a happy medium?  The old adage, "You can't change the way others react, but you can control how you react", is true and applies perfectly to team work.

Collaboration is a necessary part of teaching. You may be asked to be a part of a curriculum team or a teacher may ask you to collaborate on a single lesson. You may ask colleagues to form a collaborative team for the purpose of contributing lesson plans (to make everyone's job a little easier). Whatever the reason is behind the collaborative creation, there are always roadblocks that can be overcome with a couple of reality checks.

First, focus on the goal of the team. Don't get sidetracked by side- talk. Stay focused on the end goal or desired result.  This is much easier if each team member has assigned roles chosen by skill or expertise rather than popularity.  Don't select someone to be a time keeper if they never wear a watch and have no sense of time (that would be me!).  Don't pick the 'teacher's pet' who likes to steal every idea from the internet and share them with the principal to be the facilitator. Keep in mind that personal differences don't matter when a team is being formed. What does matter is the honest acknowledgement of each person's strengths and weaknesses.   This is the mature and professional part. And, the most difficult. We have to lay aside our personal opinions and focus on what is best for the team.

Second, respect the opinions and comments of each team member, even is you don't agree. Remember that everyone has a different perspective. Maybe pieces of each person's idea can result in an excellent plan.  This is where flexibility comes to play. You might have to 'give up' one of your ideas in order to create a sensational plan with your team. Maybe a newer teacher suggests something that your team has unsuccessfully tried in the past. Discuss the failure and how the plan could be tweaked to be successful.  Sometimes it is best to acknowledge that no matter how much you tweak something it just won't work.  Let it go and move forward.

I know that all teams don't work together well. Teachers (yes, myself included) tend to be a "bossy" lot. We are, by our nature, take charge people. Teamwork requires a little less of me attitude and more of an us attitude. Not easy, but definitely doable.



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