One of the best things I got introduced to was the Coursera website www.coursera.org
My friend, Chris Pulling, first told me about hundreds of online courses by good universities that were available for free on this site! Going to this site was amazing and to a lifelong learner it is almost akin to being in a candy shop! I have currently enrolled for Assessment of 21st century skills and though I am running three weeks out of schedule, the learning has been phenomenal. After having gone through some video lectures and some readings I have had chance to reflect on one of the skills - collaboration.
One of things that has always bothered me is the free and extensive use of the word collaboration and collaborative. Teachers are asked to be collaborative. But what is effective collaboration? How does it impact learning? What is the best way to work in teams? What is the evidence of effective collaboration? I have done a number of workshops in this regard and each one has added to my growing understanding of what constitutes collaboration. I haven't yet reached a conclusion but today is as good as any other to write out my thoughts and reflections based on my observations of teams.
In my opinion, teams move in a sort of a continuum from collegial to cooperative and finally to collaborative provided they have a sustained, positive environment which fosters learning and problem solving for a common shared vision, along with good leadership.
Collegial teams- Most new teams or dysfunctional teams that have been brought back together after some mentoring usually exemplify this stage. Harmony is valued above anything else. Members come in with a positive mind set, try and feel comfortable being together. They may not necessarily have the same teaching philosophies, however they are determined to keep discussions harmonious and pleasant. Basic discussions are done and ideas are presented. Ideas are also debated, however collegiality is valued to the extent that many good ideas may not be shared due to the fear of being discourteous or different from someone else in the team. Decisions or major moves in such a team are often suggested by dominant personalities or senior or experienced colleagues, agreed upon pleasantly by the rest. Minor modifications may be suggested by other members and agreed upon, sometimes rather quickly, by the rest. The dominant team members or the leaders often assign roles and work is quickly distributed in such teams. The submissive members or members who value harmony above all, often take on the grunt work and voluntarily, the senior members often encourage and/or appreciate this. Skills and knowledge are identified and used but not necessarily combined to improve the overall quality to a different level. Meetings may also involve discussions on other lighter topics of mutual interest including the weather, fashion, sharing instagram or whatsapp messages etc. The few questions asked in a collegial meeting are more factual than conceptual or provocative, intended for clarification rather than challenging opinions or paradigms.
Cooperative teams - Team members approach a situation with the purpose of sorting things out and achieving a desired outcome. Discussions maybe intense as members share ideas pro-actively. Questions are asked for clarification as well as to challenge opinions and paradigms, however, the focus of the team is generally problem-solving. Decisions are reached and every member takes on an equal task/role to evenly share the workload. These may be distributed according to the skill or knowledge strengths of the team members. Questions asked in such meetings often range between factual and conceptual and sometimes provocative. Team leaders (formal or informal) have an important role in cooperative teams.
Collaborative teams - Team members identify a problem and don't come in with an immediate solution. The shared vision is kept in the forefront, however, the team members come in with a strong sense of self-belief along with a distinct feeling of comfort as well as security that they can ask questions freely, disagree, comment and provide opinions which will be valued. A collaborative problem solving task is not divided into distinct roles (though it may be when and if required). Team members build upon the solution together as each one adds his or her strengths and improves the task further. I have often seen these teams come to a point of stagnant stage (which is not unpleasant) but team members are comfortable in that state and willing to think further. Factual questions are also asked to clarify the task, however, the questions asked in such teams are more conceptual and even provocative. One of the main signs of collaborative teams is that instead of distributing tasks to reduce work, most tasks are worked upon together, synergistically to achieve an outcome. Such teams learn as they work and collaboration invariably affects the metacognition of the tem members. Creativity and innovation are at its highest in these teams as all members impart their best ideas, skills and knowledge. Solutions are often critiqued in a pleasant atmosphere and tried to improve upon. Group members take on different roles and/or add different skill set or knowledge within the same project/problem and move between roles easily. Different members may take leadership at different times, though they may not necessarily be the formally assigned team leader. The final outcome of a collaborative meeting is more than just a solution - and at times - a more complex, higher order problem!
The more I write, the more I think and the less I know! The thoughts above are more intuitive than data-analysed and this needs further thinking, developing and researching....
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