Teamwork is a very important element of teaching. Through this process, educators are able to show their flexibility, their compassion toward the capabilities and fallibilities of both the students and the teachers. Respect toward not only the achievement of new skills but the existence of the drive to learn and achieve those skills would be a necessary component of teaching in all forms. Regardless of ethnicity, every student has the capacity to learn if they are to apply themselves and it would be up to the student and the professor to form a team effort toward this achievement. Yet a team is nothing without outside support from the parents and it would be vital to the success of any educational pursuit to have a full understanding of the methods taught by the professors and the abilities of the students to learn them. Having an open mind is of vital importance in first gaining achievement and then surpassing the goal that was set. This precise point is dealt with in the three selected articles by three different authors.
Paula Jorde Bloom brings interesting considerations to light in regard to teamwork for early childhood education in her article ‘How Do We Define Director Competence?’ published in the 2000 issue of Childcare Information Exchange. Her primary goal is to define competence from the perspective of educators based on leadership and teamwork among educators. Conceptualizing competence in this author’s eyes would involve three components of knowledge competency, skill competency, and attitude competency in the context of teamwork. The descriptions of each denote the most effective components of teamwork. The model presented offers this information and includes general education, early childhood/school-age knowledge and skills, experience, management knowledge and skills, and professional contributions. This series of components develop a view of competency, which Illinois policymakers utilize for the Illinois Director Credential.
Professional contributions by Illinois standards should contain the following components: service within a professional organization in a teamwork role, training and presentations, advocacy, writing and publication, program improvement and research, and grants writing. Ms. Bloom’s work continues with a table that involves a listing of management knowledge and skill areas. These areas include ten divisions, technology, teamwork and advocacy, marketing and public relations, oral and written communication, program operations and facilities management, family support, educational programming, legal and fiscal management, staff management and human relations, and personal and professional self-awareness. Divisions contain specific guidelines that would be essential in the pursuit of teamwork for educational professionals. In fact, conceptualizing and articulating a philosophy of management would be one of the more pertinent considerations within the category of personal and professional self-awareness. A crucial aspect of legal and fiscal management would be evaluating the appropriateness and cost-effectiveness of the various fundraising options.
Marilyn Amey’s article, Teamwork in Higher Education published in Resource Review in 2006, deals with the perception of higher education teamwork. According to her, this higher education teamwork among educators is based on three major aspects. The first one of these is learning and doing related works. The second one is enumerated as works that are focused on the perception of ethnicity, race, and gender in respect of teamwork and the third aspect is related to the works that are associated with role-based teamwork. These are different aspects of leadership but the end concern of this article is the essence of teamwork and its subsidiary effects in relation to higher education teamwork among educators. This is because higher education teamwork is that aspect that results in the success or failure of an organization. The scholarship enumerated in this article details the reason behind the approach of teamwork and the end consequences that would help the concerned person to exhale in the field of teamwork and a successful teaching schedule. (Amey, 2006)
Malcolm Trobe’s article, ‘A daunting list of priorities with team management and teamwork in education’, published in EDUCATION Journal in 2006 deals with the need for the team-based management approach towards the maintenance of an educational system rather than a basically individualistic approach as generally formulated by politicians, civil servants, and advisers. The writer ascertains that sustainable teamwork is essential for the proper formulation of a systematic approach for an educational system to be successful. To prove his point the writer also takes a reference to Sydney University where it was ascertained from its report that the view held by the writer is agreeable. However, the writer readily mentions that the need for various aspects of a school is needed like funding and team management for educators and the entire process should be looked over as an intricate and general overview for the long-termed success of a school. It is extremely important for a school to develop on a continuous basis and for this teamwork is a key aspect but it should be managed properly to yield positive results. (Trobe, 2006)
All the articles indicate that it should be the main aim to produce confident, independent learners through a capacity for self-assessment through the proper formulation of teamwork principles among teachers. In this manner gaining independence in their education and the capacity to achieve will further their aspirations toward higher goals. Providing a baseline for their understanding and ability to interact with them and then first ascertaining their learning level prior to assigning the individual goals as well as the overall goals for each individual student is an important step toward gaining understanding and the capacity for learning. Taking the steps outlined in the Classroom Strategy and adapting them to the differentials provided by the learning styles of each student is an important aspect for consideration and would in fact manage to be one of the goals set to achieve as a teacher.
However, it should be noted that in accordance to Walther-Thomas, the collaboration between special education and general education teachers requires five fundamental applications to be successful. The first one is to have complete and wholehearted confidence in the plans and approach of fellow teachers. The second one is the complete involvement of not only the fellow teachers but also the students in the plan and approach. The third one is the involvement and recognition of value of the participants within the collaborative plans. The forth one is the effective routine development. The last one and the most important approach of collaboration between special education and general education teachers is the gradual development of collaboration, creativity and productivity on a gradual and definitive mode. Without the implication of these five elements Walther-Thomas believes that the approach would fail. (Walther-Thomas, Bryant & Land, 1996)
In the conclusion the synthesis of the information of all three articles indicates towards a shift in perception towards the approach of education culture in schools with a predominant focal point on teamwork among educators. The articles mention the need of teamwork in education and identify the approaches needed for a better and developed education environment. The idea of higher education teamwork among educators is based on major aspects leads to the understanding of the management of teamwork where the teamwork formulation would be based on team activity specifically among educators. Thus it becomes relevant that the aspects of teamwork and techniques of identifying them is also discussed and analyzed. For the purpose it also becomes relevant to discuss the matter under practical parameters and thus the perspective of the prevailing school culture is also discussed to get the clear and sustainable picture of the education system.
References
Amey, M.J. (2006). Teamwork in Higher Education. Resource Review; 12(8), 117-125.
Jorde Bloom P (2000) How Do We Define Director Competence? Childcare Information Exchange, 13(2), 13-18.
Trobe, M. (2006). A daunting list of priorities with team management and teamwork in education; EDUCATION Journal, 9(7), 7-15.
Walther-Thomas, C. S., Bryant, M., & Land, S. (1996). Planning for effective co-teaching: The key to successful inclusion. Remedial and Special Education, 17(4), 255-264.