Creating Collaborative Classrooms

The Collaborative Classroom ATTRIBUTES ►Demonstrates teachers and other educational staff working together to model collaborative strategies of cooperation ►Reflects coequality, co-participation, and reciprocity among teachers and other educational staff ►Celebrates diversity within the classroom and progressively remove barriers to child learning through methods of creative problem solving ►Educational goals and classroom requirements are collaboratively determined by teachers with support from parents, administrator and others. ►There is an understanding of Equality and Equity.

Collaborative Teaming Collaborative Teaming is people working together to achieve a common goal(s) “Working Together” means that a positive interdependence exists among team members who agree both to pool and partition their resources and rewards and to operate from a foundation of shared values A “Common Goal” is derived from the team and not the individual.(Snell & Janney, 2000, p. 3)

Collaborative Teams may be considered as the adult version of a Cooperative Learning Group AND Is significantly influenced by Who is Involved?, Is there a Common Vision?, How does the Team Function and How does it’s Members Communicate and organize? OR THE TEAM WILL FAIL

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall; All the king’s horses, And all the king’s men, Couldn’t put Humpty together again. Why do TEAMs Fail?

Why couldn’t ALL the King’s Horses and ALL the King’s Men put Humpty Dumpty together again? Team Membership Issues Effectiveness of Team Operations Shared Values of the Team Members

Collaborative Teaming is a transdisciplinary approach to team functioning that is... based on mutual goals within a based on mutual goals within a framework of similar beliefs; framework of similar beliefs; requires parity among participants; requires parity among participants; depends on shared responsibility for participation and decision making; depends on shared responsibility for participation and decision making; requires shared responsibility for outcomes; requires shared responsibility for outcomes; requires that participants share their resources; requires that participants share their resources; reflects a voluntary relationships. reflects a voluntary relationships.

Directions: five Choose one of the words from the list below. Begin when we say go, you will have five minutes. Write as many words as you can, using only the letters in the word you choose. The rules: These must be real words of two letters and up. Use only the letters in the word you choose. Stop writing when the five minutes are up.

PUBLISHING PUBLISHING PERFECTION PERFECTION GUIDELINES GUIDELINES INSIGHTFUL INSIGHTFUL TELEPHONES TELEPHONES PALINDROME PALINDROME SCAVENGERS SCAVENGERS DICTIONARY DICTIONARY

Directions: Get into your groups and pick a word that none of you worked on individually and complete the activity again. Remember, you have only 5 minutes! Here’s the words one last time…

PUBLISHING PUBLISHING PERFECTION PERFECTION GUIDELINES GUIDELINES INSIGHTFUL INSIGHTFUL TELEPHONES TELEPHONES PALINDROME PALINDROME SCAVENGERS SCAVENGERS DICTIONARY DICTIONARY

How was the process of working individually different from working as a group?

You all collaborated to complete this activity, but the big question is … You all collaborated to complete this activity, but the big question is …

Lessons from the GEESE

As each goose flaps its wings, it creates an “uplift” for the bird following. By flying in a “V” Formation the whole flock adds 71% more flying range than if each bird flew alone. LESSON: LESSON: People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the thrust of one another. When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to fly alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the birds immediately in front. LESSON: LESSON: If we have as much sense as a goose, we will join in formations with those who are headed where we want to go. When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back into the formation and another goose flies at the point position. LESSON: LESSON: It pays to take turns doing the hard tasks and sharing leadership -- with people, as with geese -- interdependent with one another. The geese in formation honk from behind to encourage those in front to keep up their speed. LESSON: LESSON: We need to make sure our honking from behind is encouraging -- not something less helpful. When a goose get sick or wounded or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow their fellow member down to help provide protection. They stay with this member of the flock until he/she is about to fly again or dies. Then they launch out on their own, with another formation, or to catch up with their flock. LESSON: LESSON: If we have as much sense as the geese, we’ll stand by one another like they do.

Each person’s contribution to an interaction is equally valued and each person has equal power in the decision making.

Whether results are positive or negative, all participants are responsible for the outcomes.

Participants must share at least one goal. Participants must also put aside differences to reach this goal. –T–T–T–This might be one of the hardest!!

A sense of community evolves from collaboration. P rofessionals/students who collaborate trust one another.

If you collaborate, you are assuming responsibility for participating. Equal participation in decision making

Sharing resources is sometimes the key motivator for collaboration. A scarcity of resources sometimes causes people to horde resources. - Collaboration becomes unlikely when this happens.

Administration can make you work in close proximity but only two individuals can decide to work in a collaborative style.

A Active Listening ssertiveness sking Questions U Using Statements Effectively