Teaching Improvement Program “Your Students and Their Conflict Resolution in a Classroom Setting”

Teaching Improvement Program Conflict Resolution: When bad things happen to good teams…

Introduction Facilitators Andrea Prasse, Graduate Student, EMA Michael Morrow, Faculty Associate, ECE David Prasse, Associate Dean, Loyola Univ of Chicago Workshop Goal Learn some practical techniques to help reduce conflict within student teams, and to more effectively resolve conflict that occurs.

Workshop Overview Why does conflict occur, how will I know it is happening, and what can I do about it? Student teams – good, bad and ugly Sources of conflict Conflict resolution Case studies Wrap-up What you get out of this workshop will be directly related to your level of participation!

In your groups, create a list of what you think the possible reasons for using student teams are. Be prepared to share your responses with the group. You have 3 minutes. Time’s up! Let’s see what you’ve got… Why would we want to use student teams anyway?

Reasons for Using Student Teams Break routine of individual work Build leadership skills Facilitate problem solving Develop skills for cooperative efforts More comprehensive assignments possible Make connections with classmates Collaborative/cooperative learning Reduction of grading workload

Group Exercise Many teams will work well without any problems. However, some teams will have trouble and the members will come into conflict with one another. At your table, Create a list of possible causes of conflict within a team. Group exercise – you have 5 minutes…

Group Exercise Many teams will work well, without any problems. However, some teams will have trouble and the members will come into conflict with one another. At your table, Create a list of possible causes of conflict within a team. Time’s Up

Causes of Conflict Personal Personality clashes Problem personalities Idiosyncrasies of members Structural Mismatch of capabilities/interest/motivation No shared goals, different goals Lack of sufficient structure Lack of necessary member skills Lack of/too much/inappropriate leadership External Relationships Past experience Other Differing expectations (grades, quality, performance)

Recognizing Conflict How will you know that there is conflict within a team? What are the symptoms? 2 min - Individually create a list of 3 to 5 possible answers. 3 min – Form pairs, then create a single list of your top 2 to 3 answers. Step 3 – Share your answers with the group at large.

Recognizing Conflict - How will I know? Member complains Work not on schedule No interaction among group members Some members not interacting Not task oriented, too involved with process of group Disparity between group and individual performance

So, what can I do if a team is in conflict? If you prescribe team activities for your students, you need to be able to deal with conflict that might arise - so, what are your possible options if a team is in conflict? Be prepared to share your responses with the group. Group exercise: 5 minutes Time’s up! Let’s make a consolidated list…

Conflict Resolution Strategies – Reactive Deal with it sooner than later Speak with complaining member individually and privately Follow-up with member after corrective action attempted Keep group task oriented Try to coach members to a solution without resorting to direct intervention Some conflict is normal – don’t over-react

Conflict Resolution Strategies – Preventative Have specific assignments with timelines All members must approve final product Put sufficient infrastructure in place Require team contracts Meeting times/dates/place Roles and rotation plan Disputes and arbitration clause Confidential individual assessments of both team’s and members’ performance

Case Studies Each group should Read their case study Determine how they might handle it Be ready to present the case study and their plan to handle the situation to the group

Workshop Wrap-up Any questions / discussion?

That’s all, folks! Thanks for your participation, and good luck in your courses this semester. Please remember to fill out your survey form, and be sure that you signed in so that you get credit for attendance.