1. Effective Collaboration at the School and District Levels
Chapter Two
Effective Collaboration at the School and District Levels
© 2016 Taylor & Francis

2. In This Chapter You Should:
1. Identify similarities and differences in continuing teams and ad hoc teams at the school and district levels
2. Explain how to organize effective meetings
3. Explain how to facilitate effective meetings
© 2016 Taylor & Francis

3. School and District Collaborative Teams
Continuing teams
focused on ongoing tasks that schools and districts must contend with yearly.
Ad hoc teams
organized when a need arises and are focused on a particular issue that is not typically ongoing.
What creates a high-performing and successful team?
© 2016 Taylor & Francis

4. Advantages and Disadvantages to Teams
Broad perspectives/diverse points of view
Teams can be time consuming and difficult to schedule
Members learn more about how decisions are made at the school and district levels
“Group think” can occur causing members to get along with other members
Better informed decisions can be made
Prone to riskier decisions or interventions as one individual does not have to assume responsibility
A culture of collaboration and commitment
can be formed
Group polarization can cause others to perceive unfairness in team decisions
Morale can be increased and greater participation in decision making tends to mediate some disagreements
The logistics of organizing teams can be difficult, particularly ad hoc teams
© 2016 Taylor & Francis

5. Organizing Teams Identifying the team members
Identifying the roles of team members
Identifying the specific task(s) to be addressed
Identifying outcomes for the team to deliver
Identifying methods for evaluating the success of the collaboration for achieving the outcomes
© 2016 Taylor & Francis

6. Facilitating Effective Teams
A good facilitator should:
Know who to invite to the meeting
Develop an agenda for the meeting
Make sure everyone knows the time and location of meetings
Establish the rules for the team process
Be authentic
Be capable of dealing with difficult people who are members of the team or interested observers
© 2016 Taylor & Francis

7. Facilitating Effective Teams
After a meeting, a good facilitator will:
Follow up to make sure that decisions are being implemented
Guarantee actions are being taken or information is being distributed
Ensure the team process/meeting is evaluated for effectiveness and how the team might be improved upon
© 2016 Taylor & Francis