teacher teams & team dynamics

Teacher TEAMs & Team Dynamics

TogetherEveryoneAchievesMore

Adapted from Maxine Wood August 2011 Presentation

Tom Van Hulle and Matt WernsdorferJune 25, 2012

2

Talent Development Secondary (TDS)Focusing on Teacher TEAMs and Team Dynamics

GoalsAt the conclusion of this session,

School Transformation Facilitators will be able to:

1. Identify the purpose and role of teacher teams are within Talent Development Secondary and Diplomas Now

2. Develop effective teacher teams within Talent Development Secondary and Diplomas Now

The Four Pillars of Talent Development

4

Focus on TDS Pillar I

Teacher TEAMs andSmall Learning Communities Teams of teachers working with a common and manageable set of

students, with time built into their schedule for collaborative work and facilitation to initially guide

their efforts.

5

A Brief Overview Activity

Teacher Teaming 1-Pager

6

Why have Teacher TEAMs? Facilitates job-embedded collaboration Builds a strong climate of caring and support for students and

staff Shares information and resources that provides collegial

support Coordinates instruction and curriculum across curriculum Gives teachers time to work together so as to enable

instructional flexibility Provides students with a constructive and united front on

attendance, behavior, and course performance Promotes students’ social attachment to school by providing

a team identity of adults that look out for them and gives guidance

Communicate and improve best instructional practices

7

What do Teacher TEAMs do?

Identify and address student challenges and needs

Analyze data to set common instructional goals Work together to personalize and individualize

the learning environment for each student Meet regularly at scheduled times Conference with students and/or their families Organize instructional day Provide the coordination of special activities or

instructional rationale

8

STF and Teacher TEAMsin the School Transformation Plan

“Planning the Work,Working the Plan.”

Distributed LeadershipCollaborative Work TimesShared Cohort of Manageable Number of Students

Access to Real-Time Data About Shared Students

Pillar I

10

TDS/DN Essential Component

Current Status Action Initiated(include timelines)

Evidence of Initiation

Or Impacts

Next Action Determined **

1. Distributed Leadership (specific Decision Making Abilities with Names & Positions)

• Diplomas Now (DN) Leadership meets every Monday @ 8:30 a.m.• Teacher Teams meet every Monday @ 2:00 p.m.• Teacher staff meet every Wednesday @ 3:30 p.m.

• Develop teacher TEAM agenda items (below) by 2/6/12

• Agendas, minutes, sign-in sheet, monthly events

• Identify a teacher Together Everyone Achieves More (TEAM) leader by Principal

2. Collaborative Work Times

• 2nd period common preparation for core teachers• 3rd period for elective teachers

• 2nd semester planning to develop cross-curricular assignments/projects by 3/5/12

• Agendas, minutes, sign-in sheet, quarterly project due dates and presentations

• Brainstorm thematic units with teacher TEAM by District ELA Coach

3. Shared cohort of Manageable Number of Students

• Cohort #1 = 26 students• Cohort #2 = 25 students• Cohort #3 = 25 students

• Recruit 2nd semester students by 3/15/12

• Increased enrollment • Identify target Recruitment Open House dates by Recruitment Officer

4. Access to Real Time Data About Students they Share EWI/Academic

• District Student Information System data updates Microsoft Access (MS Access) program for Early Warning Indicator (EWI) meetings (printed and shares with all teachers)

• Effective use of District Student Information System data/EWI documents/Google documents in teacher team meetings by 3/5/12

• Teacher team decisions informed and justified with data as reflected in agenda items, minutes, sign-in sheets, and Tiered supports

• Provide Google access to teacher TEAM leader by STF

Pillar ITeacher TEAMs and Small Learning

Communities

Tiered Supports and Teacher TEAMs Activity

Good Team Jigsaw Activity

12

School Transformation Facilitator’sResponsibility to Scheduling

After Lunch

“Schedules can do anything except everything.” -- Ken Lerner

Scheduling

Scheduling is one of the most important decision making points in a school, and the power is carefully guarded.

This is where almost all decisions are written in stone for the year. If it ain’t in the schedule, it ain’t real yet.

Often, part of our job in reform is to open this process up to more voices.

Play nice with schedulers!It is how a school articulates what people will do all day and is therefore informed by:

What courses a school will teach? How is that learning measured (credits, minutes, work time)?

Who will work with whom? (certification, skill sets, track records)

The Big Picture

We want (must have’s are underlined) Extended learning time Common Planning time Accelerated Courses for those who need it Interdisciplinary TEAMs Shared Cohorts of Students 4X4 Fewer Class Changes Manageable number of students with small team

(3-4 teachers with 75-90 students) Mutations

4X4+1 is most common Larger teams (two of each)

The Devil’s in the Details

Double blocks are too long. My teachers and students can’t handle it. We did that- it didn’t work.

This is just like middle school. We need to schedule for the IB kids first. We can’t offer credits for those accelerated courses. We will have more fights if the kids are together all day. “What about…”

The geniuses? The kids who never come to school? Art? Foreign language? AP courses? Gym? Science? College level curriculum? Calming influence of older students? Internships? Music? SAT prep? Survey courses? Homeless students? ELL students?

What You Will Hear

Each group has a copy of: Basic 4X4 4X4+1 Two others

Each groups should Identify which is the 4X4, the 4X4+1, and

which are the “others” How do these schedules reflect the

elements that support the “must have’s”?

The “Doing” Activity

18

Adapted from: Team to Teach, National Staff Development Council,www.nsdc.org

Teacher TEAMs andthe School Transformation Facilitator

Roles, Responsibilities, And Resources

19

Teams function most successfully when members have

shared goals and purposes that promote collaboration.

Collaboration

20

CollaborationHow?

Structural conditions and needs: Time and opportunity to meet Location, organization and logistics Access to data, materials, resources, etc.

21

Critical elements: Reflective dialogue Collective focus on student learning Shared norms and values

CollaborationHow?

22

Guiding factors: Commitment to student improvement Mutual trust, respect, commitment, and

accountability Supportive leadership and support from

leadership Clarity of roles, relationships, responsibilities Agreed upon norms, goals, procedures Capable, competent, and contributing

members

CollaborationHow?

23

TEAM Dynamics Activity

Modeling Roles and Results

24

Five Stages of TEAM Activity

Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing,

Adjourning(Tuckman, 1965)

25

1. Explain the Teacher Team Initiative to administrators and/or faculty.

“Why should we do this?”

Possible Responses• Research analysis• Draw upon past

experiences of successes andfailures (know the school’s history)

• Provide examples of other successful teams

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

26

2. Introduce or review the team process.

“How do we do this?”

Possible Responses• Review team

characteristics (from this presentation)

• Show other successful team meetings

• Model proper meeting protocols

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

27

3. Assist in planning and organizing for team work.

“What am I supposed to do?”

Possible Responses• Schedule consistent

meeting times and location

• Establish and assign meeting roles

• Procure resources (copies, computer, projector, overhead, screen, etc.)

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

28

4. Help teams get off to a good start.

“How do we begin?”

Possible Responses• Create agendas• Develop meeting norms• Facilitate beginning

meetings with the expressed intent of eventual distributive leadership

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

29

5. Help members select and set team goals.

“What do we do now?”

Possible Responses• Brainstorm specific

school concerns and prioritize them so as to create team goals

• Note staff conversations in meetings to potentially add to future agenda items

• Use TD materials (e.g. Pillars) to suggest possible goals

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

30

6. Help teams develop a plan for action and accomplishment based on goals.

“How does this contribute to our goal?”

Possible Responses• At the end of meetings,

identify: task, champion, date, who will check or needs information for next task

• Copy and distribute action plan

• Send action plan reminders

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

31

7. Assist/enable teams to conduct successful meetings.

“How can we be sure things are getting done?”

Possible Responses• Share information• Provide feedback• Keep agendas and notes

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

32

8. Maintain momentum.

“How do we effectively address our challenges?”

Possible Responses• Highlight or promote

successes and note challenges for future team goals

• Be available and visible so as to provide informal opportunities for brainstorming

• Assist in the process—seek opportunities to serve

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

33

9. Assist in assessing team progress.

“How do we know if what we’re doing is working?”

Possible Responses• Evaluate staff strengths and

weaknesses and place “the right person in the right seat”

• Provide staff individual feedback

• Encourage best practices with celebrations (with notes, e-mails, handshakes, smiles, private and public praise, share individual and team successes

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

34

10. Facilitate effectively.

“Might there be a better way of doing this?” OR “Are we just reinventing the wheel?”

Possible Responses• Communicate with your

FM, RD, S4, IF, and fellow STF’s

• Read and share germane TD/DN correspondence

• Encourage with information (opinions differ, data don’t)

Essential Activity

Common Question

Roles, Responsibilities, and Resources

Essential Activities 1-10 were adopted from:Jolly, A. (2008). Team to teach: A facilitator's guide to professional learning teams. Oxford, OH: National Staff Development Council

35

Go Team!-- Bob Balfanz