Is the hyper competitive nature of education hindering team success? For the most part, education is (and has been for some time) an individual endeavor. The emphasis is put on individual test scores, presentations, papers, etc. Every so often, there are group projects.
Generally, these are not graded on how well people worked together, just on the end result.
My daughter loathed working on group projects. Not because she didn’t like people. Each “group project” had a common theme.
1. The group would be randomly assigned.
2. One person would do most of the work,
3. One person would do some and
4. The rest let that happen.
5. There was always one person that actively did nothing.
When my daughter would go to the teacher to complain, the teacher would tell her:
• Just talk to them
• Work it out as a team
• That’s part of being on a team
• It’s important that you figure this out
THE PROBLEM WAS THAT NO ONE EVER TAUGHT THE GROUP HOW TO ACT AS A TEAM.
But why? Is there any job that is done in isolation anymore? Can anything really get done that isn’t completed by a team? Teachers don’t talk about HOW to work as a team. Unfortunately, its not something we just know how to do!
BUT WHY SHOULD WE LEARN ABOUT HOW TO WORK IN TEAMS? ARE TEAMS IMPORTANT?
Simply put, teams improve organizational effectiveness.
“No organization can function without teams. Even a sole practitioner, with the exception of a hermit on a desert on a desert island, is dependent on a network of collaborative relationships…Just as mortar binds bricks together on a wall, teams are the mortar that hold organizations together. The whole point of an organization is to is to create value by collaborating collectively” Peter Honey, Teams and Teamwork
SO WHAT IF WE DON’T KNOW HOW TO WORK IN TEAMS! WHAT IS THIS COSTING US?
If almost everything that is accomplished in organizations is done through/by teams, not teaching our children about how to work in teams effectively is exceptionally detrimental to the health of all organizations.
OKAY, WORKING EFFECTIVELY ON TEAMS IS IMPORTANT. WHAT CAN WE DO?
1. Make sure teachers know how to educate/train students on the fundamentals of teamwork. Let’s start with a definition to help all of us.
There are hundreds of definitions and acronyms trying to define what teams are. But one of the best I’ve heard lately was from a recent LinkedIn question:
AND
2. Institute team development as a part of new employee orientation programs, with discussions like
◦ What does it mean to be a team member
◦ How to be an effective member of a team
◦ What does it take to lead a team
3. Shift the focus from individual to team recognition
4. Talk to our children about teamwork at home.
a. Make sure we are taking the time to share the importance of teams.
b. Discuss how to work well on teams
c. Watch movies about teams with your children – (Please check out the site that lists these movies for some other killer blogs on teams and teamwork)
▪ Miracle
▪ Remember the Titans
▪ Invictus
There are probably many other options or ideas that can be developed. But, the point is, working on teams is an essential skill that we all need to improve. It starts with our children, but carries on into adulthood.
What else can we do to ensure children are learning about teams in school?
Anil Saxena is the President of Cube 2.14, an organizational development consulting firm that works with clients to increase both customer and employee engagement while decreasing turnover, improving customer retention, and increasing profitability within organizations.
Saxena is a certified High Impact coach and trainer and a Joint Application Design facilitator. He is also certified by both Rush Systems and IBM as a focus group facilitator. He is an inaugural member of Northwestern University’s Learning and Organizational Change program, and he earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.
