Co-Teaching Wisdom: 4 Things That Are Worth Your Jelly Beans

Do you believe in coincidence? Sometimes I feel like the universe is conspiring on my behalf as if some unseen force can hear my silent thoughts rattling around in my head, and finding ways to provide me with answers or at least some nudges towards a better version of Me. This epiphany is compliments of one of my teaching teammates, my Grade 1 partner in crime, Pam Daly. It’s the Jellybean Philosophy. If you haven’t heard of it, please watch:

Why this resonates so much for me is that, as someone who has worked in highly collaborative schools, in which co-teaching is the norm, asking: “Is this “worth my jelly bean?” is so vital to developing and sustaining relationships, as well as keeping teams on track. When teams distill what is essential to their learning culture, then so much of the shaft can be removed from the wheat.

With that in mind, I feel that there are 4 critical areas that create a sound foundation for teamwork and collaboration. Spending time on these things are absolutely worth your “jelly beans” when developing strong teacher teams.

1. Commit to the “We”
2. Share a common language
3. Generate unified goals
4. Listen for the Voice of the Students

Commit to Being a “We”

There’s a great book that I highly recommend pedagogical leaders to read: The Power of Teacher Teams by Vivian Troen and Katherine Boles. It discusses the stages and strategies for building effective teaching teams. I think when teams are made explicitly aware that they’re in a very intimate relationship with one another, and the impact they make won’t be judged by one individual alone but by their combined efforts, I think this is an important perspective that should be made front and center. In the beginning, relationships are tenuous, but the sooner teams commit to getting along and growing strong together, the easier it will be to bring out the best and loving each other, warts and all. And I know this sounds odd, but the sooner teams experience conflict or adversity, the better off they will be at developing clear communication and trust.

Although we’d like to be at our best 365 days a year, 7 days a week, the truth is we have difficult moments. We get distressing news, or a bad night of sleep or a toothache–some emotional or physical stress which makes it hard to teach at our highest levels. And when our patience is strained, our ingenuity is diminished, this is when we need to lean on each other; supporting one another through the ups and downs is really the tell-tale sign of a true team. As a team member, you can create an oath or vow to demonstrate a commitment to becoming “WE”. Here’s my really corny one:

I do solemnly swear to not be a jerk on purpose. And if I offend you in some way, please let me know so I can work to improve my communication and develop a caring relationship with you. Likewise, if you do or say something that upsets me, it is my responsiblity to communicate this feeling in a respectful manner so that I do not habor resentment towards you. Our relationship matters to me and most important, to our students.

I think if teams are grounded in a commitment to get along and be strong, assuming positive intention becomes a staple, and then people can approach each other with curiosity vs. judgment.

Share a Common Language

Feeling that there is equity in a relationship is huge, and one thing that can divide or bring a team together is our language. Now I’m not talking about how polite or eloquent we may speak, although that might be helpful, it is having a clear idea of what different pedagogical terms mean to one another. As someone who has worked in a myriad of educational contexts, I NEVER assume that my colleagues and I define terms in the same way because we come from different cultural perspectives and pedagogical backgrounds–even if we all share the same country on our passports! Here are some just a few terms that often need to be checked for shared understanding (no right or wrong here, by the way):

• best practice
• play
• good writing
• critical thinking
• rubric
• running records
• formative assessment
• inquiry-based learning
• transdisciplinary
• math terminology
• learning outcomes/learning intentions/learning objectives
• developmentally appropriate
• parent communication
• home learning

I often found that unpacking these commonly used terms helps to develop an appreciation and understanding of our influences and philosophies, helping teams to come into agreement and alignment, paving the way for fruitful collaboration and respectful interactions.

Generate Unified Goals

A couple years ago I read Phil Jackson’s book, Eleven Rings. I’m not a basketball fan, but I was immensely interested in how a coach develops teams with all those egos in one room. And if there is one thing that I took away from the book is that the desire to win can be overwhelming. Although we may not be amazing at layups and scoring 3-pointers, teachers are driven to make a difference and genuinely want to make a positive impact on student outcomes. We want to “win” too. That, in a nutshell, is the goal, right?–it’s what should unite us? So just like Phil Jackson worked to make his players masters at the “triangle offense”, I’d like to quote Todd Henry, teams need to master focus, function, and fire. Here are some suggested goals:

Focus: What needs our collective attention?

Our energy is a finite resource, so asking this question can generate consensus and ensure that we are driving in the same direction. Data always helps to facilitate these conversations.

Function: How can we use our planning time efficiently?

Setting goals for a co-planning session create a sense of purpose and make a big difference to the productivity levels of teams. Having an agenda and defining whose role it is to follow-up or follow-through on something is a highly effective tool to help teams become more collaborative and synergistic.

Fire: Why are we here?

Most of us care very deeply about the impact we make in schools. The “5 Whys” suggested by Simon Sinek can help inspire teams to determine their beliefs and purpose. When we are rooted in our purpose, it’s easy to be more authentic on our teams because our shared connections and values will be revealed. And this context helps us to see beyond our different cultures or training, recognizing that the heart of what we do is ultimately similar.

It also makes it easier to develop our professional growth goals as a team and support one another in becoming our best selves.  As long as we walk in the direction of that goal or goals, we are growing together and our collaboration will naturally deepen.

Listen for the Voice of the Students

Four ears are better than two. And how about six ears or eight ears?-Wow we are bound to hear the ideas and conversations that abound from our students! When we keep our senses on alert, we are bound to capture the understandings that are evolving which can guide decision-making.

After I spent the weekend with Margaret Maclean, I  have come to a greater appreciation for the need to have a perspective into our classrooms. Using protocols to capture what is happening in the classroom can be highly enlightening and lowers our threat of exposing personal vulnerabilities. There are several websites that offer protocols that can reveal ways that we can engage in deeper analysis of student learning. Using tools like protocols are helpful because it documents and funnels the evidence of student learning into productive discussions. Focusing on student learning is the most worthwhile “jelly bean” there is.

 

Our time is precious. Our time with our students even more so. We have to develop strategies and use tools to help us become effective and productive teaching team–not to mention happy ones. I hope these 4 ideas will help you to sort your “jellybeans” into meaningful moments and develop greater clarity of purpose with your teaching team. Please share below any other ideas that you feel are necessary to have strong teacher collaboration–I would love to hear it!