Tuesday 26 January 2016

There's no "I" in "Team"

Finally I have found a spare moment to jot down the endless sea of words in my head- it's been a busy few months and writing has had to take a back seat. However despite little slowing down of the rollercoaster of life, sanity preservation has now kicked in and claimed "shotgun" position, asserting itself to gain my attention as only a teenager on a mission to get "one up" over his older brother can do.

It will hardly have eluded any parent of a school age child today that group work has been elevated to an alarmingly superior place in the curriculum. Initially a buzzword(s) in the business world to encourage team work amongst disparate members focussed on a single goal,  "working together" has infiltrated education and our schools. The need to achieve a joint outcome, share experiences and "work together" may seem entirely admirable, but it is letting down large groups of individuals in the process. 

I believe the intentions of educators are good, the natural Darwinian tendency of young humans to self-focus does indeed need taming and children must learn to share, take turns and collaborate. But when "working together" means relying on the loudest/most confident/most able group member to complete the work then few are benefitting. I have lost count of the number of times my eldest has taken the lion's share of a "group project", whilst lazier individuals contribute little. Unwilling to forfeit the high mark he could obtain as an individual he shoulders the burden of the entire project. Similarly, my daughter often comes home to tell me she's not sure what the work they covered in Maths today was all about, "but it's all right as our group finished, I didn't have to do anything."

Then there are the other two boys, one possibly on the spectrum and one very definitely there. Both hugely able and utterly mystified why they cannot complete work alone- after all, they would make a significantly better job of it. A was distraught that in Art, a hugely individual subject he is passionate about he was forced to collaborate. In H's high school this is misinterpreted as arrogance, when in actual fact it's the truth. He could do a significantly better job on his own. Why on *earth* should he sit there bored rigid discussing maths three levels below his own? Unless it's so he can teach the others this is absurd and he gains nothing. Apart from the blindingly obvious point that those with Autism work better alone (since the diagnosis involves developmental delays in communication and social interaction) unless all members of a group stand to benefit from collaboration it is pointless exercise.

I never enjoyed group work, although I benefitted from limited collaborative efforts. Group work has its place, but currently it has been artificially elevated out of it. Working together can be derived from multiple sources, such as sports teams, drama or choir groups. Of course, its natural place on the sports field has been largely beaten out of existence with the artificial suppression of competition. (Perhaps that's the understated intention of heralding group interaction in the classroom as the ideal modus operandi?) But there is little need to ram group work into every subject on the curriculum.

There is indeed no "I" in team. Team work invariably stifles the individual and for many it is an exercise in descrimination- however well intentioned. It reduces linear progress and permits some to overly rely on others. The most able almost never stand to gain and it is yet another example of our education system focussing on the less able at the expense of others. It should never be used as a blunt instrument- a check box for every subject that needs ticking to gain OFSTED credit, and recognition should be given that it has limited use.

So to the (several) teachers who wrote on H's report that he finds group work challenging, can be obstructive and reluctant- I'm not surprised. Working together is of occasional benefit and should always take the individual needs of all members of the group into consideration. Judging a child with ASD by a "one size fits all" theory of collaboration is inappropriate and discriminatory. 

There is no "I" in any team, and there's no "you" either. But there are three in "Individual". And he's definitely that. Unique, entertaining, exhausting, inspiring, and a real individual... 


14 comments:

  1. It's a really interesting take on it. I can see the benefits of both working as part of a team but also being an individual and relying on your own initiative and ideas. I haven't really noticed this from my children's class but then I don't get that much feedback from them!! They should certainly see though that not everyone works to their best in a team and that that's ok.

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  2. Isaac is really struggling with his behaviour at school and we cannot put our finger on it. I personally think that he is brighter than they think he is and is bored but the school think otherwise. I am lucky that he likes working in a team though - I guess that they have to teach them to work with others as they will need to do that in adult life too. Hope you manage to find a happy medium

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  3. I definitely struggled with team work at school and really still do. I have no idea why I just don't work well with people. I am far more efficient on my own. It needs to be understood that some kids just need to work alone.

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  4. Oh this is so relevant to me at the moment. Maxi seems to be spending loads of his time teaching other kids (Primary) and Mini who is being assessed for ASD hates group work.

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  5. A very interesting post - will book mark for my britmums education round-up - please do send any other education posts over to me as well please! :-)

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  6. I guess the old adage of "two heads are better than one" is the reason for the focus on group work in the education system today. I think it does help those that are struggling but don't really see the benefit for the more able students though that probably depends on how the teams are selected. Great post I don't think it works for everyone x

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  7. He sounds like my youngest, quite the character, but sometimes he surprises you with the most remarkable of insights about things x

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  8. Ah...now I understand some of the things that have been happening at school! I didn't know about the group work thing. It doesn't suit my son at all, he's 13 and has no clue what he's meant to be doing when there's group work. I often have to email his teachers about it.

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  9. Group work is the sort of thing that needs to be handled properly - and just chucking in kids who work better alone, doesn't sound a very good idea. I hope that it doesn't dint your son's confidence - he sounds like a real bright spark.

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  10. I think there's definitely a way to ensure that group focused time is beneficial as well as individual work time and there is a need and benefit for both as you grow older. You're right though it's all about how it guided by teaches and a chuck in approach rarely works. x

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  11. I've noticed this too as my boys are painfully shy and don't thrive in the group setting. Even if they do feel comfortable, they will certainly not contribute and are largely ignored by the more outgoing characters. I've heard classes are now mixing the ability groups too as it's believed the children can all learn something from each other. Sounds like a good thing but I'm not sure x

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  12. An interesting post; I think you are certainly right and I can remember from my school days that I hated group work as I would invariably be left doing the burden for the same reasons you have mentioned here. I think some people come alive in group work and others struggle; for this reason (as with everything in education) there should be balance so that those who thrive in one environment get an equal chance as those who thrive in another.

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  13. I cannot stand group work in learning situations. You are so right, everyone is different and their needs should be considered.

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Many thanks for taking the time to comment, I really value your responses.

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