DOCUMENT RESUME ED 477 823 CE 085 031 Working with Others. Teaching and Learning. TITLE INSTITUTION Learning and Skills Development Agency, London (England). SPONS AGENCY European Social Fund, Dublin (Ireland).; Department for Education and Skills, London (England). ISBN-1-85338-852-1 ISBN PUB DATE 2003-00-00 NOTE 64p.; Part of the Key Skills Support Programme. AVAILABLE FROM Learning and Skills Development Agency, Regent Arcade House, 19-25 Argyll Street, London W1F 7LS, United Kingdom (Ref. No. 1348; 5 British pounds). Tel: 020 7297 9000; Fax: 020 7297 9001; Web site: http://www.lsda.org.uk/home.asp. For full text: http://www.lsda.org.uk/files/ PDF/1348.pdf. Guides - Classroom PUB TYPE Teacher (052) EDRS PRICE EDRS Price MF01/PC03 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Adult Education; Developed Nations; *Employment Potential; Foreign Countries; Group Behavior; Group Instruction; *Interpersonal Communication; *Interpersonal Competence; *Job Skills; Out of School Youth; Portfolio Assessment; Portfolios (BackgrOund Materials); Postsecondary Education; Resource Units; Responsibility; Role; Secondary Education; *Team Training; Teamwork IDENTIFIERS Reflective Thinking; Self Awareness; *United Kingdom ABSTRACT This teaching and learning guide is designed to provide practical advice and support for teachers who are delivering and assessing the key skill "Working with Others" at Levels 1-3 in schools and colleges in the United Kingdom. It is useful as an introduction to the key skill, source of teaching ideas, reference, or handbook. Section 1 defines Working with Others and what it involves and explains its value and links with other key skills. Section 2 describes how the units are arranged. It explores the cyclical process, differentiation across the levels, assessment and certification, and issues concerning and forms of evidence. Section 3 on getting started shows techniques for working with groups in schools and college, reflection, and induction and initial assessment. Section 4 focuses on helping students to develop these process skills that underpin "Working with Others": planning, setting shared targets, clarifying roles and responsibilities, and reviewing progress. Section 5 relates to helping students to develop these interpersonal skills and personal qualitites: communication skills, helping students to reflect on their behavior in meetings, working in groups, developing students' self awareness, developing empathy, and handling conflict. Section 6 describes the principles of preparing the portfolio. Appendixes include a glossary, 18 useful addresses, and an action plan form. (YLB) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. INr--- U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION REPRODUCE AND Office of Educational Research and Improvement PERMISSION TO MATERIAL HAS EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION DISSEMINATE THIS BY --// CENTER (ERIC) CENTER BEEN GRANTED /\ document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization Key Skills originating it Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality rn RESOURCES Points of view or opinions stated in this (NI TO THE EDUCATIONAL (ERIC) 00 document do not necessarily represent INFORMATION CENTER SUPPORT PROGRAMME official OERI position or policy N N L1 C4 LT-1 0 11. AI 2 TWAT Cf1PV AVATT ART V Published by the Learning and Skills Development Agency www.LSDA.org.uk Feedback should be sent to: Information Services Learning and Skills Development Agency Regent Arcade House 19-25 Argyll Street London W1 F 7LS. Tel 020 7297 9144 Fax 020 7297 9242 [email protected] Registered with the Charity Commissioners Author and project manager: Patrick McNeill Copyedited and typeset by thingswedo Cover illustrator: Joel Quartey Printer: Blackmore Ltd, Shaftesbury, Dorset 1348/05/03/4000 ISBN 1 85338 852 1 Crown copyright 2003 Extracts from this document may be reproduced for non-commercial education or training purposes on condition that the source is acknowledged. Otherwise, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrical, chemical, optical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of the copyright owner. Information such as organisation names, addresses and telephone numbers, as well as e-mail and website addresses, has been carefully checked before printing. Because this information is subject to change, the Learning and Skills Development Agency cannot guarantee its accuracy after publication. The Key Skills Support Programme is led by the Learning and Skills Development Agency and funded by the Department for Education and Skills and the European Union Social Fund. Acknowledgements With thanks to Sarah Mulligan and Jane Williams who advised on the development and the content of this publication. This publication draws on material from Supporting Working with Others, published by Learning for Work. 3 Contents Preface What is Working with Others? Section 1 1 How the Working with Others units are arranged 9 Section 2 Getting started 16 Section 3 Helping students to develop their process skills 23 Section 4 Helping students to develop their interpersonal skills 35 Section 5 and personal qualities Preparing the portfolio 52 Section 6 54 Glossary Appendix 1 56 Useful addresses Appendix 2 57 Action plan pro forma Appendix 3 Some publications from the Key Skills Support Programme Adding value: integrating the wider key skills Good practice guides Developing and managing portfolios Planning and delivering induction Preparing for external assessment Writing assignments How are you managing? Key skills in colleges How are you managing? Key skills in schools Key skills 2000: finding the levels Key skills: a handbook for coordinators Key skills in A-levels (16 packs, covering the major A-level subjects) Key skills in context Key skills resource manual Speaking and listening: finding the level (video and pack) Talking of number: A-level and vocational contexts (video and pack) Teaching and learning Application of Number Communication Improving Own Learning and Performance Information Technology For the full range of Key Skills Support Programme publications and online resources, please visit the website at www.keyskillssupport.net Preface This Guide does not What is the purpose include: of this publication? detailed advice and guidance on This Teaching and learning guide is interpreting the key skills specifications designed to provide practical advice and for the purpose of assessing students' support for teachers who are delivering work. Assessment is the responsibility of and assessing the key skill Working with the awarding bodies, which provide Others at Levels 1-3 in schools and specialised training. For contact details, colleges. It will be useful as an introduction please see Appendix 2. to Working with Others, as a source of teaching ideas, for reference, as a advice on how to write assignments handbook, or just for reassurance. It is that develop and/or provide evidence based on the experience of centres that for key skills. This is provided in Good have been delivering Working with Others practice guide: writing assignments, in the last few years, and particularly since available from the Key Skills Support September 2000. Programme. (For contact details, please see back cover.) Who is it for? The term 'tutor' is used in this It is written for tutors, teachers and publication to refer to teachers, lecturers in schools and colleges who lecturers, trainers, form tutors and are supporting students as they aim to personal tutors. The term 'student' achieve Working with Others in any area is used to refer to pupils, students, of the curriculum. It is written primarily learners and trainees. for tutors who are relatively new to the key skill, though more experienced practitioners will also find it helpful. 6 Working with Others 1 What is Working with Others? SECTION 1 Working with Others is the key skill that The focus is on helping students learn focuses on the individual's ability to work to become valued members of a team with another person or with a group for the one of the most vital skills for employability purpose of achieving shared objectives. and, increasingly, for academic and vocational education and training at Working with Others involves: all levels. agreeing objectives for a project making plans and agreeing roles and responsibilities taking responsibility for carrying out one's role reviewing the success of the project. Process skills, interpersonal skills, and personal qualities Working with Others calls for a range of skills and personal qualities: such as: such as skin Inter rsonal target setting reliability planning confidence such as: clarifying roles and empathy teamwork and supporting responsibilities persistence co-workers organising self-awareness communicating ideas obtaining resources openness to feedback listening to others reviewing the work willingness to learn showing assertiveness from experience communicating needs negotiating support asking for help and feedback handling disagreement and conflict 7 Teaching and learning 2 Teaching and learning The main focus of portfolio assessment is Working with Others on the process skills, but these cannot be fully developed without interpersonal skills With working with others, as with many and personal qualities. skills, it is easy to think that 'some people Process skills, interpersonal skills and are good at it and some are not' and that personal qualities are underpinned by the skill cannot be explicitly learned and for example, of how to knowledge developed. Similarly, it is easy to think identify what needs to be done, how to that, just because students are working plan and set targets, how to seek help, in a group, they are exercising all the how to support others, how to receive and skills involved in successfully working use feedback, how groups work and how with others. to reflect on the whole process. This In this booklet, we will show that many know-how is the subject of sections 4 and techniques associated with working with 5 of this publication. However, this does others can be learned and developed, and not reflect the order in which the skills and also that working effectively with others qualities should be developed or used: requires a student (of whatever age or they may be called upon at any time in a ability) to know how to assess their own group project. performance in groups and to be aware of how their behaviour affects others, what is In the context of the key skills happening in a group, and why people qualifications (Communication, behave as they do. This is not to say that Application of Number and every student needs to become a social Information Technology), different psychologist but that working effectively skills and underpinning knowledge with others calls for a capacity to stand are needed for each component of back and reflect on what is happening. the unit. In Working with Others, Students need to learn to understand there is more overlap between the both the group process as a whole and skills, qualities and knowledge also their own part in it. They can be which are needed at each stage helped to develop this capacity both in of the process. one-to-one tutorials and in group discussion. Working with Others 3 What is the value of Developing the skill to work with others Working with Others? often involves the familiar four stages of skills development: At school, college and university 1 Unconscious incompetence - 'I don't even know that lam All learning programmes require students no good at this' to contribute to small-group and class 2 Conscious incompetence discussion, and many include 'I've realised that I can't do this' opportunities to work with others on a project or assignment. If students are to 3 Conscious competence cooperate and work effectively in this way, 'I've learned how to do this but they need to: I still have to think about it' develop their social skills 4 Unconscious competence 'I can do this without thinking; understand how groups work I can't remember why it was develop their awareness of the needs of ever a problem'. the group and of the individuals in it learn from and respond to what others think, say and do. Similarly, enrichment programmes usually that involve students in group activities is one of their main purposes. Students who aim to achieve Working with Others in the context of enrichment activities will have a framework which will make them more aware of the cooperative skills they have and of those they need to develop further. For employability Employers always emphasise that working with others, or working in teams, is a particularly important skill. Teaching and learning 4 Changes in working methods and The experience of Working with Others technology have had a profound can help students: effect on work. People who work well develop communication, negotiation and in groups, are well organised and can problem-solving skills solve their problems are the people learn how to share ideas who get on best at work and get learn about different ideas and ways of promoted. The key skills units give them working the broad skills to help them succeed. enjoy their work Employment Policy Institute become more attractive to employers. Working with Others helps to provide It is becoming more and more common for the framework for young people to people in organisations to work in teams, understand that they have to be as traditional hierarchies give way to flat responsible for tasks. If they fail to structures and multiskilled ways of do something, someone else has working. Some teams are relatively to do it for them. If someone else fails permanent, and repetitive tasks and to do something, they have to do it for familiar work mean that each team them. It helps to make the transition member has a fixed role. However, when from school to the workplace, where tasks require some creative input, teams somebody has to do the work. may be set up for the lifetime of a Community training team leader, particular project and be re-formed for North Wiltshire District Council each new project, according to the particular combination of skills required. Experience shows that teamworking: increases energy and creativity makes the most of a range of skills and knowledge improves understanding, communication and a sense of shared purpose improves efficiency. 10