Reem Saif
Eng3050
Team Work: Response
Collaborative work has always been integrated in the class room to create an intellectual
and productive working environment. Therefore, in both the articles, “Stasis Theory as A
Strategy for Workplace Teaming and Decision Making” and “Team Writing: A Guide to
Working in Groups”, focus on the exigence of team work has on modern day working
environments. In the article “Stasis Theory as A Strategy for Workplace Teaming and Decision
Making,” author H. Allen Brizee describes teaming and decision making as essential because it
encourages teams to work together rather than against each other, help focus on the decision
making collaboratively and using it as a tool for invention, arrangement and analysis.
Throughout Brizee’s article he is introducing the Stasis theory as a strategy that is determined to
help create the perfect teaming environment in any workplace. Stasis provides many strategies
that will create common ground for all the team members and their roles in the group. Brizee
(2008) describes how stasis theory as an essential tool stating:
Stasis theory gives us a practical heuristic to help teams sort out the issues involved in
document development while fostering the invention of new ideas. With a few strategic
alterations to the classical understanding of stasis theory, we can develop a flexible tool
that better aligns with fast-moving, flexible, postmodern technical workplaces. We can
also develop pedagogical applications of stasis theory that will prepare students in
technical fields for these kinds of work environments (p. 369).
However, the strategy that stood out the most to me as a student who is continuously working in
teams are focusing on rhetorical strategies of cooperation rather than forms of argumentation. To
be able to manage a team one must understand how to start an open discussion and often these
discussions turn into an argument of ideas. Therefore, Brizee’s strategy of exchanging
knowledge rather than focusing on attacking someone else’s ideas is able of creating an
environment where information and perspective can be exchanged respectively and where the
exchange of knowledge leads to innovative outcomes. Brize (2008) emphasizes the importance
of critical understanding within the team to focus on decisions that reflect the issue by stating: “I
also hope to show how stasis theory encourages teams to develop a critical understanding of
rhetorical situations. I argue that taxonomic patterning of information in stasis theory helps
groups focus on the matter at hand so decisions reflect the issues in contention” (p.364). This is
a strategy that will definitely me as an individual manage my role in a team and understanding
team mates.
On the other hand, in the article “Team Writing: A Guide to Working in Groups, “author
Joanna Wolfe was able to integrate real life examples of failed group work and present the flaws
within those examples and present their solutions. Wolfe argues that team work is important
because it prepares students for the workplace and improves educational experiences because in
team’s students are able to freely voice their point of view. The three basic methods, face to face,
divided and layered, presented by Wolfe are all potential strategies if used at the right time can
help me manage a team. The face-to-face method can be used when we are done with a certain
task and we can meet to discuss our thoughts on the tasks, divided is done when research is
needed and layered is when everyone needs to be able to complete certain tasks based on
previous knowledge. Wolfe (2009) discusses how alternating between methods leads to the best
outcome by stating: “By figuring out which type of collaboration will be the most beneficial at
various stages in the project, team members can avoid many problems and ensure that they use
their time productively” (p. 9). Also, alternating between methods can lead to one method not
being used because they require more work or is time consuming. Wolfe (2009) highlights this
flaw stating:
Despite its substantial advantages, student teams tend to underutilize layered
collaboration- probably because it requires the most planning and experience of the three
methods. While face-to-face collaboration and divided collaboration seem to come
naturally to student teams, layered collaboration requires forethought and some basic
training to use it effectively. In part because layered collaboration is unfamiliar to
students-and in part because it is the form of collaboration that most frequently leads to
higher-quality products-this book stresses layered collaboration in much of the advice
and many of the examples provided. (p.9)
If time is put into understanding and integrating the three methods properly into the team, the
team work would be evenly distributed and will be reflected on the work produced.
Works Cited
Brizee, H. (2008). Stasis Theory as a Strategy for Workplace Teaming
and Decision Making. Journal of Technical Writing and
Communication, 363-385.
Wolfe, J. (2010). Team writing: A guide to working in groups. Boston:
Bedford/St. Martin's.