TOGETHER WE ARE STRONGER
BENEFITS (AND CHALLENGES) OF TEAM
TEACHING
Lawrence Benson & Elaine Clark
In teams of 2 or 3…(5 mins)
• What one thing would you each like to take
away from this session?
• What do you understand by ‘team teaching’
• Have you experience of team teaching? If so,
what form did it take?
What is team teaching?
“A process in which at least two instructors are
responsible for teaching and are present in the
classroom” (Hatcher and Hinton, 1996)
Davis (1995) defines it as “two or more faculty in
some collaboration in the planning and delivery
of a course.”
Models of team teaching
Adapted from Parado and Franch (2008)
Model
Responsibilities
Requirements
Squads (Helms, Alvis and
Co-ordination and/or delivery
Experience/teaching ability
Co-ordination ability
Willis; 2005)
Rotational (Nead; 1995; Co-ordination; scheduling;
White, Henley and Brabston;
ensuring no overlaps or gaps
1998)
Provide co-ordinated
unique content
Colloquiam (Parada and One topic analysed and discussed Provide unique content ‘at
Franch; 2008)
from different perspectives in front will’
of a student audience
Discussant (Lindauer;
Build debate
Active listening
White, Henley and Brabston;
1998)
Feedback on teaching content and
process
Pre and post classroom
debriefs
Interactive
Full for both faculty
Dialogue, debate,
adaptation, flexibility
1990)
Coaching (Nead; 1995;
DEVELOPMENT OF BOTH CONTENT AND
PROCESS
• Students not only need knowledge but they need the
ability to learn how to learn and to apply their
learning to a business or work placed context
• Durcan and Kirkbride (1987)
Key skill in team teaching one of taking and dropping
lead role within a session.
Leadership
Northouse (2013)
“Leadership is a process whereby an individual
influences a group of individuals to achieve a
common purpose”
Leaders in History and current affairs
• Classical:
Evolving theories of
leadership
– Great man theories
– Trait theories
– Behavioural theories
• Traditional:
–
–
–
–
–
Contingency theory
Situational theory
Path-goal theory
Leader – member exchange (LMX) theory
Transactional leadership theory
• Modern:
– Charismatic
– Transformational leadership theory (incorporating servant leadership
& emotional intelligence)
– Team & distributed leadership theories
Basic complementarities in team
teaching
(adapted from Parada and Franch, 2010)
Complementarities
Instructor A
Instructor B
CONTENT
Conceptualise
Passion for subject
Provides detail
Creates overview
Leads discussion
Academic theory
Brings in vision from a
different perspective
Practical application
Reflective
Energises
Elaborates carefully
Invigorates debate
Elaborates argument
Cross questions
Leads discussion
Summarises discussion
PROCESS
Observes reactions
Creates sense of import
Lightens atmosphere
Tales from the floor!
Benefits for students
• Raises level of energy
• Reinforces need to participate
• Provides a model of
discussion/debate/knowledge sharing
• Demonstrates that they and their learning is
valued sufficiently to justify resources
• Enhances depth of learning through joint
focus on content/process
Benefits for faculty
•
•
•
•
•
•
Enhances confidence
Promotes creativity
Maintains energy
Heightens focus
Enhances amount of knowledge in the room
Opportunity to combine different types of
knowledge
• Challenges assumptions; facilitating double
loop learning
In groups of four…
• Can you think of any situations where this
could work for you?
• What concerns, if any, do you have about
using this approach?
Challenges and how to combat
Hierarchy
Workload allocation
Time
‘Waiting in the wings…’
Lol and Elaine’s Team Teaching Top
Ten
10. Attend your team mates
lectures
9. Think about transitions
• You don’t want to look as if you are just
butting in!
• Examples we have used
– “Just to build on that…”
– “ But hang on a minute,…!”
– “Following up on that…”
8. Consider how to evaluate
7. Don’t just work with the usual
suspects
6. Be willing to be surprised
5. Use choreography, where’s Wally?
4. Model debate
3. Select your team mate with
care
•
•
•
•
•
Find someone who has complementarity skills
Find someone you can trust
No free riders as it is can be hard work in planning,
delivery and execution.
Be careful if you are considering working with
someone you are in awe as you could end up as the
servant / handmaiden in the session.
Plan together to take account of complementarities
2. PLAN, Plan, plan
– and then be prepared to ditch plans where
needed!
Be prepared to switch roles/focus
At the basis of all successful improvisation
is planning!
Be prepared to respond to what you see
and hear
1. Enjoy!
“Teachers learn best from other teachers, in
settings where they literally teach each other the
art of teaching!”
Little; 1987
References
• Hatcher, T. and Hinton, B., (1996) Graduate Student’s Perceptions of
University Team-Teaching. College Student Journal, 30: 367-377
• Helms, M.M., Alvis, J.M. and Willis, M., (2005) Planning and Implementing
Shared Teaching: An MBA Team-teaching Case Study Journal of Education
for Business, Sept-Oct: 29-34
• Lindauer, D.L., (1990) A New Approach to Team Teaching Journal of
Economic Education, Winter: 71-72
• Little, J. W. (1987). Teachers as colleagues. In V. Richardson-Koehler(E d.),
Educator's handbook: A research perspective (pp.4 91-518). New York:
Longman.
• Nead, M.J., (1995) A Team-Taught Business Course: A Case
Study of Its Effectiveness at a Comprehensive Community
College Business Education Forum, February, 49(3): 33-35
• Parada, P and Franch, J Team teaching in Martensson, P; Bild,
M and Nilsson, K (2008) Teaching and Learning in Business
Schools
• White C.S., Henley J.A. and Brabson, M.E., (1998) To team
teach or not to team teach – That is the question: A faculty
perspective Marketing Education Review 8(3): 13-23