Teamwork & Teaching

This seems to be the new unchallenged wisdom, the dogma of a corporate religion. I heard a teacher claim that while his class were working on a task, that was not the purpose. ‘What they were actually learning was teamwork, to work together.’ I see; so the process is more important than the task? How odd. But surely working as a team is not the only way or even the best way for much of the time.
Even if we maintain the sporting analogies – and how tedious they are – we recognise that some sports like rugby are for teams but others are definitely solo performances. Tennis for example. Go on then – name the winners of the mixed doubles at the last Australian Open, or even of the men’s doubles!
And we seem determined that the only way to perform tasks is by teamwork and this is the myth we inflict on the students. The fact is that working in teams is riddled with so many problems that it is usually better to work alone or at most, with one partner. Sometimes it is the only way or the best way but usually the problems outweigh any benefit. I saw this demonstrated with a spoof of those awful motivational posters that are plastered everywhere. Normally they would proclaim TEAMWORK with a picture of a rowing eight or the like. This one proclaimed the same with a picture of five rats killed by the same trap at the same time. It was certainly faked but the point is valid. One person can get it wrong but a team, like a train can go right off the rails.
So what are the problems? Firstly, getting the team together. It’s hard enough arranging a meeting with one or two people but getting a ‘team’ together regularly in real life (not a school) is a nightmare. Try it. Try and find a weekday night when every member of a five-strong group can attend a meeting. Good luck. Push it to six or seven and it becomes impossible.
Secondly, once you get a group together the natural proclivity for humans to play politics is inevitable. (‘Humans are political animals’ – Aristotle) The agenda is overwhelmed by dominance games and power plays. I once saw a vicious power struggle for control of a weight loss group.
Thirdly, if the wrong person dominates then the whole team goes off in the wrong direction, like the rats working on that trap.
Fourthly, the implied demand for compliance is so strong that dissenting voices are howled down, ignored or classified as ‘not a team player’ (an insult).
Fifthly, most of the time is spent in non-task processes like setting an agenda; observing meeting protocols; allowing everyone a say, even the idiots; discussing appropriate task processes; arguing the options. In the end, everyone hates the meetings and, if you are very, very lucky then someone will actually go off and just do it. Of course, the ‘team leader’ will then take the credit for the product, claiming to have inspired the team. This is in the nature of things.

I am not a team player. There, I’ve said it. And I’m not ashamed. Almost everything I have achieved in life I did alone or with the help of a single mentor or partner. Once I was in an effective team of three that achieved something worthy, but we simply divided the task and went off to do the bit to which we were uniquely suited. One person defined the task, we did our parts and then one person took charge of assembling the final product. We were not a team in the normal sense. We were too smart to attempt to work closely together. If we had we would have fought and never finished. We were not friends. Equally I have no skills in management or budgeting and would much rather that those who do just get on with it invisibly. Sure, I may complain about a problem now and then – so listen and accept or reject my complaint. Do we need to have ten meetings about it? Make a decision. Manage.
Teaching is not a team activity. You’re in there on your own with up to twenty-six unco-operative ‘clients’. You can pretend to work with them co-operatively rather than performing for them but they won’t admire it much unless you are an extraordinary person - and most of us are not. It is a rather solitary task for the most part despite the fact that you are in a room full of people. Help is offered by colleagues but you don’t seek it as that would be an admission of failure. Team teaching is no such thing as it rarely involves more than two teachers. That’s not a team. And it often confuses the students. And you may spend hours synchronising your efforts and content.
You’re more or less on your own – get on with it.