Team Learning Processes Research Articles

Modelling Performance Improvement and Switching Behaviour in Team Learning

Accounting educators and agencies have sought to incorporate team learning activities into conventional learning methods. The readiness-assurance process (RAP) of team learning, in which students take quizzes first as individuals and second as members of student teams, has been shown to be effective in this regard. We analyse the RAP with a fixed-effects regression model to identify the factors that contribute to performance improvement and we use ordered logit regression to estimate, probabilistically, switching behaviour within student teams. A longitudinal study was conducted over the course of a semester in which 101 undergraduate accounting students, comprising 22 teams, completed six quizzes. Within-team knowledge disparity was shown to be a significant indicator of performance improvement, and individuals appeared more likely to switch their answers after the first quiz. There were no significant effects for either performance or switching associated with demographic measures of sex and English fluency. Implications for accounting educators are discussed.

Respecting the oral and literate in co-management communication

Natural resources planners—especially those involved in forest management—are increasingly being challenged in their ability to “think on their feet” and speak interactively in cross-cultural co-management teams addressing issues of natural resources management. Team learning occurs in the discovery of the best conversations to initiate that will have the potential to discover the relevant questions to ask. Continuous identification and systematic resolution of strategic issues is best done by carefully respecting both oral and written means of communication. This paper reviews historic and recent trends in the re-discovery of a team learning process that honours spoken words and respectfully facilitates dialogue. Balancing orality and literacy in the context of adaptive co-management with communities will enable natural resource stakeholders to continually improve the relevance of their policy, research and management. Key words: oral tradition, natural resources management, adaptive co-management, problem-based learning

The Development and Empirical Validation of a Multidimensional Measurement Instrument for Team Learning Behaviors

The importance of teamwork to organizational success in today’s economy has been emphasized in literature for well over a decade. Effective teamwork can only be sustained, however, if it is supported by a process of team learning. Following Edmondson, the authors regard team learning as a group process comprising several concrete learning behaviors. The aim of this article is to report on the development of a conceptual framework and its operationalization into a measurement instrument for behaviors associated with team learning. A better understanding of these distinctive behaviors and their impact on team performance may help tailor interventions aimed at improving team performance. Based on a survey among 19 operational teams in the Dutch banking sector, the authors validated a multidimensional instrument for team learning behaviors. To prevent common-method bias, they used a multirater approach with two respondent groups, namely, team members and leaders (representing the insiders of the team), on one hand, as well as supervisors (representing the external stakeholders of the team), on the other hand. The data indicated a positive relationship between several team learning behaviors and team performance, and partly confirmed their theoretical model.

Learning and training in safeguarding work

This issue of Child Abuse Review coincides with the recent publication of Lord Laming’s (2009) progress report on child protection in England. This report is significant in highlighting the under-resourcing of front-line children’s safeguarding and child protection services, a climate of excessive bureaucracy and the need for better training, leadership and support for front-line staff, in particular social workers and health visitors, police child protection staff, GPs and accident and emergency staff. The papers in this issue provide some opportunities to explore and reflect on the best ways to achieve learning around childhood harm. Problems with interagency working are historic and both research evidence and Serious Case Review reports highlight the challenges of effective communication and the difficulties associated with cross organisational working. The report by Watkin and colleagues (2009) explores the use of a facilitated interprofessional learning programme with a range of professionals involved in child protection work to overcome some of the barriers associated with interprofessional working. The main focus of the programme was to improve participants’ knowledge and awareness of different professionals’ roles in order to optimise team-work skills. Through the use of regular facilitated meetings and dedicated training time, the research showed a statistically significant improvement in five out of six measures of team performance over a period of six months. Reflective statements provided evidence of the value of face-to-face contact, with participants reporting that having the time and opportunity to reflect on working practices with other agency colleagues enhanced learning at both individual and team levels. The authors draw attention to the support and time required to overcome ‘deeprooted cultural differences and barriers to effective inter-agency working’ (Watkin et al., 2009, p. 164) and the need to link such interventions to service user benefits. More research is clearly needed on both the process of team working and learning and the impact and potential benefits for services users on the receiving end. Vicki Rowse’s (2009) small phenomenological study sought to examine the views and experiences of paediatric nurses and midwives involved in child protection cases to identify helpful support mechanisms. Very little research has been conducted in

The Use of Team Process Framework to Improve Small Group Learning

Working in teams is an important aspect of clinical practice and medical education. Medical educators have embraced instructional strategies that use multiple learners to facilitate learning. However, the learning benefits of these strategies should be substantiated by additional inquiries in the area of team cognition and team processes. There are limited efforts to evaluate the efficacy of learning processes associated with learning teams. This presentation provides theoretical background for team learning processes that influence team and individual learning. It also outlines the development of shared understanding or shared mental models, and how they impact students' performance. Team process behaviors, such as team communication and team coordination, mediate the process of developing shared mental models, which in turn affect learning outcomes. Understanding the role of shared mental models in small group learning improves the efficacy of small group learning.Grant Funding SourceN/A

Advancing Acquisition of Business Know-How

The turbulent business environment requires business expertise from ever-larger personnel groups. The required business know-how is a combination of knowledge and several different skills, and it should provide the learners with an overall view of the functioning of a business organization as a whole. Moreover, while work is increasingly becoming a team and group effort, the potential strength of collaboration should also be presented in the learning environment. In this paper we first identify elements that advance the acquisition of relevant business know-how. Second, we describe how these elements can be embedded in a time intensive business simulation game, and present two simulation training sessions. Third, we analyze how the participants in the case trainings reflect on the elements that advance the acquisition of business knowledge. The analysis is qualitative by nature, utilizing simulation game participants’ answers on questions concerning the different elements. Our results show that with dynamic simulations it is possible to support the team learning process, and enhance collaboration skills and overall understanding of the functioning of business organizations.

Use of Team Learning in an Introductory Graduate Pharmacology Course

In this poster, aspects of the team learning process, which were introduced into the Endocrine Pharmacology Unit of an Introductory Graduate Pharmacology course, is described. Considerations for curriculum design, small group assignments, instructional materials, small group activities, assessment, student opinions, and cost/benefit considerations will be presented. The effects of team learning strategies on student participation during class, preparation before class, and student perceptions were examined considering a student feedback instrument, instructor perceptions, comparisons of student performances in the Unit and the Course, and personal interviews with students. The aspects of the team learning activities that were utilized included separation of a class body into independent small groups, required mastery of stated objectives, common instructional materials, group problem solving in a class room environment, opportunities for intergroup discussion, valid information from a content expert as part of the group discussion, and extra-classroom opportunities for group problem solving and knowledge acquisition. A primary divergence from the classical team learning approach was the ways in which pre-class preparedness and individual responsibility for knowledge acquisition were encouraged and assessed. Specifically, the Individual Readiness Assurance Test was not utilized; and individual assessment of student performance was obtained at the end of the educational unit. Employing group problem solving by extrapolation from earlier information to provide a response to a probe or addressing important pharmacological issues within a case vignette, proved to be an effective substitute for the Group Readiness Assurance Test.

An innovative use of the web to build graduate team skills

Successful graduates in today's competitive business environments must possess sound interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively in team situations within, and across, disciplines. However, developing these skills within the higher education curriculum is fraught with organisational and pedagogical difficulties, with many teachers not having the skills, time or resources to facilitate productive group processes. Furthermore, many students find their teamwork experiences frustrating, demanding, conflict-ridden and unproductive. This paper brings together the perspectives and experiences of an engineer and a social scientist in a cross-disciplinary examination of the characteristics of effective teamwork skills and processes. A focus is the development and operation of ‘TeamWorker’, an innovative online system that helps students and staff manage their team activities and assessment. TeamWorker was created to enhance team teaching and learning processes and outcomes including team creation, administration, development and evaluation. Importantly, TeamWorker can facilitate the early identification of problematic group dynamics, thereby enabling early intervention.

Developing teams using the Kolb Team Learning Experience

This article shows how the Kolb Team Learning Experience (KTLE) simulation has been used by teams to enhance learning. The KTLE includes seven modules: (a) introduction, (b) team purpose, (c) team membership, (d) team roles, (e) team process, (f) team context, and (g) team action. Each of these modules takes a team through the process of team learning: creating, planning, deciding, and acting (or, in technical terms, diverging, assimilating, converging, and accommodating). The authors describe the simulation and provide examples from teams that have engaged in it.

Learning process in new product development teams and effects on product success: A socio-cognitive perspective

The study purports to develop and empirically test a model of team learning process and its effects on team performance in new product development teams. Using the socio-cognitive theory of learning in groups and organizations, several hypotheses were tested to show that the primer components of social cognition (that is, information acquisition, information dissemination, information implementation, unlearning, thinking, intelligence, improvisation, sense-making, and memory) form an interactive process model of the team learning phenomenon. By studying 165 new product development projects, it was shown: (i) that the eight primer socio-cognitive factors of information acquisition, information dissemination, information implementation, memory, thinking, improvisation, unlearning, and sense-making constitute interrelated sub-components of a higher-order team information-processing construct; (ii) that team intelligence is positively related to components of team information-processing; and (iii) that information-processing facilitates new product success primarily through the positive effects of superior information implementation. Theoretical and managerial implications of the study findings are discussed.

TEAM ROLE PREFERENCE AND CONFLICT MANAGEMENT STYLES

In the context of the widespread and extensive use of team work in organizations this study analyses the relationship between individual team role preference and styles of managing interpersonal conflict. Data were collected from 26 work teams containing 169 individuals at two times four months apart. Results show that team role preference is related to Dominating, Integrating, Avoiding, Compromising and Obliging conflict management styles. Moreover, two different effects were observed over time. Firstly, at Time 2 an increase in the role clarity (reduction of role ambiguity) of team members was observed. Secondly, time pressure and team learning processes moderated the relationship between team roles and conflict managing style. Results have theoretical as well as practical implications for team building programmes in search of integrative solutions to conflict.

DEVELOPMENTS: Adaption of Team Learning to an Introductory Graduate Pharmacology Course

Background: Team-learning experiences within a large group setting have a variety of educational applications.Description: Aspects of the team-learning process were introduced into the endocrine pharmacology unit of an introductory graduate pharmacology course. Each session involved both a faculty lecture and student participation in problem-solving exercises. Curriculum design, small group assignments, instructional materials, small group activities, assessment, student opinions, and cost-benefit considerations were evaluated.Evaluation: The effects of team-learning strategies on student participation during class, preparation before class, and student perception were examined using a student feedback instrument, instructor perceptions, and comparison of student performances in the unit and the course, as well as personal interviews with students.Conclusion: The use of team learning was appreciated by the students and instructor. Students strongly believed that the team-learning component improved the extent and value of their classroom participation and offered insights equaling those of the lecture.

Learning One’s Way to Implementing Learning Teams in Korea: The Relationship Between Team Learning and Power in Organizations

The problem and the solution. One very strong and cohesive aspect of Korean culture is a traditionally strict sense of hierarchy based on age, gender, and formal position that dictates interaction, including communication patterns among coworkers. Embedded in this hierarchical aspect of the culture is a pattern of sovereign power. Team learning and organizational learning processes are potentially inhibited by these characteristics. It is important to recognize the role of sovereign power prior to implementing teams as organizational learning mechanisms. A learning strategy directed toward a transition to disciplinary power is a condition for team learning.

Contextualizing Team Learning: Implications for Research and Practice

The problem and the solution. Cultural dimensions such as power distance, individualism/collectivism, masculinity, and cohesiveness all influence team learning processes, conditions, and outcomes. This creates unique and diverse challenges for human resource development professionals working with teams. These challenges require mindful and creative approaches to interventions to facilitating team learning through the use of metaphors and methods of providing for equivocality and anonymity.

Framing for Learning: Lessons in Successful Technology Implementation

The decision to adopt a new technology in the health care setting is merely the first step in an implementation journey. While some new technologies are readily embraced by those who must use them, most are met with some resistance. In some cases, members of diverse groups—including administrators, clinicians, and technicians—must work together for a new technology to effectively take hold, becoming incorporated into routine practice in an organization. This article reports on a qualitative study of hospitals adopting a new technology for minimally invasive cardiac surgery that uncovered substantial differences in both approach and implementation success. Four case studies are presented to illustrate distinct, tacit frames held by the leaders of each implementation project and how these influenced the team learning process and, in turn, implementation success.

Disrupted Routines: Team Learning and New Technology Implementation in Hospitals

This paper reports on a qualitative field study of 16 hospitals implementing an innovative technology for cardiac surgery. We examine how new routines are developed in organizations in which existing routines are reinforced by the technological and organizational context All hospitals studied had top-tier cardiac surgery departments with excellent reputations and patient outcomes yet exhibited striking differences in the extent to which they were able to implement a new technology that required substantial changes in the operating-room-team work routine. Successful implementers underwent a qualitatively different team learning process than those who were unsuccessful. Analysis of qualitative data suggests that implementation involved four process steps: enrollment, preparation, trials, and reflection. Successful implementers used enrollment to motivate the team, designed preparatory practice sessions and early trials to create psychological safety and encourage new behaviors, and promoted shared meaning and process improvement through reflective practices. By illuminating the collective learning process among those directly responsible for technology implementation, we contribute to organizational research on routines and technology adoption.

Processes and outcomes of team learning

The objective of this study was to make a contribution to the question how team learning can be studied. A model of the constituting activities of the team learning process was articulated, and it was explored whether the learning activities relate to learning outcomes. The sample consists of 29 teams of business students who were assigned to fulfill an assignment for a company. We asked them to fill out a questionnaire at the start and at the end of this project. The teams' performance was rated. The relationships between the learning activities reported, the diversity in attitude towards the task, the amount of team learning, and the team's performance were explored. The propositions were partly supported by the data. Central conclusions are that a higher diversity in attitude towards the task is related to a higher experienced amount of learning and that in projects of short duration it is especially storing and retrieving that leads to higher team performance.

Employee participation and cleaner technology: learning processes in environmental teams

The approach to pollution prevention in Danish industries in the late-1980s and in the beginning of the 1990s met criticism, because the cleaner technology projects focused too narrowly on technical solutions implemented by experts. The objective of the project “Employee Participation in the Implementation of Cleaner Technology” was to develop a more active role for employees in the environmental activities of companies. Based on practical experiments in five Danish firms within different industrial sectors, the project concluded that employee participation can have a strong effect on changing working routines, affecting behaviour and increasing environmental consciousness. The project found that the firms' employees had a comprehensive understanding of environmental problems and solutions, including health and safety aspects. Furthermore, the employees in the environmental teams were able to improve the firms' environmental activities (e.g. setting up environmental policies, targets and action plans, implementing new procedures and technologies).

Learning Electronic Reference Resources: A Team-Learning Project for Reference Staff

This article describes how a large academic library addressed the problem of supporting the extensive learning of electronic information resources required by reference and library instruction staff. Library staff participants were organized into teams called Electronic Reference Resource Groups (ERRGs). Individuals within each team shared responsibility for the topics to be covered and for ensuring that everyone participated in both the teaching and learning processes. The ultimate measure of success was whether individuals, who took part voluntarily, found the teams sufficiently beneficial to warrant further participation in the team-learning process. A further stage, an ERRG Learn-in, was later implemented to extend learning opportunities to all library staff.

Learning how to change: a selective analysis of literature and experience of how teams learn and organisations change

This paper draws on the authors' experience, derived from organising higher degree courses (in health care policy and in education) for practitioners from across the public sector, and from their respective experiences of research on change in higher education and the health services. It highlights the importance of understanding how teams learn to change and what actually constitutes ‘change’, in order to enhance professional effectiveness. Four key texts are identified, and analysed in depth, to focus on the concept of change and the process of team learning, from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Common themes from the papers are then elaborated in some detail before the implications arising from these themes are explored Examples, drawn from student experience demonstrate how theory can be used to illuminate and enhance practice. It is shown that it is better to use a limited theory, critically and with discrimination, than to use no theory at all.