Teamwork Experience Research Articles

Is technology enhanced learning an interdisciplinary activity?

This paper describes an approach to working in educational technology informed by the recognition of the subject as a major current site for interdisciplinary activity. Currently the most popular term for educational technology embraced in the UK and in the EU is Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL). We draw on the literature on interdisciplinary and multi-disciplinary working, contemporary rationales for interdisciplinarity as an imperative for meeting the challenges of knotty real world problems, and the experience of working in interdisciplinary teams in TEL. The purpose is to establish the particular features of this collaborative research effort. This perspective from literature and contemporary rhetoric around practice is supplemented with reference to several interview studies of TEL project teams. These studies outlined the advantages in terms of growth, multiple perspectives and design methodologies but also the challenges in terms of sustainability, career progression and publication, the benefits of technologies for communication within teams and distinctive working practices (Jordan et al. 2012, Conole et al., 2010, Scanlon et al., 2013).

Bad Attitudes: why design students dislike teamwork

<p>Positive experiences of teamwork in design contexts significantly improve students’ satisfaction with teaching and their attitudes towards future teamwork. Thus, an understanding of the factors leading to negative and positive team experiences can inform strategies to support effective teamwork. This paper examines design students’ perceptions and experiences of teamwork. Three sources of qualitative data were analysed: a pilot survey completed by 198 design students in four institutions; five focus groups with 23 students; and a national survey completed by 417 students from 18 Australian universities. Students were from a range of design disciplines, with the majority studying architecture. The findings provide insights into issues and challenges of learning how to design in teamwork contexts, in particular the importance of adopting strategies to promote individual accountability within a team and ensuring fair assessment that acknowledges levels of individual contributions. The paper concludes with recommendations for teachers.</p>

Cascade Outreach Competitions for schools – an efficient way to introduce Particle Physics to many students

The Particle Physics group at the University of Birmingham has tried many different formats for Outreach competitions over recent years. We have found that a Cascade competition is a very efficient way to introduce Particle Physics concepts and experiments to a wide range of students. Small groups of students research, prepare and deliver a short presentation to other students. We will describe variations on the format of this type of competition and include some examples from our winning entries. All the material that we have used for these competitions is freely available on the web which we hope will make it easier for more groups to try similar competitions in the future.The name Cascade emphasises that the competition aims to introduce and inform many students about Particle Physics. However relatively limited time is required from researchers and teachers to enable this. The students research the material themselves and give their presentations, which often include novel demonstrations well matched to the target age group, to younger students or students of their own age. The participants also gain valuable experience in teamwork from the challenge of producing and delivering a clear and interesting talk by all members of the team, as well as improving their own understanding of the subject during the process.

Clinical Education: MLS Student Perceptions

This research study examines the perspectives of medical laboratory science (MLS) students completing their clinical education. Experiential learning provides the conceptual framework for clinical education in the healthcare professions. Students are placed into a community of practice where they are asked to apply learned theories in a sometimes stressful and distracting setting. A series of interviews and observations took place involving MLS students completing clinical internships. Participants were able to describe factors that contribute to the process of how learning occurs during clinical education. The four categories of findings that are described in depth include student self-awareness, the clinical environment and setting, preparation for clinical education, and preceptor role. Participants described the process of learning as one in which they apply skills learned prior to the internship with the experience of professional socialization, teamwork, and unique patient or interprofessional communication during the practicum. The role of preceptors is a key factor in providing an environment conducive to student learning. Conclusions and recommendations from these data provide valuable insight to educators of medical laboratory science and other healthcare professions in regards to clinical education. ABBREVIATIONS:NAACLS - National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences, MLS Medical Laboratory Science

PSYCHOSOMATICS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE

Интегративная медицина – перспективная модель современного подхода к обследованию и лечению обширного контингента больных, находящихся в сфере ответственности и взаимодействия специалистов психосоматического направления и соматопсихиатрии. В России до настоящего времени опыт такого взаимодействия фрагментарен и отражает инициативы отдельных коллективов. Вместе с тем накапливаются убедительные данные в пользу общих механизмов развития ряда соматических заболеваний и психических расстройств.

РОЗРОБЛЕННЯ СЕРІЇ КНИЖКОВИХ ВИДАНЬ ДЛЯ ДІТЕЙ: ПЕРШИЙ ДОСВІД КОМАНДНОЇ РОБОТИ

The reason for writing of the article was the first experience of team work in the publishing project “SlovOpys” (the author of the project – Ruslana Kostur). The project objective is to develop a series of book editions for the children of preschool and primary school age in order to promote the Ukrainian language ordered by the publishing center “ACCA”. It was decided to develop a series of books with stickers, on which the rarely used words in the Ukrainian language are written and illustrated. The series was called “Decorate your life with the Ukrainian language”. The students-publishers and the students-advertisers were involved into development of this project.

Practicing Inter-Professional Teamwork among Nursing and Medical Students

Learning how to work effectively on inter-professional teams has been identified as an outcome competency in nursing education as specified by the Quality and Safety Education in Nursing Teamwork and Collaboration Competency [1] and in medical education as specified in the Liaison Committee on Medical Education [2]. How to teach teamwork skills, and where to place this content in the curriculum, is an ongoing problem for both medicine and nursing. The purpose of this paper is to describe the development and evaluation of a community work-place learning activity that evolved from a nursing student experience to an interprofessional experience. Background: Nursing students from a large midwestern research university had been participating in a health screening research project of school children supported by the Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Foundation of their community health courses. Learning objectives for each course were broad with very little differentiation between levels. Using concept-based curriculum principles, and content from the Team STEPPS in 2006 national program, the courses were restructured and an interprofessional teamwork experience for nursing and medical students was implemented. All students participated in an extensive orientation that required each one to pass skills tests for taking an accurate blood pressure and performing accurate height and weight measurements. Nursing students were educated at two different levels: junior nursing students lead the activity while sophomore students focused on health screenings data collection and assessment. Previous to the restructuring, the team leader role was assumed by faculty. With role clarification, faculty shifted their function to the role of a team coach. Medical students were trained much like sophomore nursing students with the role of carrying out clinical tasks. Following each interprofessional teamwork experience, students completed the Interprofessional Collaborative Competencies Attainment Survey (ICCAS). IRB determined this to be exempt from review. Results: An Independent sample t-test was used to compare mean score differences. Mean score differences on the ICCAS between inter-professional collaborative competencies before and after the experience for 122 participants showed a significant improvement between Total pre-mean score (M=116.5, SD=19.1) and Total post mean score (M=127.6, SD=15.2); t=8.5, p<0.001. Additionally, all ICCAS subcategories (Communication, Collaboration, Roles and Responsibilities, Collaborative Patient/Family Centered Approach, Conflict Management, Team Functioning) showed a significant difference between pre and post mean score differences. Conclusion: The public health screening project funded by the Prentis grant was effective in learning interprofessional collaborative competencies while meeting nursing and medical student course learning objectives. Faculty creatively working together can overcome the obstacles to inter-professional education to promote learning teamwork and collaboration.

The experiences of midwives and nurses collaborating to provide birthing care: a systematic review.

Collaboration has been associated with improved health outcomes in maternity care. Collaborative relationships between midwives and physicians have been a focus of literature regarding collaboration in maternity care. However despite the front line role of nurses in the provision of maternity care, there has not yet been a systematic review conducted about the experiences of midwives and nurses collaborating to provide birthing care. The objective of this review was to identify, appraise and synthesize qualitative evidence on the experiences of midwives and nurses collaborating to provide birthing care.Specifically, the review question was: what are the experiences of midwives and nurses collaborating to provide birthing care? This review considered studies that included educated and licensed midwives and nurses with any length of practice. Nurses who work in labor and delivery, postpartum care, prenatal care, public health and community health were included in this systematic review.This review considered studies that investigated the experiences of midwives and nurses collaborating during the provision of birthing care. Experiences, of any duration, included any interactions between midwives and nurses working in collaboration to provide birthing care.Birthing care referred to: (a) supportive care throughout the pregnancy, labor, delivery and postpartum, (b) administrative tasks throughout the pregnancy, labor, delivery and postpartum, and (c) clinical skills throughout the pregnancy, labor, delivery and postpartum. The postpartum period included the six weeks after delivery.The review considered English language studies that focused on qualitative data including, but not limited to, designs such as phenomenology, grounded theory, ethnography, action research and feminist research.This review considered qualitative studies that explored the experiences of collaboration in areas where midwives and nurses work together. Examples of these areas included: hospitals, birth centers, client homes, health clinics and other public or community health settings. These settings were located in any country, cultural context, or geographical location. A three-step search strategy was used to identify relevant published and unpublished studies. English papers from 1981 onwards were considered. The following databases were searched: Anthrosource, CENTRAL (The Cochrane Library), CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycINFO, PubMed, Social Services Abstracts and Sociological Abstracts. In addition to the databases, several grey literature sources were searched. Papers that were selected for retrieval were independently assessed for inclusion in the review by two JBI-trained reviewers. The two reviewers used a standardized critical appraisal instrument from the Joanna Briggs Institute Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument. Qualitative data were extracted from papers included in the review using the standardized data extraction tool from the Joanna Briggs Institute Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument. Once qualitative studies were assessed using the the Joanna Briggs Institute Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument critical appraisal tool, findings of the included studies were extracted. These findings were aggregated into categories according to their similarity in meaning. These categories were then subjected to a meta-synthesis to produce a comprehensive set of synthesized findings. Five studies were included in the review. Thirty-eight findings were extracted from the included studies and were aggregated into five categories. The five categories were synthesized into two synthesized findings. The two synthesized findings were:Synthesized finding1: Negative experiences of collaboration between nurses and midwives may be influenced by distrust, lack of clear roles, or unprofessional or inconsiderate behavior.Synthesized finding 2: If midwives and nurses have positive experiences collaborating thenthere is hope that the challenges of collaboration can be overcome. Qualitative evidence about the experiences of midwives and nurses collaborating to provide birthing care was identified, appraised and synthesized. Two synthesized findings were created from the findings of the five included studies. Midwives and nurses had negative experiences of collaboration which may be influenced by: distrust, unclear roles, or a lack of professionalism or consideration. Midwives and nurses had positive experiences of teamwork which can be a source of hope for overcoming the challenges of sharing care.There is clearly a gap in the literature about the collaborative experiences of midwives and nurses, given that only five studies were located for inclusion in the systematic review. More qualitative research exploring collaboration as a process and the interactional dynamics of midwives and nurses in a variety of practice and professional contexts is required.Distrust, unclear roles, and lack of professionalism and consideration must all be addressed. Strategies that address and minimize the occurrences of these three elements need to be developed and implemented in an effort to reduce negative collaborative experiences for midwives and nurses. Postive experiences of teamwork must be acknowleged and celebrated, and the challenges that sharing care present must be understood as a part of the collaborative process.More qualitative research is required to explore the collaborative process between midwives and nurses. Further exploration of their interactional dynamics, their relationship between power and collaboration, and the experiences of collaboration in a variety of professional and practice contexts is recommended.

Risk Analysis and Setting Priorities in Air Traffic Control by Using a Matrix of Similarities

Abstract This article considers how mathematical decision-making in Air Traffic Control could be done in order to minimize the risk of collisions. An example of how to prioritize airplanes which are in the vicinity of an airport according to their level of risk in respect to other airplanes is given by using a matrix of similarities and Euclidean metric. The analysis has shown that it is necessary to classify ATC specialists and ATC centers according to their ability to provide safe enough service using time methods and highly experienced team work.

Team Leader Selection by Using an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) Technique

One of the important elements in building effective teamwork is team leader selection. In a team, leadership is the most significant role which contributes to the success of a software project. During team leader selection, there are several criteria that should be considered for decision makers. With regard to this problem, selecting team leader can be considered as Multi Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) problem. One of the most popular techniques of MCDM that can be employed in selecting the suitable team leader is Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). AHP techniques consists of three key principles which are hierarchy framework, priority analysis and consistency verification. Thus, this paper presents AHP steps to select suitable team leader based on four criteria which are personality type, academic achievement, teamwork experience, and previous programming grade. Result illustrates that AHP technique can assist decision maker to effectively evaluate the alternatives in order to select suitable team leader, particularly for Software Engineering (SE) education community.

Operating theatre nurses’ experiences of teamwork for safe surgery

The aim of this study was to describe operating theatre nurses’ experiences of teamwork within the surgical team in regard to achieving patient safety. Safe surgery for patients is based on teamwork in a safe modus between the members in the surgical team. Operating theatre nurses contribute to safe surgery by professional perioperative nursing activities and by participation in teamwork in the surgical team. A qualitative descriptive design using narrative interviews with 16 operating theatre nurses in Sweden was chosen for increased understanding of their experiences of teamwork in regard to achieving patient safety. The findings are presented in three themes, illustrating teamwork in regard to achieving patient safety between the operating theatre nurses’ and other professionals in everyday situations. From the operating theatre nurses’ narrated experiences of teamwork, person-centred nursing care, interdependent collaboration and familiarity of the professionals’ skills contributed to safe surgery. A brief meeting, unfamiliarity of professionals’ skills, uncontrolled tantrums and experiences of exclusion were experienced as counteractive to patient safety. The operating theatre nurses managed demanding situations by diverse strategies to restore patient safety.

Direct access in the UK: what do dentists really think?

To investigate dentists' views on the likely impact of direct access (DA), the clinical competence of hygienists and therapists to work autonomously and possible predictors of such views. Random survey of registered dentists. UK, 2014. A random sample of UK-based dentists registered with the General Dental Council (GDC). A unique-access online questionnaire was developed, with a paper alternative. Email and postal reminders were sent. Measures of positive/negative views regarding the impact of DA and clinical competence of hygienists and therapists to work without a dentist's prescription. One hundred and fifty-nine responded (response rate: 27%), 78 (49.1%) of whom were female. No significant sources of response bias were identified. While 122 (77%) had not undergone joint training with dental hygienists or therapists at the undergraduate level, 98 (62.4%) currently worked with a hygienist and 33 (21.0%) with a therapist. Eighty-three (53.2%) disagreed with the GDC decision regarding DA for hygienists, and 94 (59.1%) felt the same regarding therapists. Concern was greatest in respect to diagnosis, treatment planning and restorations. Comments were predominantly negative and reflected concerns over patient safety, what was seen as hygienists' and therapists' inadequate training or expertise, the undermining of the dentist's role, service delivery, the reform being poorly planned, implemented or being a cost-cutting exercise. Experience of teamwork was not predictive of positive/negative views. Response was low, thus posing a potential threat to the study's representativeness. Many dentists had concerns and reservations about DA which were unrelated to teamwork experience. The dissemination of information on curricula and scope of practice may help allay such concerns, as may a greater emphasis on joint training at both the undergraduate level and within continuing professional development programmes.

Obstacles and Facilitators in Developing Integrated Team Based Home Care Services in Lithuania

Introduction. The development of innovative high quality care forms is a challenging issue in rapidly aging society of Lithuania. The new shape integrated homecare services for people with chronic conditions have been constructed and have been functioning over the year as the pilot projects in the 21 municipality around Lithuania. In almost all integrated care pilot municipalities except two regions (in Alytus and Sakiai, with primary health care units as integrated care providers) the initiative to develop team based integrated homecare services to persons with chronic conditions has been taken by departments of social services. The purpose of this study is to identify the key contextual elements and related strategic, organizational processes from pilot municipalities as facilitators and obstacles in developing mobile team based integrated homecare services as contrast to traditional institutionalised care. Theory/Methods. Pettigrew and Whipp's context, content and process model of strategic change was used as theoretical framework for the case studies of team based integrated homecare pilots. According this framework the data collection focused on three entities: what external and internal contexts instigated municipalities and service providers to take the challenge to develop the new shape integrated team based homecare services and how service providers perceive, construct and implement integrated team based homecare; and finally, what outcomes have been shaped with new form integrated care. Data were analysed from transcripts of 20 focus groups with administrators, social and health care providers and 12 in depth interviews with care receivers (informal caregivers and patients) in ten purposively sampled municipalities: pilots executed by municipality social provision departments in partnership with private and state agencies, directly by social services departments and by primary health care unit. The findings were compared with factors and dimensions of Normalisation Process Theory (May et al. 2007). Results and discussion. The study revealed the obstacles and facilitators related to individual and different organizational levels in constructing team based integrated homecare. The study 15th International Conference on Integrated Care, Edinburgh, UK, March 25-27, 2015 1 International Journal of Integrated Care – Volume 15, 27 May – URN:NBN:NL:UI:10-1-117127– http://www.ijic.org/ revealed individual level topics such as trust and collaboration building between integrated team care providers and informal caregivers, challenges in building new routines and habits for patient in homecare process, resistance and adaptation to presence of constant changing strangers’ at home. The study exposed the organizational issues related to interaction between team members and administration, tensions issues in status difference between social and health care providers, tasks distributions between team members, perception diversity of team and care, lack of teamwork experience and sense of shared responsibility, issues of staff commitment due to termed pilots. The inter-institutional and intra-institutional hindering tensions between social and health care providers unclosed the competition over the homecare field; new institution as threat to monocracy of health care; lack of skills and early transition from hierarchical to dialog based horizontal structures; inequality of resource distribution between integrated team members uncompensated travel costs for social care providers vs. car with fuel coverage for health care providers. The mentality of monolog culture with highly hierarchic structures in health care system hinders recognition of nursing as separate profession with certain competencies: avoidance by nurses to take decisions on nursing issues without consultation with physician even in areas of their professional competence supremacy as care of bedsores. The important facilitators were the support of municipality in service development and participatory involvement of the unit from the beginning of project planning. The professionally organized integrated homecare services facilitated transition to collaborative relationship between health care and social care providers. The requirement to follow literally description of project activities even the performance of planned activities contradicted the reality in practice hinders development of new service. As study limitation is the administrators gatekeepers’ role in accessing research participants: patients, informal caregivers, health and social care providers. In some municipalities the presence of head of the unit in the focus group suppressed openness of the staff. The study had insufficient data on patients’ experience of care as the integrated care pilots addressed severely ill patients with limited communication abilities. Conclusions. The study revealed micro, mezzo and macro levels obstacles and facilitators in constructing team based integrated homecare. The distinction of developed models of team based integrated homecare services participatory interaction between stakeholders of the care with the traits of patient centred approach and collaborative practices between existing social and health care structures. The move from the tradition of hierarchical model of service development ( i.e. from “above” perspective constructing orders of ministers with limited perception of reality and municipalities as executive committees with resistance performing commandments and shaping service delivery imitation) grounded the participatory practice in service development.

The Importance of Recognizing Roles in Teams for Higher-Quality Work in Preschools and Schools

The authors of this article analysed the importance of recognizing roles in team work experience for work experience quality work between preschool teachers and teachers in preschools and schools. Teamwork is a complex area, which includes communication, collaboration, and reacting to stressful situations. Accordingly, it is absolutely necessary for preschool teachers and primary school teachers to have good communication skills, management of potential conflict situations, approaches to identification and management of different work situations, as well as approaches to coping with stress and working with different people. The purpose of the empirical study was therefore to analyse and compare different roles in teamwork at preschool (between preschool teacher and her assistant) and primary school, especially in first grade, where the teacher and preschool teacher work together in the classroom. During the empirical research, conducted on a population of preschool teachers and teachers in the first grade of primary school (sample size was 140), the authors found that all different roles appear as important and more or less equal; maybe some more preschool teachers and teacher seem to take on the role of team worker or implementer The authors did not observe important statistical differences considering work experience or level of education, but there are, as expected, differences considering work position.

THE ROLE OF FIELD TRAINING PRACTICES IN EDUCATION OF STUDENTS OF GEOLOGICAL SPECIALTIES

AbstractThe scope of the paper is to show the significance of field training practices in preparation of the specialists in Geology and possible ways of their organization and fulfillment on a high quality level.The object – is the preparation system of students of Geological specialties. The subject of the paper is training field geological practices.The field geological practices in Odessa University have been carried out for more than 100 years. At the moment teaching stuff of the Physical and Marine Geology Department is entirely responsible for implementation of these practices. The aim of the practices is consolidation of knowledge which were obtained by students during studying of theoretical material, acquisition of experience of field investigation, maintenance of geological documentation, gaining of work experience in a team and development of skills to work within a collective. The practice comprises important elements of research work.In methodological basement of training practice lies the principle of modeling of work in real geological survey. The students undergo all the stages of geological survey, i. e. preparation, field stage and laboratory work. Concluding stage of the work is acceptance of field materials, compilation of final geological report with a set of geological maps, construction of final geological maps of the study area, presentation of the report of each team in front of commission which consists of a teaching stuff.The most efficient way to fulfill training practices is on the stationary basis due to close and prolonged interaction between teaching stuff and students, organized infrastructure, possibility of joint work with teachers in the field and as well in laboratories and ensuring of required safety techniques. Usage of stationary basis for field practices is economically sound.The program of training geological practices is elaborated successively for each year of education. As the result of field training geological practices students are able to work independently, make own conclusions concerning geological questions. In addition, students acquire important experience of team work and unforgettable impressions about a field season.Field training geological practices are indispensable during profession preparation of students and formation of their geological world-view. Preparation of qualified specialists in geology, of high quality, without field training practices is impossible.

A feasibility study of the provision of a personalized interdisciplinary audiovisual summary to facilitate care transfer care at hospital discharge: Care Transfer Video (CareTV).

To assess the feasibility and patient acceptance of a personalized interdisciplinary audiovisual record to facilitate effective communication with patients, family, carers and other healthcare workers at hospital discharge. Descriptive pilot study utilizing a study-specific patient feedback questionnaire conducted from October 2013 to June 2014. Twenty General Medical inpatients being discharged from an Acute General Medical Ward in a metropolitan teaching hospital. Audiovisual record of a CareTV filmed at the patient's bedside by a consultant-led interdisciplinary team, within 24 h prior to discharge from the ward, provided immediately for the patient to take home. Patient surveys were completed within 2 weeks of discharge. Technical quality, utilization, acceptability, patient satisfaction and recall of diagnosis, medication changes and post-discharge review arrangements. All patients had watched their CareTV either alone or in the presence of a variety of others: close family, their GP, a medical specialist, friends or other health personnel. Participating patients had good understanding of the video content and recall of their diagnosis, medication changes and post-discharge plans. Patient feedback was overwhelmingly positive. In the context of a General Medical Unit with extensive experience in interdisciplinary bedside rounding and teamwork, CareTV is simple to implement, inexpensive, technically feasible, requires minimal staff training and is acceptable to patients. The results of this pilot study will inform and indicate the feasibility of conducting a larger randomized control trial of the impact of CareTV on patient satisfaction, medication adherence and recall of key information, and primary healthcare provider satisfaction.

New Frontiers of People-Centered Integrated Care for Complex Chronic Disease

Objective: Heart failure is a chronic, progressive clinical syndrome with an unpredictable trajectory and difficult prognosis. In 2012, the Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia was appointed pilot leader of a European-funded project for ICT-supported integrated care addressed to European frail citizens, to test the viability and evaluate the impact of health and social care integrated services through an extensive deployment program involving 23 European regions. Methods: Cohort, prospective, randomized study with 1:1 intervention vs. usual care ratio (200 total users) Medical sensor devices and environmental sensors all contribute to keeping end-users safely at home. Integrated, real-time access to the platform allows for integration of clinical and social data. Help-desk and Contact Centre staff, provide 24/7 monitoring of alarms, as well as support to adherence and social inclusion. Results: The European project is planned to end as of December 31st, 2015. While final results are pending, focus groups, case studies and qualitative interviews show that Smart Care integrated platform is being perceived as possibly facilitating person-centred supportive care by streamlining services, allowing for updated information sharing, and providing empowerment to patients, families and professionals alike. Comments and conclusion: Integrated ICT-supported care may successfully complement chronic care pathways for complex cardiac patients. However, in-depth quanti/qualitative data analysis will have to be carried out to understand whether the benefits in terms of work overload and economic costs are such as to allow for costly technical and organizational choices. Supportive pathways need to build on actual integrated team work experience and leadership. GPs’ roles, responsibilities and economic incentives need to be clearly defined in order to make integration viable and sustainable in the long run. Nurses may play an important role in the coordination and monitoring of services but workloads and responsibilities require clear definition and assessment. Training and education need to be carefully planned and steadily monitored to maintain retention and support stakeholders’ empowerment. Integrated ICT-supported care should always be utilized within a beehive-integrated person-centred model to enhance the quality of IT-supported health and social care interventions which cannot and should not replace personal and social interactions.

How do School Management Teams (SMTs) Experience Teamwork. A Case Study in the Tshwane North District Schools

Democracy in South Africa, among others, has brought a significant number of changes in the education system, including the concept of school management team (SMT) in schools. This article focuses and sought to unpack the experience of SMT members regarding teamwork. It has the potential of helping SMT members by empowering them with knowledge and skills which will assist them to share their leadership widely and equally to education; and enable the SMT to realise that teamwork is central in the efficient and effective school management. Interviews were conducted with twelve SMT members from six secondary schools in Tshwane North district, sampled using purposive sampling. Among others, this study has found that, although the concept of teamwork is well-received, there are significant obstacles to the implementation of teamwork as an alternative form of management. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n23p1432

An emotion based approach to assessing entrepreneurial education

This study investigates links between emotional events and developed entrepreneurial competencies in an action-based entrepreneurship education program where students create real-life ventures. It represents a novel approach to assessing entrepreneurial education. A longitudinal design was applied following three engineering students during nine intensive months. Students were equipped with a mobile smartphone app used to report emotional events and critical learning events. Reports were followed up quarterly with semi-structured interviews. Links were identified through data analysis software NVIVO.Findings indicate a large number of links between emotional events and developed entrepreneurial competencies. Three kinds of emotional events strongly linked to developed entrepreneurial competencies were interaction with outside world, uncertainty and ambiguity and team-work experience. These emotional events were linked to formation of entrepreneurial identity, increased self-efficacy, increased uncertainty and ambiguity tolerance and increased self-insight. These links represent early empirical evidence for three effective design principles of entrepreneurial education, and can also be used as indirect measures in assessment. This study also confirms venture creation programs as a suitable environment for studying entrepreneurship as experience.Limitations of this study include a small number of interviewees, unknown transferability of results to other contexts, and risk for individual bias in data coding.

The architecture of teamwork: examining relationships between teaching, assessment, student learning and satisfaction with creative design outcomes

Student satisfaction with teamwork experiences is important for two interrelated reasons. First, students learn about teamwork more effectively when they view their teamwork learning experience more positively. Second, their satisfaction with prior teamwork learning has an impact on future teamwork learning – because team effectiveness is influenced by attitudes and motivations to teamwork shaped by past experience. This paper draws on data collected from almost 196 students at 4 Australian universities. It considers the relationships between architecture students' satisfaction with two dimensions of teamwork – its processes and its outcomes – and five pedagogic factors that teachers can control: team size, assessment, team formation, the teaching of teamwork skills and knowledge, and feedback on teamwork skills and processes. The results indicated that a student's perception of whether assessment was fair was the greatest predictor of satisfaction. Through an understanding of the factors that contribute to positive learning experiences for students in teams, suggestions are given on how design educators might better support student learning in teamwork assignments and student learning of how to design in teams.