Best Foot Forward!

Teaching is more than standing in front of a group of students, it is more than showing up and implementing lesson plans, teaching is engaging and immersing ones self in all aspects of the world of education.

Within the world of education there are four areas that encompass the philosophies of teaching: 1) Planning and Preparation, 2) Instruction, 3) Classroom environment, and 4) Professional Responsibilities (Alvarez & Anderson, 2011, p. 61). These four areas evolve and revolve around many of the best practices I look forward to striving for and arriving at but here is my top 5!

* Understanding Development Pathways and Progressiveness

* Motivation

* Including Students in the Process of Teaching and Learning

* Good Communication Skills

* A Good Sense of Humor

        Understanding development Pathways and Progressiveness – no two students are alike, regardless of how close in age they may be. Just because students are grouped together in a grade, does not mean they are at the same place in development, skills, and ability (Henninger, 2009, as cited in Santrock, 2009, p. 7). Self Evaluation: Am I treating each student as the individual they are and not expecting them to fit into someone else’s box? Do my lessons and interaction reflect my understanding of development and progression? (Planning & Preparation)

·         Motivation - To maintain an instruction that is both interesting and interactive, a teacher must remain motivated to be an effective teacher. Bad attitudes are contagious, and it stands to reason a good attitude can be just as contagious. Being motivated to provide instruction that moves the students to think deeper and helps move them toward self motivation is the ultimate goal in instruction. Self evaluation, I need to be asking myself; Am I motivated and is that motivation reflective through my lessons and instruction? Am I seeing my students begin to self motivate? (Instruction)

·         Including Students in the Process of Teaching and Learning – If the goal of the classroom is to work together toward a common goal, regardless of what that goal may be, then it is very important that all participants have some say in how that goal will be met. Including students can be as simple as asking for their input about a lesson or homework assignment. It can mean brainstorming with the students about classroom rules that are important. Letting students have input about lessons and the classroom helps them take some responsibility for their classroom and empowers them to take that responsibility. Self evaluation: How I have I empowered my students? Have I asked for their input? (Classroom environment).

         Good Communication Skills – Knowing how to communicate is something that evolves on a regular basis and is often accomplished through trial and error. Conflicts in communication can teach valuable lessons. Positive communication experiences leave an impression that one wants to repeat. Good communication also involves nonverbal cues. How a teacher interacts both verbally and nonverbally with the students can affect the message of instruction. Good communication involves actively listening to those who are speaking to us. All areas of good communication can affect the ability to be an effective teacher. Self evaluation: Videotaping while in the classroom offers the chance to observe both my verbal and nonverbal communication. What messages am I sending to my students in both areas of communication? (Professional Responsibilities)

·         A Good Sense of Humor - Let’s face it, life is never what we expect and there are things that happen that we cannot control. When all else fails, laughter is the best medicine. Being able to laugh at my own mishaps allows my students to know mistakes happen, we learn from them, perhaps laugh at them, and move on. Humor allows for fun and learning should be fun. Often times learning takes place without even being aware that we have learned something. I believe that teachable moments often arise from humorous moments. Self evaluation: Am I taking the stress of my profession too seriously? When was the last time I had fun and added a little humor to my classroom activities? (Professional Responsibilities)

Sources:

Alvarez, M., & Anderson-Ketchmark, C.. (2011). Danielson's Framework for Teaching. Children & Schools, 33(1), 61-63.  Retrieved February 23, 2011, from ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Source. (Document ID: 2242536331).

Santrock, J., (2009) Educational psychology. 4^th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill Primis Custom Publishing

Conflict In All Its Glory

Elemental Conflict Management

Conflict is just something that is expected in life, whether it is interpersonal, work related, or a personal internal conflict. Conflicts can be resolved. Conflicts have certain elements just like any other form of communication. There are aspects of conflicts that allow for certain creativity and there are areas of conflict that call for doing what has always been done. Just as there are ways to effectively communicate, there are effective ways to conflict resolution and management. The elements and skills required for conflict management are as essential as learning to talk or walk, given the right tools, conflicts can be resolved and managing them can be learned.

Elements of Conflict Management

·     Learn to acknowledge the position of others

·   Actively listen

·   Gain effective questioning techniques

·    Accurately interpret non-verbal cues

·   Use collaborative communication

·    Learn to think creatively in order to resolve manage oneself

·    Master our emotions and our thoughts (Getting emotions under control can often time be one of the simplest ways to manage a conflict.)

Putting even one of these elements into practice could help lead to a better managing of conflicts of the everyday sort.

  Just by changing our minds, there can be a shift in the conflict itself. This shift can lead to a new perspective, which then opens the door for seeing solutions and ideas that perhaps were not apparent before.

Laughter is the Best Medicine

Once solution to conflict management may be humor. “Humor, creativity, and invention follow precise general patterns that occur much more frequently then we realize and that applying such knowledge in appropriate situations can help us escape vicious cycles of miscommunication and conflict” (Sclavi, 2008, p. 158).

Communication Fits In

At the heart of all resolutions and management of conflict is the art of communication. Communication skills are defined as, “the successful performance of a communicative behavior and the ability to repeat such a behavior” (Cahn & Abigail, 2007, p. 40).   Managing conflict has the ability to repeat a “successful communication behavior” during a “dynamic, ongoing” process, leads to effective communication and better resolutions to conflicts. The ability to have a dialogue with oneself before a conflict, will offer a way to know what one wants to say, even if there is no way of knowing what the other party will say. It is a precursor to the actual conflict itself. It also allows for one to keep emotions at a level that is not escalated.  

The Process of Conflict

·         The Prelude

·         The Triggering

·         The Initiation

·         The Differentiation

·         The Resolution

However, some conflicts get stuck and continue to happen over and over and over because of a communication breakdown. Knowing how to communicate effectively can help break the cycle a conflict may be stuck in.

Communication Climate

Find and maintain 

•  A climate of openness
• Assertiveness
• Cooperation.  

This type of environment allows for a different type of communication. It offers a secure arena where conflicts can be handled in a manner that is not threatening to any party of the conflict. If those involved in the conflict have stopped and calmed down before they initiate any conversation, have taken the time to think about what they want from the conflict, are willing to listen actively, and communicate in a manner that is none aggressive, then the doors for an effective managing of the conflict is well on its way.

Conclusion

“If we feel safe enough to assert our interests, needs, and goals, listen to others, and cooperate in the process of achieving an understanding, we are more likely to cooperate and collaborate”  (Cahn & Abigail, 2007, p 192)

The elements and skills required for conflict management are as essential as learning to talk or walk, given the right tools, conflicts can be resolved and managing them can be learned, utilized and effective.

References

Cahn, D., & Abigail, R., (2007) Managing conflict through communication 3^rd ed. Boston: Pearson education Inc

Kohlrieser, G.  (2007). Six essential skills for managing conflict. Perspectives for Managers,(149), 1-4.  Retrieved July 16, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1300014231)

Sclavi, M.. (2008). The role of play and humor in creative conflict management. Negotiation Journal, 24(2), 157-180.  Retrieved July 16, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1473329661).

Taylor, K., Mesmer-Magnus, J., & Burns, T.. (2008). Teaching the art of negotiation: improving students' negotiating confidence and perceptions of effectiveness. Journal of Education for Business, 83(3), 135-140.  Retrieved July 19, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1517979611).

Taking the Time for Collaboration

Collaborating

I win, you win

Symbol: Owl

Fundamental premise: Teamwork and cooperation help everyone achieve their goals while also maintaining relationships

Strategic philosophy: The process of working through differences will lead to creative solutions that will satisfy both parties' concerns

When to use:

·         When there is a high level of trust

·         When you don't want to have full responsibility

·         When you want others to also have "ownership" of solutions

·         When the people involved are willing to change their thinking as more information is found and new options are suggested

·         When you need to work through animosity and hard feelings

Drawbacks:

·         The process takes lots of time and energy

·         Some may take advantage of other people's trust and openness

Source: Culbertson, H., (200-2001) Conflict management strategies and styles  Southern Nazarene University

Taking the Time for Collaboration

Conflict is a phenomenon that can occur in many daily interactions. Cahn & Abigail (2007) say engaging in and dealing with conflict in our lives is as likely as getting up in the morning (p.2). It is always a challenge to determine how best to handle conflict, however, fictitious conflicts offer a chance to dig deep into how to handle conflicts.

 The case scenario below, (Communication Studies Capstone, 2011) puts a conflict into the hands of a pseudo manager of a fictitious company. Looking at the scenario, there are three things that must be answered; 1) how will the employee be approached, 2) how will the employee respond and 3) what conflict resolutions will be utilized.

    You are a department manager in a mid-sized company that provides technology support services.  You have ten employees who are required to maintain a high level of technical expertise and deliver excellent customer service.  One of your employees, who has been with the company for two years, is performing at a substandard level and you have received numerous complaints from customers and coworkers.  In addition, this employee has displayed confrontational behavior which has created a hostile environment.  You must now meet with this employee and deliver an ultimatum regarding the need for immediate improvement or dismissal (Wk 3).

In this scenario, there are several conflicts that are already evident. There are conflicts between the employee and coworkers and complaints from customers the employee is coming in contact with. At this point in the scenario the possibility of resolution falls to the manager and how the conflict is handled.

The Approach

When considering how to approach the employee several items need to be in place. First, for the manager, documentation is vital. Documenting dates, times, and offenses gives the manager the ability to approach the employee in a matter of fact manner, with some assertiveness but without aggressiveness. Hybels & Weaver (2007) call this type of approach “emotional disengaging” (p. 224). Approaching an employee with facts and documentation maintains a professional manner and an objective viewpoint, without emotion. Taking the emotions out of a potential conflict is not an easy task, however, in a professional setting “emotional disengaging” is a task well worth working toward. The preparation of documentation is one of many steps when addressing an employee who is not working up to par.

The next step is finding a location that is both private and professional within the workplace facility. Choosing a private local shows respect for the employee, allows the conversation to remain confidential, and will help ensure the meeting is not interrupted (Hybels & Weaver, 2007, p. 225).  The reaction of the employee is not guaranteed; therefore, taking the time to ensure privacy is an important step when a manager needs to give constructive criticism or ultimatums.

Employee Reaction

The scenario states the employee has been confrontational and the manager can anticipate the same reaction when having this conversation with the employee. At this point, the manager needs to adopt a “constructive attitude”. This attitude again may lead to the employee feeling respected by and confident in the manager and their ability (Hybels & Weaver, 2007, p. 225).  The goal of the manager and the meeting is to gain an openness from the employee so an agreed upon resolution can be found.

Resolution

The goal is to reach collaboration between the employee and the work environment. Collaboration allows for self interests of the employee while meeting and respecting the needs, interests and goals of the company (Cahn, & Abigail, 2007, p. 83). The manager is going to need to use a direct, assertive, yet constructive manner to obtain the goal of resolution. The manager needs to clearly state the problem(s), referring to documentation and company policy, and then allowing the employee to absorb what has been said, thus demonstrating a willingness to listen to the employee.  When responding, the manager needs to rephrase what was said by the employee (Hybels & Weaver, 2007, p. 225). After the employee has had time to respond and the manager has restated the employee’s response, it is time to begin working toward a resolution.

It is very important to remain focused on the issues and how to resolve them. By using effective listening skills, paraphrasing, and respect, doors to resolution can be opened (Hybels & Weaver, 2007, p. 225).  The employee, in this scenario, is a risk for greater conflict, yet, the manager has the ability to make or break the resolution via the approaches that are used to handle the conflict.  The conflict is not always the issue, often times, the problem lies in how the conflict is handled which leads to resolution or not.

References

Cahn, D., & Abigail, R., (2007) Managing conflict through communication 3rd Ed.  Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

Communication Studies Capstone. (2011). Delivering bad news tactfully and effectively Week 3. Ashford University

Hybels, S., & Weaver, R., (2007). Communicating effectively 8th Ed. Boston: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.