Collaboration As A Teacher

As a professional educator, it is important that I collaborate with colleagues. Collaboration between colleagues build relationships among teachers and plays a significant role in the growth of an educator. There are many positives to collaboration but communication is essential. We all have different perspectives, and ideas and when people meet, conflict can arise because of the many differences. Furthermore, the personality of teachers can also clash when a group meets. As a teacher leader, it is important to understand colleagues and that can be accomplished through questioning. The primary focus that educators need to remember when collaborating should be on student learning. While collaborating with professionals at school, there is …show more content…
I wanted to know as much as possible about my young colleague, so I could create a plan that assures adult learning takes place. Mark Smith (2010), wrote an article that included assumptions by Malcolm Knowles on the characteristics of adult learning, and I thought of questions with these assumptions in mind. For example, my colleague is completing her third year of teaching. From experience, she feels she has expanded her teaching methods since her first year. As a mentor, this is important to me because I know with the more experience a teacher has, the more knowledge they gain. My colleague’s response told me she is progressing as an educator because of the changes she has made from experience. Another assumption from Knowles is the readiness of adults to learn as they mature (Smith, 2010). As educators, we need to improve our skills, and we do that by attending workshops our district offers. Furthermore, our readiness to learn is seen by the different learning communities we join. My young colleague is a strong believer in professional development and is part of two separate learning communities. As a mentor, this tells me how eager she is to develop her skills as a teacher. It is important that educators collaborate with other professionals. The collaboration process may not always be smooth because of the different perspectives and personalities of teachers. The key to successful collaboration is communication, and getting to know your colleague. The best way of getting to know your colleague is asking questions and listening to their answer. As a teacher leader, coach, or mentor, knowing all you can about your colleague will ensure productive