Sharing Good Practice
NINE WAYS TO COLLABORATE
EFFECTIVELY WITH OTHER TEACHERS
BY ATIF MAHMOOD
parents to sign up as volunteers
(be aware, they may need to
complete some forms to legally do
so, especially if they’re helping on a
regular basis).
• Talk to parents. As you can
imagine, parent’s evening is a great
opportunity to find out more about
what they do.
• Don’t be afraid to ask. Some parents
won’t want to collaborate; others
will be delighted to. You won’t know
until you ask.
T
he benefits of collaboration in
schools are well-documented.
Working with other educators
means better access to fresh
ideas, new resources, schemes of
work and much more. It also invariably
means a reduced workload, which in
turn, lowers stress and leads to greater
wellbeing.
We know collaboration works in theory
– but how can you put it into practice in
your daily life? With that in mind, here
are some suggestions about how you
can work more effectively with other
teachers; both online and off.
Nine Ways to Collaborate in
Education
Meet with others (on a regular basis).
You probably already attend regular
departmental meetings; but how
much of that time is spent focusing
on collaboration? Try to introduce an
environment where fellow teachers
feel comfortable sharing ideas, and
even better, developing new schemes
of work together.
This doesn’t have to be limited to
your own school. Take things further
by asking teachers from other
neighbouring schools to join you. It’s
likely that they’ll be covering similar
topics with their classes and, like you,
will appreciate having access to new
ideas or material.
How to get started:
• Discuss with your head of
department. It’s likely that you’ll
need their support to achieve this.
• Get organised. An online platform
/ social media group can be useful
when
coordinating
meetings;
especially if you plan to involve
teachers from other schools.
• Lead by example. By willingly
sharing your resources and schemes
of work, you’ll be creating an open,
helpful environment – which is
perfect for encouraging meaningful
collaboration.
Encourage parent participation.
Getting parents involved can be tricky.
However, with the right approach,
they can offer invaluable skills and
experience. Try to find out what they
might be willing to help with, and if their
expertise could enhance any schemes
of work that you have planned.
For example, if a parent works as a
research scientist, they might be happy
to lead an assembly for the school,
explaining what they do. Likewise, a
stay-at-home parent may be willing to
set aside some time each week to help
struggling readers, who are badly in
need of some ‘one-to-one’ time.
How to get started:
• Send a letter home, asking willing
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Class Time
Join in the (online) conversation. One
of the best aspects of collaboration is
communication. Not only does it help
you to feel less alone in your career;
it also opens up new opportunities
for the future. By joining an online
community of likeminded teachers (for
example, on teacherly.io or a social
media site), you’ll be able to chat
about your next scheme of work and
get feedback from a teacher who has
already completed the topic with their
class.
How to get started:
• Do your research. It’s better to
join a respected, well-regulated
community. Social media is free but
unfortunately, is also vulnerable to
‘trolling’ – which can be irritating.
• Be an active participant. It’s tempting
to be a ‘lurker’ and simply read what
others have to say. We recommend
joining in with conversations. It’s a
good chance to ask questions and
make valuable online allies.
• Be civil. Not everyone will share your
opinions – try to remember that the
purpose is to support and help each
other.
Pool your resources. Create a central
‘zone’ (this could be a series of folders,
a drawer, or even a Dropbox account)
where teachers in your department
can easily share resources, schemes
of work and lesson plans. It makes
far more sense than each teacher
separately preparing every lesson
when working on the same topic.
How to get started:
• Identify what will work best for