Team!

          Here at college, I am a member of the Luther College Swimming and Diving team.  I believe our team is a very highly effective team.  To be a highly effective team you have to work hard.  That is one thing our team does daily.  We have double day practices and at every single practice we work hard.  Another quality to have in an effective team is support.  On our team we support everyone.  At our meets we never sit down.  We stand and cheer at every lane for a Luther swimmer.  The final quality that comes to my mind that makes an effective team is a goal.  At the beginning of the season we fill out a goal sheet for ourselves.  We also have team goals which we establish at a standards meeting.  I believe establishing goals helps the team stayed focused.  It keeps everyone in line to not be lazy during our training.  

         Collaboration refers to an instruction method in which students at various performance levels work together in small groups toward a common goal.  The students are responsible for one another’s learning as well as their own.  Thus, the success of one student helps others to be successful.  Cooperative learning is more than simply asking student to get in a group and work on an assignment together.  This stresses formal instruction which teachers carefully design lessons and activities that are suitable for use by teams.  Cooperative learning is working together to accomplish shared goals.  Both terms are used interchangeably.