TL;DR:
- Co-teaching parallels co-piloting, emphasizing teamwork and communication.
- Crew Resource Management fosters safe, efficient teamwork in aviation.
- Teachers can apply CRM principles to enhance co-teaching effectiveness.
Co-teaching is much like co-piloting (at the outset, it should be clear that my husband is a pilot!). I hear a lot of flying jargon in my house since my father and father-in-law are pilots, too. I usually retreat into a happy place in my mind when they begin talking about the flanges of an aircraft. That lovely place is usually far from conversations that revolve around huge numbers related to petrol carried, the size of the runway, or near misses while flying that could have endangered over two hundred lives.
(The above is why I am an uneasy flyer despite growing up with people who fly daily.)
The best relationships in life (be it in marriages, professional situations, or day-to-day interactions) are forged with a healthy dose of respect, and chances are you may make a friend for life if you co-pilot right! Click To TweetFlying Towards Co-Teaching Success!
Despite my lack of enthusiasm for the math and science of flying, I am intrigued by the social nuances of working as a team. The social aspect of work is usually unavoidable in most professions, and the crew must get along in both flying and teaching. The lack of harmony between working sets in these professions could lead to grave issues at the workplace and, in the worst cases, injury or death.
To offset these risks, the aviation sector organises classes for staff, known as ‘Crew Resource Management’. These sessions are meant to facilitate the effective use of all available resources to ensure a safe and efficient operation, reduce error, avoid stress, and increase efficiency. When I heard about these routine classes, I immediately thought, “Wow! We need to have that more often as teachers!”
Co-Piloting and Co-Teaching
Both of these jobs are stressful. In most cases, when you work with someone else, there is an added degree of stress and pressure due to social factors. Your work will be much easier if you have an efficient and pleasant co-pilot/teacher. Hours could pass by, and you wouldn’t realise that it was the end of your work day. It becomes easier to divide your work and your stress if you have someone like-minded on your side.
But what if you don’t? It can be hard to see eye to eye with somebody with a different work ethic or who looks at professional responsibilities differently than you. Those are usually the times when mistakes happen, and people get hurt. When I hear my husband speak, the flights he truly enjoys are where he’s had an efficient and proactive co-pilot who knew what they had to do and did it without prompting. There is no denying the joy of working in a competent team.
Crew Resource Management for Teachers!
Sharing the workload is a given.
I have always advocated for halving work right down the middle or getting as close as possible to that norm. It may not be possible every time if you have a new co-teacher or due to institutional regulations, but I feel that it’s the best way to ensure a clear demarcation of responsibilities and a mutual assurance that everyone is pulling their weight.
Leadership and followership are both crucial aspects of CRM.
It is said that being a positive leader requires certain qualities, but so does good followership! In fact, it is harder to be a good follower, and those skills need to be honed too!
A respectful attitude may seem like a no-brainer, but it sometimes slips through the radar.
An older teacher may dictate terms to a younger one without realising it. Also, an experienced teacher may be flippant about a trainee’s idea, or one could simply be using a tone on a tiresome day without knowing it. The best relationships in life (be it in marriages, professional situations, or day-to-day interactions) are forged with a healthy dose of respect, and chances are you may make a friend for life if you co-pilot right!
Go the extra mile once in a while.
If your co-pilot is under the weather, handle more of the workload to ease the pressure. Do something that doesn’t fall under your job purview that the other person may appreciate. Sometimes, it just takes a gesture to ensure the other person feels cherished and understood.
Laugh on the job.
Nothing makes the day whiz by like a day spent laughing with a buddy. Crew Resource Management becomes easier if you can laugh off the small stuff and sweat the small stuff together.
Situational awareness is vital to ensuring you make the best of your relationships.
In aviation, situational awareness is one’s ability to accurately perceive the immediate environment and outside, comprehend the meaning of these elements, and project their possible status in the near future. In teacher speak, I interpret this to mean that we must be aware of how we and our teaching companions feel in the current environment and outside. Be sensitive to your co-teacher’s baggage, stress, and strain. Try to understand how that may affect on-time performance and make adjustments to your flight/teaching plan.
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The Takeaway
Co-teaching relationships can make or break your professional happiness. It only takes a little to get a lot, and understanding varying perspectives can make the difference when making crucial decisions or needing support at the right time. Teachers always have team-building workshops, but it’s essential to be a teammate every day when the going gets rough and on days filled with laughter.
About Sanam Edwards
Sanam Edwards is a teacher in Gurgaon (India). She enjoys building the student’s voice and choice within the classroom environment while infusing her quirky sense of humour into daily activities. She’s an advocate for technology in the classroom and is constantly on the lookout for new ways to engage the students mentally and emotionally. She regularly blogs about her forays in the education sector at www.reviewmirror.in
