Identify and explain the seven defining characteristics of collaboration as stipulated by M. Friend and L. Cook.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Ans: Answers should include:
• Collaboration is voluntary. It should not be forced on anyone. School professionals and their colleagues should be allowed to choose to collaborate.
• Collaboration requires parity among all participants. Parity is the quality or state of being equal or equivalent. Each person’s contribution to the group must be equally valued and each person must have equal power in decision making.
• Collaboration is based on mutual goals. Individuals may have differing opinions and goals across many areas; however, each must agree that the specific goal toward which they are working is mutually valued and agreed upon.
• Collaboration depends on shared responsibility for participation and decision making. All members of the collaborative team have joint or shared responsibility. Shared responsibility does not imply equal responsibility of completing tasks, but it does not preclude the team from sharing responsibility for participation and decision making.
• Individuals who collaborate share resources. Resources may include expertise, time, availability, or materials. Individual members will have different resources available to them. Sharing resources can be difficulty; however true collaborators work together in taking advantage of what is available to them.
• Individuals who collaborate share accountability for outcomes. Shared accountability for outcomes is an outgrowth of shared responsibility.
• A sense of community evolves from collaboration.
Learning Objective: Define the critical elements of collaboration and describe the role of interactive communication, problem-solving, and conflict resolution in effective collaboration. Create examples of when collaboration did and did not work and explain why.
Cognitive Domain: Comprehension
Answer Location: Collaboration as a Process
Difficulty Level: Medium