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RIGHTS and RESPONSIBILITIES of Children 👧🏻👦🏻📖 Smile and Learn

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See also Group Work: Design Guidelines The instructor poses a question. Students are given time (30 seconds or one minute) to think of a response. Each student then pairs with another and both discuss their responses to the question. The instructor invites pairs to share their responses with the class as a whole.

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PLEASE, THANK YOU AND ASKING FOR PERMISSION 🤝 GOOD MANNERS for kids 😊 Episode 2

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When you're in college, it is up to you to complete the work necessary to earn your degree. That said, assigning group projects is a common practice in higher education. Not to mention, many job roles require that you work as a team. So, the sooner you learn to master this type of interaction, the better. These seven tips can help, making your group project a success.

1. Start off the group project on the right foot.

Before you even begin the group project, meet as a group and introduce yourselves. Maybe even do a quick ice breaker, such as asking each member what they ate for breakfast or the best book they ever read. Taking a moment to get to know each other starts the group on the right foot. It helps each of you develop a greater level of comfortability, which is going to be important as you strive to work cohesively in the days and weeks ahead. If you are all in the same vicinity, perhaps you can hold this meeting in person. If you are scattered about, hold this meeting virtually so everyone can attend. Online platforms such as Microsoft Teams or Zoom can be used for this purpose.

2. Designate a group leader.

Although it is important to hold each member of the group on the same level, designating someone as a leader gives each of you someone to go to if problems arise. Assigning someone to oversee the entire project also creates one more point of checks and balances. Ask for volunteers. If more than one person wants this role, have a group vote. If no one raises their hand, consider stepping up. This is a great opportunity to build your leadership skills, which can serve you well once you enter your career.

3. Set clear expectations for all group members.

One reason some groups fail to meet their objective is that the members aren't really clear about what they are responsible for completing. Avoid this by deciding upfront who will do what. Be extremely clear so every member knows what they must do to contribute to the final project. The clearer you are when setting these expectations, the fewer misunderstandings you will have as the group project progresses.

4. Be honest about your abilities.

Ideally, each group member should be assigned a task that matches his or her strengths. This leads to a higher quality finished product, a project that allows each member to shine. If you are competitive by nature, it may be tempting to want to be responsible for a task that is above your abilities. Stretching yourself is great, but not when it is at the expense of your team. With that in mind, don't promise something you can't deliver. Be honest about your strengths so the team can decide how you can best meet its needs.

5. Set deadlines and stick to them.

Napoleon Hill once said that " a goal is a dream with a deadline." Setting mini-deadlines throughout the project keeps the team on task. It enables you to achieve your ultimate goal, which is to turn in the best project possible. Each project is different so, as a team, create a timeline that is realistic and allows you to submit your project on time. Decide what needs to be done at each step. The more specific you are, the better.

6. Meet regularly to check in.

Regular check-ins create accountability. It encourages members to complete their portion of the project on time because they know that they'll have to face the rest of the group on a pre-set day and time. Meeting often also gives the team the opportunity to step in if something goes off course. Maybe a member had an emergency that prevented them from doing their part. Other members can quickly step in and pick up the slack. As with the initial meeting, these check-ins can be done in person or online. Be sure to choose a time when everyone is available. This may require some flexibility as you work around different schedules.

7. Be respectful to all members...always.

Above all, always be respectful to each group member. Keep in mind that people have varying communication styles and some are naturally better at working as a team. Knocking them for their weaknesses doesn't further the group as a whole, nor does it speak well for you on a personal level. One strategy for always acting respectfully is to imagine that the other person is a family member that you respect-such as a sibling, parent, or grandparent-and treat them accordingly. Remember that the way you interact with them shapes the way you are viewed. Would you rather be known as someone who is patient and considerate or someone who easily loses their temper and puts their needs above those of the group?

The Bottom Line on Group Projects

Working in a group isn't always easy. However, following these seven tips can make your team project a greater success, and it will better prepare you for team projects once you complete your degree and enter your field.

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7 Tips to More Effectively Work on Group Projects

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When you're in college, it is up to you to complete the work necessary to earn your degree. That said, assigning group projects is a common practice in higher education. Not to mention, many job roles require that you work as a team. So, the sooner you learn to master this type of interaction, the better.

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If I am continually vexed by any one question in education it is ' how can we enhance student motivation? ' Of course, I do not have the answer, and if there is one it is multi-faceted, complex and, frankly, not going to be solved in this blog post.

From my position as a classroom teacher, I am always on the look out for those strategies that create a state when students are motivated and in their element, where they work furiously without even realising they are doing so, without realising the clock is ticking down to the end of the lesson. There is no better compliment than when students question how long there is left and express genuine surprise at how fast time has passed, and that they have actually enjoyed that lesson.

My, admittedly non-scientific, observations are that many of the times students are in ' flow ', or their element, in my lessons is when they are collaborating in group work.

Why is this then? I believe that we are obviously social beings and we naturally learn in such groups (not always effectively it must be said), but that, more importantly, when working in a group we are able to correct, support, encourage, question and develop ideas much more effectively. The power of the group, guided by the expertise of the teacher, accelerates learning, makes it richer and demands a learning consensus that can push people beyond their habitual assumptions.

Don't get me wrong, there are pitfalls and obstacles to group work. This constructivist approach should build upon expert teacher led pedagogy - ensuring that students have a good grounding in the relevant knowledge before undertaking in-depth group work. Group work can also be beset by issues in many nuanced forms: whether it is subtle intellectual bullying, where the student who shouts loudest prevails; or the encouragement of mediocrity and laziness, as students let others do all the work; or simply by poor, distracting behaviour.

Another issue is 'group think' miscomprehension - indeed, how does prejudice flourish if not in social groups? Yet, this failure is often great for learning as long as the teacher can illuminate the error of their ways. Of course, no teaching strategy is foolproof and plain good teaching should remedy many of the potential ills of group work, just as good teaching can make more traditional teacher-led 'direct instruction' wholly engaging and effective.

I am intrigued by the idea of ' social scaffolding ' (Vygotsky) - the concept that most of our learning is undertaken in group situations, where we learn through dialogue and debate with others, not simply by listening to that voice in our head! That being said, I am not talking teachers out of a classroom here.

The role of the teacher in devising and planning a successful group task takes skill, rigour and utter clarity and precision. Students need to be clear about a whole host of things: from their role, to the purpose of the task and the parameters of expected outcomes to name but a few. Teachers need to keep groups on track, intervene appropriately to improve learning and regularly regain student focus. Teachers have a pivotal role in guiding the group work at every stage.

Group work certainly isn't the lazy option: it takes skill in the planning and the execution, and sometimes, despite our best laid plans, it still fails. That shouldn't put us off - aren't all teaching and learning strategies subject to such risks?

If I was to define a simple and straight-forward basis for the rules for group work it would be:
- Have clearly defined tasks, with sharp timings and with the appropriate tools organised
- Have clearly defined group roles
- Have clear ground rules for talk, listening and fair allocation of workload etc.
- Target your support and interventions throughout the task, but make them interdependent of one another, not dependent upon you
- Always be prepared to curtail group work if students don't follow your high expectations.
So here it is, my entirely subjective top 10 strategies for group work that I believe to be effective (ideas for which I must thank a multitude of sources):
1. 'Think-pair-share' and 'Think-pair-square'.
Well, no-one said this top ten had to be original! This strategy is one of those techniques that we employ so readily that we can almost forget about it, it is simply so automatic for most teachers; yet, because of that we can easily forget it in our planning. We need to use it regularly because it is the very best of scaffolded learning; it almost always facilitates better quality feedback by allowing proper thinking time and for students to sound out their ideas and receive instantaneous feedback from peers. 'Think-pair-square' adds a touch of added flavour, involving linking two pairs together (to form the 'square' to share their ideas before whole class feedback). I defer to this blog post by @headguruteacher for the skinny on 'Think-pair-share' here.
2. Snowballing or the Jigsaw method
Similar to the 'square' approach mentioned in 'Think-Pair-Square', the 'snowballing' activity is another simple but very effective way of building upon ideas by starting with small groups and expanding the groups in a structured way. As the metaphor of the snowball suggests, you can begin with an individual response to a question; followed by then pairing up students up; then creating a four and so on. It does allow for quick, flexible group work that doesn't necessarily require much planning, but does keep shaping viewpoints and challenging 'answers' is a constructive fashion.

The 'jigsaw method' is slightly more intricate. David Didau describes here how it is the "ultimate teaching method", but that it benefits greatly from careful planning. Put simply, when researching a topic, like the causes of the Second World War, each member of a group is allocated an area for which they need to become the 'expert', such as 'the impact of the Treaty of Versailles', or 'issues with the dissolution of Austria-Hungary' for example. With five or six ' Home' groups identified, the ' experts' then leave that group to come together to pool their expertise on the one topic; they question one another and combine research, ideas and their knowledge. Then each ' expert' returns to their ' home ' group to share their findings. It is a skilful way of varying group dynamics as well as scaffolding learning.
3. Debating (using clear rules)
As you probably know, our own inspiring leader, Michael Gove, was the President of the Oxford Union. Clearly, these ancient skills of rhetoric and debate have seen him rise to dizzying heights. Perhaps we need to teach debating with great skill if we are to produce citizens who can debate with the best of them...and with Michael Gove. The premise of a debate, and its value in enriching the learning of logic, developing understanding and the simultaneous sharpening and opening our minds, is quite obvious so I will not elaborate. If you are ever stuck for a debate topic then this website will be of great use: http://idebate.org/debatabase. The Oxford rules model is an essential model for the classroom in my view. It provides a clear structure and even a level of formality which is important, provide coherence and greater clarity to the debate. The rules, familiar steps though they are for many, are as follows:

Four speakers in each team (for and against the motion)
First speaker introduces all the ideas that team has generated
Second speaker outlines two or three more ideas in some depth
Third speaker outlines two or three ideas in some depth
Fourth speaker criticises the points made by the other team
Each individual speaker has two minutes to speak (or more of course), with protected time of thirty seconds at the beginning or the end
The rest of the team is the 'Floor' and can interject at any time by calling out 'Point of Information' and standing. The speaker can accept or reject an interjection.

You may wish to have the other groups work as feedback observers on the debate being undertaking (a little like Socratic circles - number 8). This has the benefit of keeping the whole class engaged and actively listening to the debate.
4. Project Based Learning/Problem Based Learning
I have to admit I have only ever undertaken project style work on a small scale, but in the last year I have been startled by the quality of work I have observed in project based learning across the world. The principals of Project Based Learning are key: such as identifying real audiences and purposes for student work (a key factor in enhancing motivation); promoting interdependent student work, often subtly guided by the teacher at most stages; letting students undertake roles and manage the attendant challenges that arise; learning is most often integrated and spans subject areas; and students constructing their own questions and knowledge. Truly the best guide is to survey these great examples:

The Innovation Unit has also produced this brilliant must-read guide to PBL in great depth here.

'Problem based learning' is clearly related to the project model, but it explicitly starts with a problem to be solved. It is based primarily upon the model from medicine - think Dr House (although he is hardly a team player!). David Didau sagely recommends that the teacher, or students in collaboration, find a specifically local problem - this raises the stakes of the task. Clearly, in Mathematics, real problem based learning can be a central way to approach mathematical challenges in a collaborative way; in Science or Philosophy, the options to tackle ethical and scientific problems are endless. There is criticism of this approach - that students struggle with the ' cognitive load' without more of a working memory. Ideally, this learning approach follows some high quality direct instruction, and teacher led worked examples, to ensure that students have effective models to work from and some of the aforementioned working memory.
5. Group Presentations
I would ideally label this strategy: ' questions, questions, questions' as it is all about creating, and modelling, a culture of enquiry by asking students questions about a given topic, rather than didactically telling them the answer - then helping shape their research. The teacher leads with a ' big question '; then it is taken on by groups who (given materials, such as books, magazines, essays, iPads, laptops, or access to the library or an ICT suite etc.) have to interrogate the question, forming their own sub-set of questions about the question/ topic. They then source and research the key information, before finally agreeing to the answers to the questions they had themselves formed. The crucial aspect about presentations is giving students enough time to make the presentation worthwhile, as well as allocating clear roles. High quality presentations take time to plan, research and execute.

Personally, I find the timekeeper role a waste of time (I can do that for free!), but other roles, such as leader, designer and scribe etc. have value. Also, the teaching needs to be carefully planned so the entire presentation is not reliant solely upon any one person or piece of technology. Developing a shared understanding of the outcome and the different parameters of the presentation is key: including features like banning text on PowerPoints; or making it an expectation that there is some element of audience participation; to agreeing what subject specific language should be included. The devil is in the detail!
6. 'Devise the Display'
I have a troubled relationship with displays! I very rarely devise my own display as I think displays become wallpaper far too soon considering the effort taken to provide them - like newspapers, they become unused within days. I much prefer a ' working wall ', that can be constantly changed or updated (or a 'learning continuum' for an entire topic when can be periodically added to each lesson). That being said, I do think there is real high quality learning potential in the process of students devising and creating wall displays. It is great formative feedback to devise a wall display once you are well under way a topic. It makes the students identify and prioritise the key elements of their knowledge and the skills they are honing.

I find the most valuable learning is actually during the design ideas stage.You can 'snowball' design ideas with the students; beginning individually, before getting groups to decide collaboratively on their design; then having a whole class vote. I do include stipulations for what they must include, such as always including worked examples. Then, the sometimes chaotic, but enjoyable activity it to create the display. I always aim for the ' 60 Minute Makeover ' approach - quick and less painful (it also makes you less precious about the finer details)!

I think they also learn a whole host of valuable skills involving team work, empathy and not to annoy me by breaking our wall staplers! I think it is then important to not let any display fester and waste, but to pull it down and start afresh with a new topic. I know this strategy does put some people off, because it can be like organised chaos, but if everyone has a clear role and responsibility the results can be amazing. [Warning - some designs can look like they have been produced by Keith Richards on a spectacular acid trip!]
7. Gallery Critique
This stems from the outstanding work of on Berger. Both a teacher and a craftsman himself, Berger explains the value of critique as rich feedback in his brilliant book ' The Ethic of Excellence'. It can be used during the draft/main process or as a summative task. This strategy does have some specific protocols students should follow. The work of the whole group should be displayed in a gallery style for a short time. Students are expected to first undertake a short silent viewing (making notes to reflect is also useful here). The students make comments on the work - post it notes being ideal for this stage. Then the next step is a group discussion of ' what they noticed' in particular, with debate and discussion encouraged - of course, the feedback should be both kind and constructive. The next step for discussion is talking about ' what they liked ', evaluating the work. The final stage has the teacher synthesise viewpoints and express their own; before ensuring students make notes and reflect upon useful observations for making improvements.
8. Socratic Talk
I have spoken about this strategy before here. What is key is that like the debating rules above, a clear and defined structure is in place, particularly with ' Socratic circles ' which embeds feedback and debate in a seamless way. It takes some skill in teaching students how to talk in this fashion, but once taught, it can become a crucial tool in the repertoire. In my experience, some of the most sensitive insights have emerged from this strategy and the listening skills encouraged are paramount and have an ongoing positive impact. It also allows for every student to have a role and quality feedback becomes an expectation.
9. Talking Triads
Another simple, but highly effective strategy. It is a strategy that gets people to explore a chosen topic, but with a really rigorous analysis of ideas and views. The triad comprises of a speaker, a questioner and a recorder/analyst. You can prepare questions, or you can get the questioner and the analyst to prepare questions whilst the speaker prepares or reflects upon potential answers. This can be done in front of the class as a gallery of sorts, or you can have all triads working simultaneously. If they do work simultaneously, then a nice addition is to raise your hand next to a particular triad, which signals for other groups to stop and listen whilst that specific triad continues, allowing for some quality listening opportunities.
10. Mastery Modelling
This involves a form of formative assessment from students, whereat the teacher gives a group a series of models, both exemplar models and lesser models, including some with common errors that students would likely identify. The students need to do a critical appraisal of the these models as a group and identify their summary assessment of the models first, before then devising and presenting a 'mastery model' that is a composite exemplar model of work. This strategy works in pretty much every subject, with the subject being either an essay, a piece of art, or a mathematical problem. This presentation should include an explicit focus upon the steps taken leading to create the ' mastery model ' during the feedback - this unveils the process required for mastery for the whole class.
Useful links:
A great research paper that analyses group work and its importance:
'Toward a social pedagogy of classroom group work'
By Peter Blatchford, Peter Kutnick, Ed Baines, and Maurice Galton

An excellent National Strategies booklet from back in the day when the DfE was interested in pedagogy. I particularly like the ' different grouping criteria'/'size of grouping' tables:
Pedagogy and Practice: Teaching and Learning in Secondary Schools Unit 10: Group work

Nice step by step guide to the implementation and the delivery of group work
' Implementing Group Work in the Classroom '

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If I am continually vexed by any one question in education it is ' how can we enhance student motivation? ' Of course, I do not have the answer, and if there is one it is multi-faceted, complex and, frankly, not going to be solved in this blog post.

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Like many others in ministry, I started out as a wet-behind-the-ear, newly married, 23-year-old optimist. I walked into a ministry setting that had been healthy but was on a downward trend. The student ministry at its peak had 30-40 actively engaged students, well over the 10% rule that we often talk about. However, something had happened, and this ministry was lucky to have three students attend youth activities. I was prepared to change that.

I knew that I could be exciting and charismatic in my approach to youth ministry. Surely, the students would see all that I could offer and love their new youth pastor... Was I wrong! In my first year, I was beating my head against the wall trying to connect with the students. I would line up great guest speakers and have powerful messages planned - only three to five students would show up. That was until I had events like Marvel movie nights or anything else that had no spiritual depth. Talk about frustrating!

As I started the second year, I reached out to a mentor about the approach I was taking in this ministry. He challenged me, and I am thankful he did. This friend provided me with great insight about my role as a leader. He knew that my strength was in developing a team culture and building up individuals to make a collective unit. My friend and I walked through a new ministry process for my context. It has forever changed the way I will lead.

We looked closely at my strengths and decided I needed to shift my focus from what I was doing with the students to building a team. This was a challenge at first, but it has turned out to be one of the greatest gifts I have been offered.

I shifted my focus from trying to get students in the doors to finding adult leaders who would invest deeply in the lives of students. We no longer looked at what our weekly attendance was, but at the amount of times we were making meaningful connections with the students. I learned very quickly that the more I focused on my team, the better it was for the students.

We developed E4, a discipleship pathway to walk with people on their faith journey.

1. Encounter: Our leaders make the first connection with the student and their family where they are. This usually happens in a church setting (one of our students invites a friend, etc.), but can also happen within the community. This is largely done by our student leaders. We find it to be much more successful when students are making encounters with their peers.

2. Engage: We engage the student with the gospel and provide opportunities for them to experience the grace and community that come through scripture.

3. Equip: We then shift our focus to equipping these students to be disciples in the world, specifically in their context.

4. Empower: We empower our students to be disciples.

These are the basic principles in our process with students. It is hard to say we do x, y or z because each student is in a different place, but ultimately we always encounter, engage, equip and empower.

I went from being a solo leader to being a team leader. Jesus set the example of building a team in ministry with one another. It took a mentor to step in and tell me that I needed to do the same. In Year One, I relied on myself. Today I rely on roughly 20-25 adult leaders making connections with a group of students on a weekly basis. We have seen numeric growth in our student ministry. More importantly, we have seen spiritual growth. The students and adults have both grown in new and exciting ways in their relationships with Jesus. We have also seen a new sense of community form and a desire to be in ministry with one another grow.

Our way is not perfect, but WE believe that "teamwork makes the dream work." Even if you are sure you can do something better yourself, think about who can be blessed by serving in that way and step aside. None of us wants to deny someone a chance to experience God's blessing!

Look closely at your ministry, take that leap of faith and give the team approach a try. I believe it will work for you, too. The term "church family" will gain new meaning, and you will have people hungry and seeking to be an active part of the ministry that you lead. This is one of Jesus' greatest examples. Follow Christ's lead and take the steps!

*The Rev. Bradley A. Lewis is at O'Fallon First United Methodist Church in the Illinois Great Rivers Conference. To learn more about his team approach to leading youth ministry and the E-4 discipleship pathway, contact him at [email protected] .

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Learn how a student ministry on a downward slope shifted their focus to increase numeric and spiritual growth.

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Team building offers employers and employees an opportunity to improve communication and motivation in the workforce. Employees learn to work as a team for problem solving. Individuals have an opportunity to learn more about themselves and each other. It is an effective strategy for improving employee morale and job satisfaction. Methodologies vary with the business structure and the corporate goals. Numerous consulting firms can guide businesses through the process.

Identify the goals of the team building. This process involves recognizing the troubles that need to be solved so you can fix the right problem.

Plan the team-building program. Make sure all individuals can participate, especially those most affected by the issue. A typical plan may include an icebreaker activity, followed by one or more team-building activities that focus on the problems and goals you have identified.

Conduct your icebreaker activity. This is an effective way for new employees to get to know their co-workers. It may involve simple exercises, such as relating a little-known fact about yourself or a hidden talent you have. Employees may conduct one-on-one interviews with another co-worker following a given set of questions.

Start your first group activity. There are four primary types of team-building activities: icebreaker, problem-solving, communication and trust-building exercises. Your particular situation will dictate how to proceed. A good strategy may be to start with a fun activity to help everyone relax, such as a scavenger hunt or murder mystery. Your team may have to work out a survival strategy by having to brainstorm for a list of must-have items.

Plan breaks or a lunch in your program. Eating together is an effective way to allow employees to connect at a basic level. Sharing a meal is the foundation of the human experience.

Engage in a more challenging team-building activity, such as a trust-building exercise. In a work situation, you might not have the same opportunity to build trust with another co-worker the same way you can on a personal level. Mine Field is a classic example where one employee guides a blindfolded co-worker verbally through an area with obstacles.

End your program with a social event. The purpose of team building is to improve communication among employees. A themed party can interject some added fun into the gathering. This type of event provides an opportunity for the employees to view themselves as part of a group sharing a common goal.

Plan a followup program. The success of your team-building venture depends upon fostering the trust and communication your activities generated within your employees. The followup event will encourage better morale and job performance.

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Team Building & Methodologies. Team building offers employers and employees an opportunity to improve communication and motivation in the workforce. Employees learn to work as a team for problem solving. Individuals have an opportunity to learn more about themselves and each other. It is an effective strategy for ...

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Accountability in leadership is vital to business success, but many leadership teams acknowledge that they have a lot of room to grow in this area.

Global research led by leadership accountability expert Vince Molinaro found that 72% of business leaders and HR professionals agree that accountability is critical for business success. But only 31% are satisfied with the level of leadership accountability they see in their own organizations.

Why is leadership accountability so important for the business, and why do so many leaders struggle to maintain accountability?

Leaders set the tone for the rest of the organization to follow. Without accountability from top-level leaders and middle managers, employees feel rudderless and lost. As a leader, it's crucial to implement accountability, alignment, and focus throughout your team in order to foster team success.

But many companies don't have the cultural infrastructure in place to set clear expectations for leaders. Without a clear definition of what the company expects from leadership, individuals in leadership roles don't have a leadership model to be held accountable to. This results in fragmented leadership at a time when alignment is more important than ever for business success.

Companies need strong leadership to close the loop between strategy, people, and results. Here's how you can embrace leadership accountability at your company.

What Does It Mean to Be Accountable as a Leader?

Leadership accountability in the workplace is an overlooked but essential component of a healthy culture. But what is an accountable leader, and how do they drive business results?

"Accountability" suggests that leaders are held accountable to someone or something. There are several measures of accountability. One is business performance, which most companies prioritize. But leaders must also be accountable to company culture (stated mission, vision, values, and purpose), as well as to the workforce itself.

For leaders to be accountable, they need to be committed to the business and its people. They must take their role as people leaders seriously, building trust among team members. Accountable leaders clearly communicate their goals and objectives and key results (OKRs) to their teams to foster alignment and team focus. They accept responsibility when things go wrong and give credit for success where it's due.

Accountable leaders assess accountability in those below their level, too. Top-level leadership, for instance, must hold middle managers accountable for their own commitment to the business, the workforce, and company culture. By addressing leaders who aren't accountable, they set standards for accountable leadership in the company.

Accountable leaders also foster team accountability by developing teams who are capable of thinking critically about the company's needs and how they can optimize their contributions. Owning mistakes is a key aspect of accountability, and it's also the first step to learning from inevitable mistakes while continuing to move forward.

Why Is Accountability Important in Leadership?

Leadership accountability is vital for keeping organizations on track, especially in a volatile and uncertain work climate. On the business side, there has to be strong accountability at the top to keep employees aligned with the business strategy across the organization.

Accountability toward people and culture is equally important because these are each critical elements of driving business results. Lack of accountability damages the entire company culture, which affects the morale and motivation of individual workers.

If leaders are leaders in name only, employees will feel anchorless and may become disconnected. They may become bitter if they see leaders are collecting larger paychecks but not showing up and keeping employees aligned and moving in the right direction.

Becoming a leader at your company should come with a set of defined roles and responsibilities. Add an additional layer of accountability with leadership mentoring programs. Middle managers should have a mentor in a higher-level leadership role to help keep them on track. Leaders at the top should have an executive coach or mentor to support their personal growth.

Only when leaders are aligned and accountable can your business move forward.

3 Elements of a Culture of Accountability

Culture plays a large part in defining leadership and setting expectations for accountability. Leaders must foster a strong leadership culture that drives accountability. This helps set expectations for leadership development.

Here are three essential elements of a culture of accountability that you can foster at your company.

Strong company values

Your company's values should guide decision-making across the workforce. Make sure employees understand your values and how they translate to behaviors in their specific roles. While leaders must understand how to live the company's values, these values need to be understood and lived by everyone to create and sustain a culture of accountability.

When all employees recognize values in action - or their absence when they should be in action - leaders will feel more pressure to act in line with those values.

A defined leadership model

Leaders need a defined leadership model to be held accountable to, but many companies fail to set clear expectations. Instead, they expect individuals to pick up on unspoken leadership expectations. But this often leaves leaders filling in the gaps from their personal experiences, resulting in several competing definitions of good leadership at your company.

Leadership development programs should define leadership within the company and set expectations for behaviors.

Team accountability

Team accountability, by definition, relies on set expectations for team members regarding workflows, processes, and performance. When individuals feel accountable to others, they're more likely to meet or exceed deadlines and contribute better overall results to the business.

Team accountability exercises such as setting transparent expectations will lead to high performance.

You need a defined framework to hold people accountable for their work. OKRs provide a structure for setting organizational and individual goals. That structure supports better accountability for both leaders and individual contributors.

Governing an OKR program forces leaders to be intentional about goal-setting, as well as communicate transparently with their team members. OKR governance has three components:

Accountability

Two-way communication is key to fostering accountability when setting OKRs. Executives must set the business strategy and priorities, but employees should be empowered to set their own goals. This requires both parties to meet in the middle to ensure alignment. Leaders need to take accountability for aligning their reports' objectives to the larger business strategy.

Accountability is important for learning from the process of meeting agreed-upon objectives, too. At the end of each quarter, leaders must be able to walk their teams through what worked and what didn't and pinpoint why. That requires a willingness from everyone to take responsibility in order to diagnose problems and prevent them in the future.

Alignment

Accountable leaders drive the vertical alignment process between individuals and the business. But horizontal alignment is crucial, too. Horizontal alignment refers to alignment across departments or teams.

As you set OKRs, be sure to document dependencies. It must be extremely clear on the front end who will be responsible for each part of meeting an objective, especially one that's shared across departments or teams that don't normally work together. Appoint a clear owner to foster accountability, which will support better communication and transparency during this process.

Focus

OKRs won't come to fruition without sufficient focus and commitment. First, companies must bring their objectives into focus for leaders to communicate to their teams. Second, individuals must commit to their objectives, which requires defining focused and well-thought-out key results.

Accountability is important here, too: Individuals need to feel accountable for their own OKRs, but leaders have to set the tone. Consider creating an OKR template to keep employee objectives on track. The template should lay out OKR ownership so that individual employees know their objectives for the quarter.

OKR software can help create another layer of accountability by placing individual OKRs in the larger context. Individual objectives are part of larger business priorities, and seeing where their OKRs fit in can help individuals remain focused on achieving their goals.

6 Leadership and Accountability Examples

Leadership accountability isn't limited to grandiose strategic exercises. There are several ways leaders can demonstrate accountability in their daily routines and behaviors.

Goals

Accountable leaders set goals that align with the business's priorities. This gives them personal accountability over driving business results. They also foster that same sense of ownership among their direct reports.

Having clear goals for themselves and their teams makes measuring accountability much easier to do.

Performance Management

Accountable leaders provide constructive performance feedback to their reports. They help identify problem areas, and they work with individuals to investigate their causes. Setting clear performance objectives for individual workers helps them stay accountable to the rest of the team.

Team Building

Accountable leaders set a good example of leadership in the service of the company and the workforce. The "trust fall" is the conventional team-building activity, but it's not nearly as practical or meaningful as incorporating team-building activities directly into daily work. Regularly review each contributor's responsibilities, and make sure they understand their role in producing the final product.

In team meetings, leaders and team members walk the fine line of holding each other accountable without constantly transferring blame. Accountability team building creates a model for good leadership, sets clear standards, and empowers teams to move past failures to find solutions.

Trust

Accountable leadership fosters trust. When leaders take clear accountability, employees will have faith that their actions are in the best interests of both the organization and the workforce.

By living the company's values, leaders at all levels set tangible examples of good behavior. This builds trust with team members, who can see when leaders are veering off-track and hold them accountable.

Integrity

A lack of personal accountability undermines a leader's integrity. Acting with integrity helps you become a better leader, as employees will have greater respect for and trust in your commitment to leadership.

Employees will recognize true integrity when they see it. Leaders with integrity set a good example and inspire their employees to practice integrity in their work.

Communication

Communication is critical to leadership accountability. Accountable leaders are transparent with their employees. They take responsibility for their actions and those of their team, and they use communication effectively to stay in the loop and pinpoint potential problems.

Set expectations for communication norms so that employees know when and how to contact their colleagues and supervisors. Maintain regular communication to anticipate and remove roadblocks to high performance.

Improving accountability is key to driving business results, fostering a transparent culture, and supporting your workforce. When expectations are clear, and the workforce is aligned on its priorities, your company can progress. Leadership accountability can make that happen.

Good, accountable leaders close the loop between strategy, people, and results.

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Accountability in leadership is vital to business success, but many leadership teams acknowledge that they have a lot of room to grow in this area. Global research led by leadership accountability expert Vince Molinaro found that 72% of business leaders and HR professionals agree that accountability is critical for business success.

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Group of successful businesspeople attending their accountability group.
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We all need help and support from others to reach our goals and achieve our full potential. The accountability group is the best way I have seen in my years of coaching to achieve success and reach those challenging goals.

Accountability groups can be a powerful tool for helping individuals achieve their goals and make positive life changes. This is supported by a significant amount of research, which has found that accountability groups can be effective in a range of areas, including weight loss, health behaviors, task and goal performance, and academic performance.

For example, a study published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology found that individuals who participated in a weight loss program that included an accountability group lost more weight and were more likely to maintain their weight loss over time compared to those who did not have the support of an accountability group. Similarly, a review of research on the effectiveness of accountability groups for improving health behaviors found that individuals who participated in an accountability group were more likely to adhere to their treatment regimens and make positive lifestyle changes compared to those who did not have the support of an accountability group.

In addition to improving physical health, accountability groups can positively impact task performance and academic performance. For example, a study published in the Journal of Management found that employees who participated in an accountability group had higher levels of task performance and organizational citizenship behaviors compared to those who did not have the support of an accountability group. Similarly, a review of research on the effectiveness of accountability groups for improving academic performance found that students who participated in an accountability group had higher grades and were more likely to complete their coursework than those who did not have the support of an accountability group.

I have been running accountability groups for years and see many additional benefits to joining an accountability group. Here are my top ten reasons why you should consider joining an accountability group this year:

1. Increased motivation and productivity: When you are part of an accountability group, you are more likely to stay motivated and focused on your goals. This is because you are accountable to the other group members, who will expect you to follow through on your commitments. This can lead to increased productivity and progress toward your goals. No one likes to show up to the group and admit they failed to do what they said they would do.

2. A sense of community: Being part of an accountability group can provide a sense of community and belonging. You can connect with like-minded individuals working towards similar goals and offer each other support and encouragement.

3. Improved goal-setting skills: An accountability group can help you to set better goals and develop a plan for achieving them. Group members can offer valuable insights and perspectives and help you identify potential roadblocks and find ways to overcome them.

4. Increased accountability: As mentioned above, the primary purpose of an accountability group is to hold its members accountable for meeting their goals. This can be a powerful motivator, as it helps to ensure that you are taking action toward your goals rather than just talking about them.

5. Enhanced problem-solving skills: When you are part of an accountability group, you can benefit from the group's collective wisdom regarding problem-solving. Group members can offer different perspectives and ideas, which can help you find creative solutions to challenges you may face.

6. A new discipline: In addition to being accountable to the group, being part of an accountability group can also help you be more accountable to yourself. It can remind you of your commitments and help you stay on track. It helps you develop a discipline that we didn't have before.

7. Improved communication skills: Participating in an accountability group requires effective communication with group members. This can help you to improve your communication skills, such as listening, speaking, and presenting ideas.

8. Increased confidence: As you progress towards your goals and receive support and encouragement from group members, your confidence increases. This can be especially helpful when working on a challenging goal or tackling a new project.

9. Networking opportunities: An accountability group can be a great place to meet new people and build relationships with others with similar interests. This can lead to new opportunities and connections that may not have been available to you otherwise.

10. Personal and professional growth: Finally, being part of an accountability group can help you to grow personally and professionally. You can learn from the experiences of other group members, receive feedback and constructive criticism, and develop new skills and knowledge.

There are several ways to find an accountability group, including reaching out to your network, joining an online community, checking out local resources, considering a coaching or therapy group, or starting a group of your own.

The evidence suggests that accountability groups can be valuable for helping individuals achieve their goals and make positive life changes. Whether you are working towards personal or professional objectives, an accountability group can provide the support and accountability you need to succeed.

Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website or some of my other work here.

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Accountability Groups: The Support You Need To Succeed In 2023

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We all need help and support from others to reach our goals and achieve our full potential.

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Written by Alison Smith

It might be one of the best parts of being a teacher - getting the chance to celebrate student success and provide them with positive feedback for a job well done.
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Why is it important to give students positive feedback and celebrate their successes?

The researchers tell us that celebrating student success in the classroom doesn't just make our kids feel good. It significantly impacts their memory, learning, motivation, and other cognitive functions. When students receive positive feedback for something that they have done, it is essentially a signal to their brain saying 'do it again'.

Celebrating success is an essential element of every classroom. It is the driver behind student motivation, self-esteem, and creating a positive classroom culture. There are many ways that teachers and principals can motivate students by celebrating their achievements and providing positive reinforcement.

How to Celebrate Student Success

Read on to find out how you can celebrate student success in your classroom ... and a few watch-outs to keep in mind.

Celebrate With a Class High-Five

Celebrating student success and building relationships go hand in hand.

A quick way to encourage class morale and to raise the profile of even the quietest member of your class is to encourage class high-fives to celebrate student success - or class elbow bumps, air high fives, etc. in these times of social distancing.

Encourage every student in the class to acknowledge the success of an individual by giving him or her a well-deserved high-five. For as little disruption as possible, this works most effectively at the end of the lesson or at the end of the day as students leave the room.

Be mindful of students with additional needs who may not enjoy this experience.

Call Home

There are all too many times when we have to draw a deep breath and pick up the phone to call a parent about a problem in the classroom. But calling home to tell parents something good about their child? We don't get to do that nearly as much ... and yet it's much, much more fun.

Just a tip: Grab some tissues.

If there's one way to make parents tear up, it's to give them a call to tell them how well their child is doing. It makes parents feel proud. But most importantly it makes students feel proud of themselves and of each other.

Don't forget to be mindful of cultural differences and sensitive family dynamics. You may also need to give busy working parents a heads-up via email before you make the call.

Celebration Tunnels

Is there anything more uplifting than running through a human tunnel? Celebration tunnels have to be my all-time favorite way to celebrate student success - no teaching resources required.

Kids love it, and let's face it, adults love it too. Check out how much fun we had celebrating in the Teach Starter office!

Celebrate Life Skills

As teachers, it can be easy to fall into the trap of celebrating student achievement based solely on academics. But not only can that create a fixed mindset, it often leaves students who don't make the honor roll left out.

Watching out for ways to ensure you celebrate all kinds of success is an important part of building a positive classroom culture. One perfect place to celebrate student success that's not about the letter or number at the top of the paper is in the areas of personal and social capability.

I'm a big fan of hanging this using little clothespins along with badges that show off successes in communicating, working collaboratively, and more. Hanging displays help to keep surfaces free, are effective eye-catchers, and they also act as daily reminders for you and your class.

Here's how...

1. Create a name tag for each student..

2. Attach a length of string (one for each student) to the wall using mounting putty.

3. Provide a container of mini clothespins.

4. Help your students to hang up their badges (we printed these personal and social capability badges) on their string when they are awarded.

Send Postcards and Letters Home

Kids love mail. Heck, WE love mail (except bills ... sigh). Sending home letters or even just a postcard in the mail is a great way to make students feel good and also incorporate their family members into celebrating their classroom successes.

Why is receiving a postcard or letter in the mail so magical? Letter writing takes time, shows a deep level of care, and makes the receiver feel valued. The extra effort of writing a letter goes a long way in making your students feel special, appreciated, and proud of themselves. Letters are timeless treasures that make memories.

It's easy to make postcards on your own - to create a personalized design, why not layer up images of your student's artwork? For a next-level surprise, why not send the postcards before a break so that they are received while your all out of the classroom?

For quick and easy letter templates, take a look at our growing collection of Positive Parent Notes that can be adapted to meet your needs. If you want to keep things simple, you could use an award from our Certificates and Awards collection and send that home too.

Buddy Awards

Students tend to look up to their buddies and see them as role models. So, it makes perfect sense to ask buddies to help celebrate student success by presenting student awards.

We are all familiar with buddy systems. A buddy system is where a child gets paired with another child, usually one that is older. A buddy system can help students to feel valued and supported, teach important social skills and create a caring culture in the school.

You'll find that awards and certificates given by class buddies have a whole new meaning and value. So, simply choose one or two students each week to receive a buddy award.

Pick your favorite design and theme from our huge range of Certificates and Awards. I love our bright and bold Let's Celebrate - Award Certificate and Let's Celebrate - Student Badges.

Celebration Envelopes

Celebration Envelopes are a great way to recognize student success and to develop peer relationships. This fun activity is particularly suitable for the upper elementary grades and encourages students to think about the strengths of others.

This activity works well in small groups as well as a whole class activity. Here's how it works:

1. Provide each student with an envelope and a blank piece of paper inside.

2. Ask your students to write their name on the envelope and to gather in a circle.

3. Instruct your students to pass their envelope to the person on their right.

4. Ask your students to read the name on the envelope and to think of a strength that they recognize in this person.

5. Encourage students to write this strength on the piece of paper.

6. Students continue to pass the envelopes around the circle and to record the strengths of their peers.

7. The process is complete when all envelopes have been returned to their owner.

Plan a Principal Class Visit

There is huge power in asking your school principal to visit your classroom to celebrate student success. Book in some time in their schedule and ask your school principal to drop by.

During your principal's visit, be sure to give him or her a tour of your wonderful classroom. Showcase the amazing achievements that your students are making. Most importantly, don't forget to share how you have been celebrating student success in your classroom.

You might even provide him or her with one or two individual awards to present. I like to make sure that there is a badge for everyone so that no one goes home empty-handed.

Find a badge that your students will love in our huge collection of Star Student Badges.

Set up a Student Success Wow Wall

A great way to celebrate student success is to create a "Wow Work" wall where students can proudly put their work on display. What's more, you can encourage classroom visitors to check it out!

Check out this eye-catching example of a Wow Work Wall by @the.colourful.teacher.

How often do you provide students with an opportunity to celebrate their accomplishments?

I hope that this blog inspires you to create more time and space to celebrate students' success. Which idea are you going to try first?

Share your celebrations on Instagram #teachstarterus

Banner image via shutterstock/comeback media
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9 Creative Ways to Celebrate Student Success in Your Classroom | Teach Starter

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Written by Alison Smith It might be one of the best parts of being a teacher - getting the chance to celebrate student success and provide them with positive feedback for a job well done. Make your classroom buzz! Subscribe to Teach Starter and access thousands of curriculum-aligned resources and digital learning tools.

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Middle and high school teachers can create an environment that supports inclusion and gives students space to make mistakes as they learn.

Think about it: the isolation of the pandemic, rising tensions at home, conflicts over mask mandates and debates and fights over whether they should be implemented, sickness and/or fear of sickness and death, racist incidents in the news, and increased bullying attacks on Muslims in the wake of the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Students have returned to school in a charged environment, and many of them are struggling to process the events of the past year. As a teacher, you can help by ensuring that your classroom is a safe space designed to meet students' academic and emotional needs.

Safe spaces are environments where students feel the freedom to make mistakes without lasting judgment or ridicule and where they can engage in critical, honest, civil, and challenging discussions about sensitive topics. As an educator, you want your students to feel comfortable approaching difficult subjects in your classroom.

How You Can Cultivate a Safe Learning Environment

Crafting (or revising) your syllabus: Include a statement of diversity that indicates your intent to foster a diverse learning environment; this will help set the tone right away. You can choose a diverse reading list with authors of different ethnicities and plan to invite a wide range of professionals from different backgrounds into your classroom; this normalizes the idea that we can learn from people who don't look like us (or who do look like us in some instances).

Remember to incorporate projects in your syllabus that celebrate different identities and cultures, encouraging students to embrace differences. In any case, consider granting extensions. Many students are experiencing emotional exhaustion and would benefit from extra compassion and understanding from you to help them process their grief surrounding current events in the media.

Setting up your classroom and discussion procedures: When setting up your classroom, make sure that it reflects the diverse learning environment you championed in the syllabus: Choose images that show a wide range of ethnicities in different roles; showcase Asian astronauts, Black doctors, and Latino professionals, for example, and don't rely on stereotypical imagery when you hang posters on your walls. Include differently abled people in classroom presentations and, if you can, invite a leader with a disability in your community to visit your classroom.

Consider alternatives to classroom discussions, such as online discussion groups, where students don't feel singled out and have a measure of anonymity to express their opinions. You may not even need to moderate this discourse or can do so in a limited capacity.

Show respect: Pronounce your students' names correctly-it's one of the many strategies to help students feel at home at school. It may seem like a tiny step, but when you know how to pronounce your students' names, it makes them feel included. This models the importance of correct pronunciation and inclusion. Don't be afraid to ask your students more than once to pronounce their names for you. HowToPronounce is a great tool for educators to use when working to learn to pronounce students' names correctly.

Respect also means not relying on students to do the emotional labor of reacting to current events in class discussions. Your Black, Latino, and Asian students don't have to be representatives of their race. Your Muslim students don't have to be representatives of their religion. Don't put them on the spot. They are students who might be struggling to understand and process traumatic events. Asking them to react to events in the media can be retraumatizing and insensitive. Listen to them instead.

If a student tells you they are being bullied, listen to them and intervene by confronting the bully privately. Then, follow up with addressing the matter with the class by talking about bullying and discrimination. Work together to establish classroom rules for the entire class.

Teach micro-affirmations to validate your students: Micro-affirmations start with active listening. In order to establish yourself as a safe sounding board for your students, maintain eye contact with them and show them body language that indicates you are engaged with them, such as nodding. Summarize what the student is telling you. Ask questions to make sure that you understand, and then affirm their experience by using a validating statement such as "I appreciate that this might be frustrating for you." You can use these statements to guide them toward developing a productive stance on their experience.

Remember, however, that micro-affirmations can be used in any interaction, not just in instances when your students are struggling with an issue. They also work when students are sharing positive experiences; they help create a sense of trust and belonging.

Even if you don't agree with what the student is telling you, you can affirm their experience, validate their emotions, and offer to help them find productive solutions.Don't treat subjects like bullying and racism as if they are taboo. Instead, work to dismantle these behaviors in your classroom by directly and openly confronting them when they occur.This might mean confronting your own biases (and working to correct them) or raising the student's issue to school administration, if necessary. Help break the cycle by taking these subjects seriously and doing the work to protect your students. Follow through: Do not back down on these issues-you are carrying a responsibility for keeping students safe.

Creating a safe space for students doesn't have to be difficult. It can be something you build into each day's activities. Simply going in with the mindset that you are offering a diverse and enriching atmosphere is a good start.

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Cultivating the Classroom as a Safe Space

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Middle and high school teachers can create an environment that supports inclusion and gives students space to make mistakes as they learn.

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This article explains how Forefront can help you identify students who are in need of extra supports and help teachers and interventionists to identify areas of need by looking at both classroom-level standards information and assessment-level reports.

Please note: Special education teachers and interventionists who need to be able to see individual student and classroom data across their buildings should be assigned the Building Leader role by their district manager. For special education teachers and interventionists working with students in just a few classrooms, teachers may also share their classes with them.

Classroom Standards Information to Identify Struggling Students

Look at the overall standards for a class by navigating to the Overview tab for a classroom.

You may drill into information by clicking on the names of the math domains and clusters. You may also sort by clicking on the sort button that appears on hover.

Select students of concern to study. Click on their names (hyperlinked in blue) to open the student profile view. See a sample of this view below. Click on the nodes of this dynamic visualization to view the body of evidence.

Questions to consider:

Where has this student experienced successes?

Where has the student experienced struggles?

What opportunities might there be to use strengths to support other areas?

Are there topics that should be reassessed/investigated?

What actions will you take? (e.g. refocusing on past topics, pre-teaching upcoming topics, intervention, targeted supports)

Using Assessment-Level Reports to Identify Struggling Students

You can view an assessment for a classroom as an item analysis, standards, or overall performance distribution report. There are two ways to navigate to a single assessment report. ( Read more details about the Single Assessment Report here.)

From a classroom:

Navigate to the assessment that you wish to view by selecting the assessment name. Then select the Reports tab to view the report.

From the reporting suite:

You can navigate to the reporting suite in the left-hand navigation pane and select the Single Assessment choice to view results for one assessment.

Analysis: Look at Overall Performance

Toggle the report option "Performance" to the right of the report to first view overall performance. This will help you to quickly identify students that struggled on the assessment. Hover over the bars in the graph to view student names.

Note the names and overall scores of those students that are in need of increased attention. You may wish to add a cohort to the report, such as the grade level results for your school or district. If you are using one of Forefront's preloaded curricular assessment programs, you may also add a Global Cohort to put results into context.

To add a group or cohort, select the plus icon and select the group you wish to add to the report. If school and district cohorts are already included in the report header, hover over the group or cohort you wish to add to the report and select the checkbox to add it to your report as in the example below.

Analysis: Look at Question-by-Question Performance

Once you have the names of those students that may need increased attention, toggle the report view to view the Question Analysis report. This will help you identify exactly where students struggled.

Hover over the report's bars to identify where students struggled. Which questions were most troublesome for students that you listed from the Performance report? If you need to view the question in the assessment, click on the column label on the bottom of the graph.

This will allow you to view the answer key if it is a preloaded solution or your district has built these details into Forefront. Additionally, having a physical copy of the student work can be critical for this work.

Questions to consider:

Which concepts and skills need attention? What are the goal(s)?

What will be the structure for working with those students (Who? When? Where?)

How will you address those issues?

How will you know when those students have made progress?

Need more support?

Submit a support request or email our team at support@forefront.education.

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How to Identify Students in Need of Support - Forefront Education

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This article explains how Forefront can help you identify students who are in need of extra supports and help teachers and interventionists to identify areas of need by looking at both classroom-level standards information and assessment-level reports. Please note: Special education teachers and interventionists who need to be able to see individual student and classroom [...]