Reflecting on Communication and Collaboration

As I finish up the final assignments for the last of my core classes towards my M.A. degree in Early Childhood Studies, I am reflecting on all that I have learned through the resources provided, our very thorough and knowledgeable Dr. Darragh and my fellow students through their insightful discussion and blog posts.  Our assignments, discussions and blogs have helped to solidify the knowledge learned like the value of self-monitoring my communication skills and from resources like the Center for Non-Violent Communication and The Third Side.  It has been a fun-filled eight weeks and I hope we meet again in our respective fields of Early Childhood Education.

Continue to Dream Big and be persistent in achieving your goals.  Wishing each of you the best of the best in life’s journey!!

Stage 5: Group Adjournment

As I review the information on Stage 5 of the “Five Stages of Team Development” developed by Bruce Tucker I would like to reflect on the adjourning process with two different groups; one group of Head Start employees for a program where I was the Director for two years and one group of Office of Head Start Training/Technical Assistant contracted specialist for whom I worked with for two years.

When adjourning with the Head Start program employees we were provided resources and opportunities to reflect on our two years together as a group; reflecting on our successes and addressing challenges with potential solutions we may want to use in the future.  During a farewell pot luck lunch we were able to share our future goals and we were able to collect personal contact information.  This was a sad adjournment process for me because as a team we turned so many challenges into successes over the course of two years.

The second group adjournment with fellow Training/Technical Assistance Specialist was not as successful.  Since we all work from our home offices in different geographic locations getting together to reflect on our successes and challenges was not as easy.  The main mode of communication was e-mail where we exchanged personal contact information and wished each other best wishes for the future.  Because the Training/Technical Assistance network if pretty small I think we all assumed we would eventually be working together again in the near future so we did not place much emphasis on closing out our contract at the end of August 2011.  It is now April 2012 and we are still not working together and it is sad that we did not take any steps to put closure on our work.  A teleconference to discuss our work and hear each other’s voices may have supported a less emotional transition as we venture into different directions and may have provided us with new insights that we could carry forward in our work with new team members.

Regarding the group I have been working with on my Master of Early Childhood Studies program we are about to venture into our specializations and this is my last core class.  Several of my colleagues in this program have been in every class I have taken since February 2011.  Even though this is distant learning I feel as if I know some of you very well because I have read about your passions, your families, and your emotions in many discussion questions and blog posts.  Since we are geographically located in different locations across the world, we will not be provided the opportunity to participate in any formal closure activities so I plan to gather personal information from some of you so we can stay in touch in the future.  Our group has been dynamic and each of you has added so much value to my life; I really hope we can see each other at a graduation ceremony.

References:

Abudi, G. (2010). The five stages of team development: A case study. Retrieved April 2, 2012 from http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/the-five-stages-of-team-development-a-case-study.html

Conflict Resolution

Reviewing the information on the Center for Non-Violence Communication web site has supported me in my approach to a long-standing conflict I have had with my brother who has been in and out of the penitentiary system for the last thirty years.   Since my mom passed away in 2009 I am now the only family member he has left to count on for support, including financial support.   I have been doing my best to send him money every month since my mom passed away.  While I was working full time it really was not a financial burden.  When my hours were cut in September 2011 to thirty hours per week I have been trying to convince my brother he needed to work with his case worker to get some kind of work in prison.  He has all kinds of reasons for not getting a job, including all physical ailments caused from many accidents over the years.   My typical telephone conversations with him are with a frustrated and defensive tone.

While reading the article titled, “Nonviolent Communication for Prison Officers” at http://www.cnvc.org/what-nvc/articles-writings/nvc-prison-officers/nonviolent-communication-prison-officers I realized that I have not examined my feelings behind my frustration nor have I communicated to my brother my fear for my financial future and the struggles I have faced to find a full time job.  My focus has been on him working with his case worker and getting a job so I do not feel the pressure to send him money on a monthly basis.