Coaches and Team Functioning

One of the central strategies of SW-PBS is the use of school teams - often referred to as leadership teams - to build an effective schoolwide system

Team refers to interdependent individuals with unique skills and perspectives who interact directly to achieve their mutual goal. The purpose of the team is to improve behavior support systems (common vision, language, experience).

The team is representative:
  • Administrator
  • Representatives of staff
  • Non-staff family member(s)
  • Consider youth leadership teams or community members

The team has a scheduled meeting time and a culture of care. Administrators and teams are asked to prepare a Working Smarter Matrix at the start of training. The goal of this report is to identify current use of staff and focus of the current groups. What can be combined or dropped for more effective use of staff. Rob Horner is commonly heard saying "Don't start a new initiative until you can identify what can be dropped."

Characteristics of Teams
  • Awareness of team membership (can’t be a member if you don’t perceive yourself as one)
  • Organized system of individuals whose behavior is regulated by a common set of norms or
    values (establishing norms takes and needs time)
  • Members of teams are highly interdependent (what affects one affects all)
  • Team members have unique skills and perspectives
  • Effective teams have shared (mutual) goals

Developmental Stages of Teams
Forming – need for clear instructions
Storming- resolving issues of leadership
Norming – building trust and establishing role relationships – culture develops, patterns of functioning develop
Performing – development has leveled off and the primary focus is accomplishing goals
Adjourning – team progresses to this when tasks are complete

How Teams Become Effective
  • Team goals are clear
  • Members’ needs are met
  • Members have individual accountability
  • Group processes maintain the team
  • Team members have leadership skills

Conducting meetings
Prior to the meeting
  • Clearly define the purpose
  • Articulate desired outcomes
  • Delineate a realistic agenda and time frame
  • Arrange a setting

During the meeting
  • Review the agenda and timelines
  • Participate effectively

After the meeting
  • Be sure to follow-up as agreed upon

Review the Team Effectiveness Checklist as a team. Identify areas for improvement. Decide as a team what items you will address and what changes you will implement before your next team meeting.

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