As schools formulate their Collaborative Response, the articulation of each team across the school serving to support the needs of all children is an important foundational step. We contend that there are four layers of teams essential to ensure every need of every child in your building is supported. This can only occur if we employ the following teams (for more see Scaffolding our Collaborative Response: Purposeful Layering of Team Meetings).
The second layer of team meetings is the collaborative team meeting. It is a unique structure that not only provides the venue for discussing student needs but also builds the professional practice of each member of the team. In a collaborative team meeting, each person serves in the role of ‘expert’ sharing their experiences and their tried and true strategies that work for them. It also allows each person to come to the table as a ‘learner’ to discover new ideas from their colleagues. With the ultimate intention of meeting the needs of students, all of this occurs through the Key Issues Process.
The most critical component of a collaborative team meeting is the key issue process (to read more about the complete process please read Examining Collaborative Team Meetings - Shifting to Key Issues).
This process, when conducted with fidelity, has the potential of formulating ideas to address key issues facing students and to expand and grow the professional practices of each person participating in the meeting. The process (as visualized in the poster below) follows these 4 steps:
- Identify a Student and articulate the key issue that the student is currently struggling with. For example, a teacher will bring forward Derek who is struggling with staying on task. When the key issue is stated, it will likely require further refinement - more on this later in the ‘Goldilocks Effect’.
- Once the key issue has been clarified, then other teachers add additional students who are also experiencing the same issue.
- Then we set aside both the teachers and students and focus solely on the key issue by brainstorming as many possible strategies that teachers have used or seen throughout their careers. These ideas are documented on a simple template for future reference.
- Finally, each teacher who identifies a student, chooses one individual student action that they will try with that student and provide a timeline for when this might be accomplished.
When working through step #1 above, arriving at an appropriate key issue is one of the challenges that most school teams are faced with. We describe this as the Goldilocks Effect.
The Goldilocks Effect
The "Goldilocks Effect" is akin to the classic tale—finding the perfect fit, not too broad and not too narrow, not too hot and not too cold. When setting key issues, our goal is to identify a focus that is just right. This perfect fit is a key issue that is specific enough to address a student’s need but broad enough to be relevant to multiple students or situations.
Too Broad: Key issues that are too broad, like “attendance” or “reading,” are often challenging to tackle because they encompass too many variables. For instance, “reading” as a key issue can span a range of elements—fluency, comprehension, decoding, etc. Without narrowing it down, teams might struggle to develop actionable strategies.
Too Narrow: Conversely, key issues that are overly specific, such as a unique challenge faced by just one student, limit the applicability of the solutions. When a key issue is too narrowly focused, it becomes difficult to generalize strategies or to see how they might apply to other students in similar situations.
The Facilitator’s Role
The role of the facilitator is pivotal in helping teams navigate between these extremes. Effective facilitation involves:
- Questioning: Asking targeted questions to refine and narrow down the key issue. Simple questions like “How often does this occur?” or “When does this issue typically arise?” can help in honing in on a more manageable and relevant focus.
- Holding the Space: It is useful for facilitators to ask a notekeeper to hold off on documenting the key issue immediately. By waiting until the team has thoroughly discussed and refined the issue, facilitators can ensure that the key issue is well-defined before finalizing it in the meeting notes.
- Validation: Once a key issue is identified, it’s crucial for the team to agree on it. This agreement ensures that everyone is on the same page and ready to move forward with developing strategies.
Pre-Meeting Strategies
To enhance the effectiveness of key issue discussions, consider implementing these pre-meeting strategies:
- Pre-Meeting Organizers: Utilize tools like Google Forms or other pre-meeting organizers to gather potential key issues from team members. This allows facilitators to review and align issues before the meeting, ensuring they are within the scope of control and relevant to the team’s objectives.
- Locus of Control: Encourage staff to consider whether the key issues fall within the team’s locus of control. This practice helps focus efforts on areas where the team can make a tangible impact. This blog describes an activity that would be advantageous for identifying your team’s locus of control. Once the activity is complete, the resulting visual of the discussion can be placed in the meeting room for future reference and acts as a reminder of what we should focus on and where we will have maximum impact.
Engaging Staff in the Process
Active staff engagement in defining key issues can significantly improve the quality of the discussion:
- Scenario Analysis: One innovative approach is using scenarios or "stories" as a tool for discussion. Presenting scenarios that depict various student situations can help staff collectively identify and refine key issues. This approach not only clarifies what constitutes a good key issue but also fosters a shared understanding among the team. This sample Practicing Boiling Down the Story to the Key Issue was developed by Ecole Dr. Bernard Brosseau Middle School and is a great example of practicing the development of key issues. There are a number of other examples of exploring key issues on our website (scroll to the bottom of the page).
2. Data-Driven Key Issues: Use data to guide the identification of key issues. By analyzing data from assessments or other tools, teams can generate a list of potential key issues, which can then be refined through discussion. This example, Focus Elementary CTM Data Overview provides a Grade 5 sample of examining data and identifying key issues from the analysis.
Continuous Improvement: Learning from Experience
Developing effective key issues is an iterative process. Teams should expect to refine their approach over time, learning from each meeting and improving with experience. We have seen schools develop tools to explore all the potential key issues that might arise prior to coming up in a collaborative team meeting.
The sample above comes from Oski Pasikoniwew Kamik School focused on literacy, exploring all the potential key issues that may arise in relation to literacy and what targeted area we would be seeking possible strategies.
The sample below is a checklist for behavioural issues being experienced by high school students, to help inform discussions related to appropriate responses and supports. This tool developed by Peace River High, is intended to ensure we explore all possible reasons for behaviours so that the team can respond in an effective manner.
We have designed an activity for school teams to engage in exploring the refinement of key issues. The following protocol is intended to support leaders and teams in refining their key issues for their collaborative team meeting.
We have designed an activity for school teams to engage in exploring the refinement of key issues. The following protocol is intended to support leaders and teams in refining their key issues for their collaborative team meeting.
Establishing effective key issues is crucial for the success of collaborative team meetings in schools. By finding the balance between too broad and too narrow, and employing strategic pre-meeting and facilitation practices, leaders can ensure that their discussions are focused and productive.
Please reach out to share your insights, challenges, and triumphs along with your questions, resources or suggestions related to this concept. Connect with us at or .
Examining Collaborative Team Meetings - Shifting to Key Issues
Are you looking for a software solution to augment Collaborative Response in your organization?
Join Jennifer as she walks through the Collaborative Team Meeting process in WeCollab, ensuring that multiple student profiles are updated with the determined supports and actions simultaneously through the collaborative conversation and that staff remain informed through transparent communication processes.