A
conflict that occurred in the workplace was about the graduation for
preschool. There was a concern with the
song choices. One teacher ended up planning
the graduation independently as directed by a manager. The conflict arouse when the management team
met to discuss graduation and the song choices.
The teacher who had primarily planned the graduation discussed that the
program was created by the teachers in each class including the song
choices. She discussed that she believed
the program was acceptable due to the feedback she received from her
manager. At the end of the group discussion
the teacher no longer wanted to be a part of the ceremony due to too many opinions
of suggested last minute changes.
Communication that was delegated
to the teacher from the manager was essential in the implementation of the graduation
program. According to Billikopf (2009) “shared decision making can
lead to better communication with employees, bolster worker motivation, and
increase acceptance of difficult decisions” (p. 182). From this conflict I have learned the
importance of communicating what is to be completed. The challenge arose in the communication of
what was to be added in the graduation in order to ensure activities and songs
were appropriate in representing the facility. The challenge in this situation
was also in the delegation of the responsibility solely placed on the teacher causing
no support from the management team in completing the task until the review of
the end results.
Going
forward using strategies provided from third side (3s) such as finding
understanding of what is the ultimate need of the individuals implementing the
program is helpful. It is important to look at each
person’s perspective in the conflict. Listening
to what is being communicated by the teacher who no longer wanted to
participate in the program and the management team who wants appropriate
material used. Lastly, speaking to each
individual reflecting understanding of what was heard and working with everyone
to gain a resolution to the conflict (The Third Side,
n.d.). Working to avoid placing blame on
individuals due to the conflict is essential.
Using strategies provided from nonviolent communication such as
observing and having each individual share their needs clearly rather than
focusing on what has not been met supports everyone involved (The Center for
Nonviolent Communication, n.d.)
After
discussing with my co-workers what the challenge was in the conflict we all agreed
it was communication between all parties involved. Thankfully there was a resolution which
included replacing songs with teachers input and uplifting the teacher who felt
discouraged. Everyone pulled together to create a
successful graduation program. Going
forward using strategies provided by the third side and nonviolent
communication can assist the team in preventing conflicts due to communication
and delegating responsibilities.
I have noticed that graduation has caused a lot of tension even between my coworkers and myself. We each sing a song with our class and the whole grade sings a song together. We went through a couple of different songs before I had to finally pick one because none of the classes had started practicing. Everyone was putting things off therefore I had to step up and say what needed to be done and when in order for things to get done. It is not very fun to do however sometimes we need to do that in order for things to happen.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that graduation does cause a lot of tension in preschools. In mya program, parents get very upset that we do not have a graduation for their children and to a certain extent, I do not blame the parents for wanting the program, but we also have to look at the participation level. To not offend any parents, the program just eliminates all celebrations across the board completely. When it comes to communication, we should be able to communicate with each other so we can all be on the same page.
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