ED had made a very interesting presentation today which i thot i shall share....
LESSONS FROM GEESE
We can learn many lessons from nature. For example, geese have much to teach us about working together.As each goose flaps its wings, it creates an uplift of air for the bird that follows. By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds 71 percent more flying range than when each bird flies alone.
Lesson 1: People who share a common direction or vision can achieve their goals ore quickly and easily when they share information, activities, and resources.
Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels resistance; the goose will quickly get back into formation and take advantage of the "lifting power" of the other birds.
Lesson 2: By working together, we can achieve common goals that otherwise could not be achieved alone.
When the lead goose gets tired, another goose takes the lead.
Lesson 3: It pays to assume new roles and share leadership.
The geese in formation will honk to encourage those up front to keep their speed.
Lesson 4: Taking the time to reflect on and celebrate achievements brings renewed energy and commitment.
When a goose gets sick or wounded, two geese drop out of formation and follow their fellow member to provide protection. They stay with the goose until the bird is either able to fly again or dies. Then, they catch up with their flock or launch out on their own.
Lesson 5: All collaboratives face challenges. Depending on how the challenges are handled, they can either cause the collaborative to lose momentum and collapse, or they can be the springboards for creativity and revitalization.
Adapted with permission from Jon Seidel, Lessons from the Geese (Oakland, Calf.: EDP Consulting, Inc., 1997).
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This guide focuses on creating community partnerships to support the growth and development of children and families to make their lives better. Without doubt, your Head Start program is already involved in community partnerships of varying levels. Some of those partnerships may be at the communication or networking level, where staff exchange information about community programs and services. Others may be at the coordination level, where staff works with other community agencies to avoid duplication of efforts or to fill gaps in services.
Cooperation is yet another level of community partnership where two or more programs conduct joint activities to meet their individual goals.
Collaboration, however, is the most intense level of community partnership. It involves programs working together toward common goals could not be achieved by any program acting alone. Resources, information, and activities are shared by the collaborative partners to turn the goals into reality.
For Head Start programs across the country, collaboration poses both an opportunity and a challenge to get people and organizations to work together in new ways. The road to collaboration is neither straight nor easy. It involves changing the way people work and think.
When people collaborate, they move from competing to consensus building, from working alone to including others, from thinking mostly about activities, services, and programs to thinking about the "big picture," and from focusing on short-term accomplishments to achieving long-term results.
Michael Winer and Karen Ray, Collaboration Handbook: Creating, Sustaining, and Enjoying the Journey (Saint Paul, Minn.: Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, 1994).
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passage extracted from
http://www.bmcc.edu/Headstart/ComPart/pref_30.htm
