This Teamwork Skills Checklist Assesses High School Students Work Readiness

This Teamwork Skills Checklist Assesses High School Students Work Readiness
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What is a Team?

This checklist can be used as an element within a series of lessons on teamwork skills, or it can be offered to students as part of a pack of information and activities on being work ready and building employment skills. It can also be a section within a wider career self-assessment unit. Teaching students to self-assess their readiness to join the workforce is useful as it encourages them to take greater responsibility for their own skill preparation and overall career planning.

  1. First, introduce the topic of being work ready by talking about the importance of team work, and asking students to volunteer situations where they have seen both positive and negative examples of teamwork.
  2. Ask them to identify the components of a team, often stated simply as ’leader’ and ‘followers’ by students.
  3. Discuss the link between teamwork and being work ready.
  4. Pose the question “what happens if there is no leader in a team?”
  5. Explain the purpose of a career self-assessment, and why students can take on more responsibility for managing the pace and style of their own learning as they become older, and move closer to the world of work.

This discussion will help students understand the context of this teamwork activity and how it will help them become more work ready.

Teamwork Checklist

Students should answer YES or NO to all questions.

If forther comment is needed, they should make a note, for example to indicate areas where they need to do further work, or where they feel they have strong skills already.

  1. Are you able to work well as a member of a small group or team?
  2. Are you able to work well as a member of a large group or team?
  3. Can you give instructions to other people?
  4. Can you accept and follow instructions given by someone else?
  5. Can you say clearly what you mean, and have others understand you?
  6. Can you ask questions to check what someone means when they give you information?
  7. Can you remember what you have been told from one day to the next?
  8. Can you organize yourself to finish a task?
  9. Can you help other people organize themselves?
  10. Can you encourage someone to do something they do not really want to do?
  11. Can you make yourself get a job done, even when you would rather be doing something else?
  12. Can you keep your temper under control?
  13. Can you speak up when you feel something is wrong?
  14. Can you follow procedures and protocols?
  15. Can you resist the temptation to do the wrong thing? For example, to take a longer break than you should, or pretend you have finished something you haven’t?
  16. Can you set goals for what you want to achieve?
  17. Can you accept criticism from others?
  18. Can you be gracious and positive even when things don’t turn out right?

Students should answer the questions as honestly as possible. While it is a great self-assessment tool, it can also be used to facilitate conversation and discussion about typical work scenarios a person may encounter. For example, in Question 13, there are many scenarios where that may apply, such as when you discover a fellow employee is stealing, or when your direct supervisor make inappropriate remarks.

More Information on Teamwork Activities

For more on teamwork activities for students, read the Great Teamwork Challenge.