Discuss the role of team building in conflict management within an education

organisation.
Conflict is an essential and unavoidable human phenomenon because where there
is human interaction; there is a likelihood of personal likes and dislikes. These
agreements and disagreements among individuals and groups lead them to
conflicts. Conflicts are neither constructive nor disruptive but the ways these are
handled make them either positive or negative. Educational institutions, like other
human organizations, are prone to one or other type of conflict. Various conflict
management strategies are adopted for handling conflict. Team building is one
method that can be used in a school which has various teams and individuals
whose interests may clash. This paper describes the concept of conflict
management and discusses how teambuilding plays a role in conflict management
within a school.

Conflict is a term that refers to disagreement between people or members of

organisations. Such disagreement is inherent in relationships between all human
beings. Ositoye et al (2012) contend that conflict is a clash of interests, values,
actions or directions. Hence, conflict may be seen as part of the competition
process that is basic to the survival of humanity, and to his search for new and
better ways to cope with limited resources and stress from the environment. In
addition, conflict always exists between people, groups of people, members of an
organisation and between organisations which are related in one way or another

Conflict management has been consistently defined within the conflict resolution
framework as a process by which two or more parties commit to finding the most
appropriate solution to a disagreement among them. When there is a dispute, there
arises a need for a course of action to be negotiation so as to resolve the
disagreement. The key defining factor of conflict resolution is that the final
agreement should be beneficial and satisfying to the parties in conflict and that it
must be achieved in a timely manner without hurting future relationships (Murithi,
2006).

Conflict resolution involves the reduction, elimination, or termination of all forms and

types of conflict. Five styles for conflict management, as identified by Thomas and
Kilmann, are competing, compromising, collaborating, avoiding, and
accommodating. Organisations can benefit from appropriate types and levels of

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conflict. That is the aim of conflict management, and not the aim of conflict
resolution. Conflict management is the act and process of resolving disputes with a
view of coming to a resolution (Wamacha, Nasongo & Injendi, 2012). However,
Conflict management may not imply conflict resolution (Alper, Tjosvold & Law,
2000). Conflict management minimizes the negative outcomes of conflict and
promotes the positive outcomes of conflict with the goal of improving learning in an
organization. Properly managed conflict increases organizational learning by
increasing the number of questions asked and encourages people to challenge the
status quo (Batcheldor, 2000).

Organizational conflict at the interpersonal level includes disputes between peers

as well as supervisor-subordinate conflict. Party-directed mediation (PDM) is a
mediation approach particularly suited for disputes between co-workers, colleagues
or peers, especially deep-seated interpersonal conflict, multicultural or multi-ethnic
disputes. The mediator listens to each party separately in a pre-caucus or pre-
mediation before ever bringing them into a joint session. Part of the pre-caucus also
includes coaching and role plays. The idea is that the parties learn how to converse
directly with their adversary in the joint session. Some unique challenges arise
when organizational disputes involve supervisors and subordinates. The Negotiated
Performance Appraisal (NPA) is a tool for improving communication between
supervisors and subordinates and is particularly useful as an alternate mediation
model because it preserves the hierarchical power of supervisors while
encouraging dialogue and dealing with differences in opinion (Billikopf, 2014).

Conflict management is the practice of being able to identify and handle conflicts
sensibly, fairly, and efficiently. Since conflicts in a business are a natural part of the
workplace, it is important that there are people who understand conflicts and know
how to resolve them. This is important in today's market more than ever. Everyone
is striving to show how valuable they are to the company they work for and at times,
this can lead to disputes with other members of the team (Mckinney, 2012).

Teambuilding is one among several approaches of conflict resolution. These

include warning systems, conciliation, mediation, arbitration, adjudication and team
building. According to Salas, et al, (2008) teambuilding defines those activities

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meant to enhance social relations and define team roles through collaborative
means. Teambuilding is used to address interpersonal problems within established
teams. There is sufficient justification for using teambuilding in conflict resolution
and this is well applicable to education institutions.

Schools are prone to conflicts and breakdown in communication especially in an

age where all role-players are aware of their rights. A number of aspects can ignite
school-based conflict. Yet school managers are expected to be able to creatively
address conflicts in their schools (Moss, 2020). According to Geary, (2011) the
causes of conflict that affect educational institutions relate to distribution of limited
resources; allocation of work activities; differentiation of activities; communication
problems; learners discipline; the school environment; differences in opinion;
unclear authority structures; unclear policies; differences in attitudes; task
symmetries; departmental/subject differences, preferences and nuisances, values,
beliefs, and the nature of relationships between the parties.

According to Crossfield and Bourne, (2018) conflict in schools is fundamentally

concerned with the creation and establishment of unjust orders, disorderliness,
pandemonium and chaotic conditions amongst people arising from a disagreement
or ding-dong. Therefore, for every system like the school to develop, they must deal
with conflict situations decisively and squarely; because conflict enthrones
disintegration as it simultaneously dethrones harmony, trust, love and tranquillity.
Let also note that conflict may arise as a result of the inability of two equal or
unequal opposing and/or contradictory ideas or opinions to synergize or harmonize.
Champoux (2003) contends that schools are complex and dynamic places where
teachers and departments develop different ways of doing their work hence develop
different and incompatible goals which increase the chances of conflict among staff
members. Schools are composed of teachers with differences in age, cultural
backgrounds, ethics, and values, beliefs, goals, attitudes, socio-economic status
and political persuasions hence there is bound to be conflict when such teachers
come to work together with their perceptions on issues is different.

Conflict in school is said to occur when one party perceives the action of another
party as encumbering the opportunity for the attainment of a goal. Hence, for

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conflict to actually occur in schools, two salient prerequisites must be satisfied that
is perceived goal incompatibility and perceived opportunity for interference or
blocking Conflict in schools can be objective or subjective, violent or nonviolent and
positive or negative (Oboegbulam & Onwurah, 2011).

Team building is one effective way of addressing conflict within an organisation.

This is well applicable within educational institutions. in the first place, the nature of
a team is that members socialise to build strong bonds around a common ground
as they share interests and the environment provides them with similar
experiences. As team members relate and associate with each other, there is
lesser impact of arising problems as they are all affected and feel for each other
(Scott, 2016).

Team building works by building strong relations among administrators, teachers

and staff. The school provides common grounds for teachers to interact as they
teach the same students and meet together in departments, staff room and
meetings. There is interaction at professional and personal levels as teachers and
staff create lasting friendships which go beyond academic issues but influence their
social spheres. Their close associations involve participating together in extra-
curricular activities; spending pass-time together and being there for each other on
personal levels. For example when one has a problem, others get concerned and
show commitment to help. This team approach changes how employees view each
other and how they interact (Moss, 2020).

Team building is essential for resolving conflicts that affect the entire educational
institution or particular groups of staff or individual members. Administrators are key
at using the team building strategy to ensure that a situation does not get out of
hand, and if it does to facilitate its resolution through the team. An important
requirement is to create an environment within which team members acquire
essential conflict resolution skills – learning the various causes and methods of
addressing conflict within the school (Moss, 2020).

One step-wise approach which can be employed in the education sector is

proposed by CIPD, (2020) as composed of five steps. The first is to identify the

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individual team members perpetrating or victims of the conflict and to talk to them
individually so as to obtain their concerns in a confidential setting while being
impartial. Secondly, the relevant parties can be brought together for a meeting with
the manager as moderator. Team members can be encouraged to hear each other
out, striving towards a common mutual understanding. The manager can take steps
to control any disruptions and postpone heated, inconclusive debates. Thirdly,
wider staff involvement can be sought if the issue has potential to spread to others.
A general meeting can be called to address the risks that the conflict poses and
how management and staff can work together to resolve it. The fourth step is to
draw an action plan relating to the agreed upon course of addressing the conflict. It
is about obtaining each member’s commitment and do their part. The final step is to
follow-up on the actions and check whether the grievances have been abated or
have dragged on – sometimes in a different form. The rationale is to ensure that old
conflicts neither recur nor lead to new conflict.

For team building to be ultimately effective at conflict resolution, the requirement is

for employees to be trained in conflict resolution. Within the school setup, conflict
arises when there are differences among individuals operating in teams, the
necessitating factors being differences in professional training and backgrounds;
levels of education attained; values; pedagogical matters; and work attitudes,
among others. Unresolved, these differences may have negative consequences
(Mwewa, 2021). The teams’ approach to conflict resolution stresses the importance
of dealing with conflicts as soon as they occur, in a more open and inclusive
manner. When managed in this manner, the destructive aspects of conflict may be
minimised with ultimate benefits for the entire team.

Resolving conflicts through teams provides substantial employment of resources,

knowledge, skills and ideas. Such diversity is also likely to create conflict as there
would be multiple recommendations and restructuring of teams. According to
Varney, (2009) conflict is most likely in teams and is perhaps the major problem
among them. This is mainly because organisations and managers do not provide
adequate team-based conflict management strategies. The causes of conflict in a
team may be hidden within communication, structural and personal factors.

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Communication is a major factor of conflict in education institutions as it leads to
misunderstanding (Varney, 2009). The differences among students and teachers;
teachers and teachers; teachers and management and other staff; including the
school and the parents/community can arise from communication
(Shahmohammadi, 2014). According to Varney, (2009) the main barriers in team
communication are poor listening skills; poor sharing of information; variances in
communication interpretation; wrong perceptions; communication to the wrong
people; and misunderstood nonverbal cues.

Structural conflict is identified by Varney, (2009) as involving the size of the

organisation; income structure; participation levels; employee reward systems;
interdependence levels and supervision. Such structural factors have been found to
be sources of conflict in educational institutions and affect teams therefore requiring
team building approaches to resolve. Saiti, (2012) found that large schools have
big numbers of teachers such that the Principal cannot adequately identify the
conflict until it has spread significantly. Such a scenario requires team building
approaches of conflict resolution. When employees are dissatisfied with their
conditions of service, team building works through collective bargaining which is
representative of employee groups through teachers’ union representatives.

There are personal factors that affect teams and therefore essential in team
building for conflict resolution. According to Varney, (2009) although teams operate
towards a common goal, their compositions are not altogether homogenous. There
exist individual differences in in terms of values, goals, needs and self-esteem.
Within this context, team building works when management and members
understand individual differences. To deal successfully with conflicts using team
building, members must recognise that the unpredictable nature of individual
differences can impact on the whole team. This is undeniably present in education
institutions since each employee in a school is an individual with personal interests.
The sheer size of the school and variety of its members means that there is an
aggregate of personalities and dealing with each one individually may be
constraining, thus the teambuilding approach.

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Teambuilding approaches to conflict management recognise that conflict is
indispensable and therefore dealing with problems is one way of enhancing group
performance. Conflict is thus considered to be positive, providing an environment
within which important issues to perfect team performance can surface. It provides
opportunities for developing better interpersonal and communication skills. If left to
escalate, however, conflict can cause team members to feel defeated, creating
distrust and suspicion (Bowditch & Buono, 1997). If teambuilding is not well applied,
Nelson (1995) cautions that negative conflict can quickly destroy a team, usually
arising from poor planning. The school environment provides an atmosphere where
individual differences can lead to better team performance.

There are particular areas within the school environment that can lead to negative
conflict commonly affecting the staff and therefore requiring teambuilding conflict
resolution strategies. Ghaffar, (2012) submits that negative conflict within schools
arises out of administrative procedures that are not well applied by management.
There may be disparities in the way individual teachers’ issues are handled which
may indicate levels of biasness, favouritisms and inconsistencies. When issues of
conflict are not handled on a fair basis and according to laid down procedures,
conflict may arise. Inadequacy of resources within the school can lead to failure to
complete teaching jobs leading to resentment as staff are overloaded with work. It
is therefore crucial that team leaders treat teachers and school staff in an equitable
manner and provide adequate resources.

Ghaffar, (2012) further identifies cost overruns as a problem for conflict within the
school. This arises if financial resources are not equitably applied across the
departments of the institution whereby certain groups appear to be favoured.
Through teambuilding approach, entire teams should be involved from the
budgeting stages through representation by heads of departments. This is
important because when the aspect of cost becomes a problem, the stakeholders
can be able to understand the phenomenon and seek appropriate interventions and
communicate to other members in their departments. In this way conflicts can be
resolved before they become a problem for the entire institution.

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Work scheduling is an important source of conflict within the school as it affects
how teams can accomplish their tasks (Varney, 2009). Within the school setup,
Mwewa, (2021) elucidates that this aspect is realised as teachers’ timetabling
brings about conflict. Teachers may have strong misunderstandings on pedagogical
matters such as lesson delivery methodologies; time allocations; scheduling of
assessments and time spent on tasks. Sometimes official documents such as class
timetables may be understood differently. Other common miscommunications relate
to interruptions of scheduled school activities and learning due to official
announcements, incomplete information, failure to adhere to instructions, applying
personal initiative to officially described procedures and much more. Unless team
spirit is enhanced and everyone’s concerns are addressed, this may result into a
volatile situation. This is where teambuilding is important as a strategy for resolving
conflicts. Each team member needs to know their areas of operation as assigned
and according to levels of accountability.

There are appropriate recommended strategies that can be taken under

teambuilding to handle conflict within the school environment. Nelson, (1995)
provides five workable methods. The first is the direct approach which is about
confronting the conflict head-on. It involves looking at the issue objectively,
incorporating all team members in the resolution of the conflict. The second
teambuilding approach to conflict resolution is bargaining. This involves bringing the
parties together to understand their recommendations towards resolving the
conflict. Team leaders are engaged in order to arrive at a compromise. The third of
Nelson’s (1995) approaches is enforcement of team rules. This approach may be
avoided early until it is obvious that certain members no longer desire to belong to a
team or refuse working with others. The fourth approach is retreating. According to
Nelson, (1995) there are certain problems that arise among teams which are not
real and require to be avoided. The leader can delay long enough for the individuals
to drop the conflict. The fifth strategy is to de-emphasise. This is a bargaining
strategy emphasising the areas of agreement among the team members. When
parties realize that there are areas where they are in agreement, they can often
begin to move in a new direction.

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Team building has a role in resolving cooperate conflict. Teams require some
conflict to operate effectively. Teambuilding can contribute to effective problem
solving and decision making by motivating people to examine problems differently.
It encourages team members to suggest varied ideas; seek superior solutions; and
integrate several ideas to create high-quality solutions. The key is to have the
members understand what their roles would be and to positively motivate them
(Tjosvold, 1988). Suppressed differences among team members reduce
performance levels. But when they are brought up, they can be resolved. Moss,
(2020) puts across that the actual process of airing differences can help to increase
the cohesiveness and effectiveness of the team through the increased interest and
energy that often accompanies it. This in turn fosters creativity and intensity among
team members. In addition, bringing differences to the surface can result in better
ideas and more innovative solutions. When people share their views and strive
toward reaching a consensus, better decisions are reached. Team members also
improve their communication skills and become better at understanding and
listening to the information they receive when differences are freely aired.

Through teambuilding, staff become more responsible for managing themselves, it

is important for organisations to help them by identifying the knowledge, skills, and
abilities required to handle conflict. Then developing plans to transfer these skills
and capabilities over to their teams. Because conflict is inevitable in teams, the
focus needs to be on how it is managed. Conflict that is poorly handled creates an
environment of fear and avoidance of the subject. On the other hand, if properly
managed, it can lead to learning, creativity, and growth.

Conflict management has various approaches of which teambuilding is a useful

one. Within an institution such as a school, people of various backgrounds and
views get together to perform their professional roles. Conflict arises within the
school teams and may be considered healthy unless it threatens the stability of the
institution. Various sources of conflict are identifiable within the school environment
ranging from personal differences to pedagogical and management matters.
Teambuilding is a worthwhile approach as it involves various stakeholders within
the school.

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