UNDERSTANDING COLLABORATION A Resource Paper Prepared for the Illinois Board of Higher Education

As Mickey Rooney so famously said, " Let's all get together and put on a show. " The idea of people and groups working together to achieve a shared objective is not new; the pirates of the Caribbean, the builders of the transcontinental railway and the Allies of World War II were " collaborating " (although obviously not with each other) long before that term became part of our organizational literature. Nonetheless, collaboration is a concept that is difficult to define and even more difficult to implement. This paper is designed to support a greater understanding of collaboration through a description of its distinguishing characteristics; an examination of collaboration as a continuum; consideration of Professional Development Schools as the penultimate model of P-20 collaboration; a review of issues associated with the success of collaborative efforts; and perspectives on the development of collaboration. As appropriate, these discussions are linked to collaboration within the P-20 environment and to the BHE Title II grant requirements. Defining Collaboration The precise meaning of " collaboration " is elusive, at least in part because the term has been used as a catchall to signify just about any type of inter-organizational or interpersonal relationship. Moreover, the word " collaboration " has been used interchangeably with many other terms, such as partnerships, alliances, joint ventures, and consortia, any of which may be different in nature and intent. As an example, a series of planned meetings between a university professor and a local curriculum director may be called " collaboration " even though it may more accurately be a " consultation. " The definitional problem is further complicated by the question of whether " collaboration " is a process or a product, a journey or a destination. Rebecca Gajda, an assistant professor at the University of Vermont, describes the collaborative effort as the primary method for achieving ideal short and/or long-term goals that would not otherwise be attainable as entities working independently. Her emphasis is on the collaborative process. Kagan defines collaboration as organizational and inter-organizational structures where resources, power and authority are shared and where people are brought together to achieve common