The Strength of Many

Waxing Rhapsodic . . .

Gestalt Math implies that 2 + 2 = 5 or that the sum of the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

An ancient construction principle shows that the keystone of an arch is the utility by which the parts are made a whole.
The proverb states that you cannot lift yourself up by putting others down.

Drawing an Analogy . . .

This is analogous to a suspension bridge built with stranded cable.  Each strand must bring its own characteristics to each cable, and each cable must bring strength to the bridge. 

If each of us represents a cable of the bridge then the strands of our cable are as follows:

(1)                Diligent Personal Study

(2)                Timely Classroom Preparation

(3)                Real World Application of Curriculum Principles

(4)                Prior Experience and Current Experience

If each of us represents a cable of the bridge then the following must hold true:

           

(1)                The loss or weakening of a cable endangers the bridge

(2)                No cable is ever “undesired”; its contribution is never minimalized

(3)                One cable cannot expect the others to bear its load in its absence

(4)                The purpose of the bridge is to help others bridge an otherwise untraversable gap

(5)                Regardless of the ebb and flow of traffic, the strands and cables hold fast

Bringing It Together . . .

Our efforts as a team do not imply that we carry one another, but that we support one another.  Each becomes a cable as we add the strands of academic excellence, twisted together into inseparable clusters of knowledge, wisdom, experience, and application.  Each cable can pass through the process of quality control which provides it the revision necessary to support the bridge as a whole.  When we work together as a team, we review one another, always providing the information, feedback, criticism, and support which help the individual develop their cable.  We do so because a strong team member, even though we may on occasion see him or her as a threat, remembers that he or she is in a position to then lift the others.  A weak team member is not often incapacitated by desire, but by overwhelming circumstances and needs the support structure to become the strong cable.  It will never be in the best interest of our bridge to cull the weak cables from the system in a Darwinian restructuring project; our success relies on tying our individual efforts into a cohesive, successful cohort through the bonding element of team effort.

-Scott C., Articulation on Team Effort