91�����

• Just putting having students working in a team is unlikely to yield particularly strong learning results. While they gain experience from learning in a team, significant personal development is much more likely with well thought-out, interactive learning activities that aim to address specific teamwork-related competencies. This also implies that rather than only having lecture content, it makes sense to complementing that with specific exercises or assignments. For example, if one strives to teach feedback skills, include assignments where students need to give feedback to each other into the course structure.  
• Teamwork competencies consist of a broad set of different types of skills, knowledge and attitudes. Coming up with meaningful learning activities in the context of your course is much easier if you have clearly defined which sub-competencies related to teamworking are students expected to develop during the course. In this work, teamwork competencies frameworks can be pretty helpful (see one such framework in “Methods and Tools examples” -section below). 
• Assessing the development of teamwork of students during the course can be quite challenging. This makes it difficult to get “status quo” understanding of what teamwork competencies your course actually teaches to students. However, for development purposes gaining this information is highly valuable, so consider adding specific questions related to this to your course feedback survey or even interviewing your students about the topic if possible.   

• All courses: Clarify with teamwork competency frameworks what teamwork skills you actually want to teach and include learning activities related to this into the course structure.  
• Courses that are in the beginning of the study path: If students come to your course at the start of their studies, it probably makes sense to focus on basic teamwork skills like communication inside the team, help-giving and -taking, goal setting and basic coordination. Building teamwork competencies is like any other subject: you need to learn to walk before you can run, so it does not make sense to push for learning advanced things too early.  
• Courses that are later in the study path: In this case it is more likely that your students have already developed relatively strong basic skills so it is possible to focus on more advanced issues like leadership, performance monitoring, conflict resolution etc. However, it makes sense to check the curriculum as a whole rather than accepting this assumption blindly and actually check which teamwork competencies are addressed in other courses before they come to your course. It is not unheard of that 3^rd year bachelor students have worked in groups but not been subjected to any specific teamwork related learning activities.  

Teamwork competence map 

Background 

This teamwork competence is based on the work of Hebles et al. (2022) and Schutze & Krumm (2017). It divides teamwork related competencies into three main categories 1) subject matter related, 2) interpersonal and 3) organizational competencies. Basically, these are the elements that help our students to perform well in doing tasks and projects in teams.  

Subject-matter competencies refer in essence to knowledge and related to one’s field, that an individual needs to successfully perform analysis and problem solving tasks and thus help to perform. While some could argue these are not teamwork competencies per se, for the teams ability to perform at high level, these are also critical competencies. Further, in the context of project-based learning, omitting these from the framework altogether, would create a dichotomy between teaching field related expertise and teamwork expertise. Instead, it is better to look at the picture more holistically. For these arguments, subject matter competencies are included in this teamwork competence framework.  

Interpersonal competencies, while often thought of as soft skills, are indispensable for a team’s ability to function cohesively and effectively. These skills, which include communication, conflict management, and intercultural competence, are essential for navigating the complex social dynamics within teams. Though sometimes overlooked in favor of more technical or subject-specific skills, interpersonal competencies are integral to maintaining trust, resolving conflicts, and ensuring that collaborative efforts move forward smoothly. In the context of project-based learning, these skills are a fundamental component of teamwork and should be developed alongside domain expertise to create well-rounded, high-functioning teams. 

Organizational competencies are critical for managing the workflow and ensuring that team efforts are effectively channeled toward achieving shared objectives. These competencies—ranging from goal setting and planning to performance monitoring and self-management—are key to maintaining structure, productivity, and momentum in a team. While some might view organizational skills as separate from core teamwork abilities, in practice, these competencies enable teams to coordinate their efforts, track progress, and adapt to challenges efficiently. In project-based learning, fostering these skills ensures that teams not only function well but are also able to reach their full potential in delivering successful outcomes.