Testimonials

Exploring Teamwork Essentials Program – Pilot Schools’ Experiences 

• Henry Ford Community College (Dearborn, Michigan)
• Ottawa University (Ottawa, Kansas)
• Walled Lake Central High School (Walled Lake, MI)

• Understand the importance of working well in teams and the attributes of high performing teams.
• Understand general differences in communication, value, and behavioral norms across ethnicities, genders, generations, and work-styles.
• Learn to suspend judgment on the ideas of others.
• Get to know a fellow student or two a little better. 

• The booklet was a great way to explore diversity and how it is a great thing.
• The “If the World Were a Village” section was very interesting to me.
• I liked the most that it showed that we will have to work with people who have different views and opinions. We come from different cultures, but in the end we are all one.
• The book was wonderfully written.
• I liked the world in 100 people village page. It made things more real.
• I think it is well put together.
• Made me realize what little judgment I leave out of my everyday life.
• The comics made it fun.
• I liked how the book was so informational about teamwork and diversity. I really enjoyed it.
• I really liked knowing facts that I never knew before. For example, knowing from the "village in the world," most people would be non-white.
• The statistics, graphs, and charts. The world broken into a village of 100 people. Good format.
• The organization. Men/women comparison.
• What I liked most about the booklet was it was easy to relate to the situations.
• What I liked most about this book was that it took the idea of leadership and teamwork and made it achievable and realistic. It's something that can actually be related to and easy to grasp.
• The quotes in the book from the many celebrities. It was cool to see into their opinions.

• Hearing things about people from all areas and aspects of life.
• The diversity of the world. Although there was diversity, the answers they gave to the questions were relatively the same.
• The film was amazing and I really liked how we got to answer the same questions.
• All the interviews and the Dali Lama’s message.
• The emphasis on cultures other than the ones we are familiar with in America. The reality of minority populations and non-white Americans in relevant.
• I liked that they tried to get other views and that they saw everyone is unique and different in their own way.
• The warmth that the film finished with. Variety of personalities shown – diversity.
• The diversity and the insights it showed.
• I thought the booklet was very insightful but I really loved learning about the meaning of "one."
• I liked hearing from the inspirational / spiritual leaders as well as from the people on the street.
• Seeing the similarities in different answers of different people.
• I liked the fact that the interviews were of people who are very different from each other. After watching it I realized everyone, even if they are different, have something in common.
• Seeing a diverse group of people with very similar answers. Shows how people are truly and naturally alike.
• I loved hearing the various answers from people in the different cultures and it made me think about how I would answer the questions.
• The dragonfly lady's puzzle example.

• Getting deep with it. At first we didn’t have much to say, then all of a sudden we couldn’t stop talking.
• How everyone opens up and shares their feelings about the topic.
• I like interacting with other students with different cultural backgrounds, because it made this a learning experience that I would not have received anywhere else.
• The openness and honesty of my group members.
• Bonding with other students.
• Everything – it was great.
• Everyone got to express their own opinions.
• Getting to know more about my classmates.
• I liked that we were all able to express ourselves without being judged. We all had our own personal opinions.
• I’m not a good listener. If I find something inspiring I jump into the discussion. But this time we learned to be good listeners.
• The way we had a chance to actually talk and express the way they feel toward certain things and how everyone in the group was open-minded and understood and supported your ideas.
• I like that we had a chance to express our own views and we got to hear other perspectives on the questions being asked besides our own. I also liked that the questions were more like critical thinking.
• Being able to talk about something as personal, and sometimes controversial, as faith in a non-hostile environment.
• How accepting everyone was of everyone’s different opinions.
• Getting to interact with new people.
• I got to talk and hear others views. I almost feel smarter.
• Being able to share thoughts and realize your thoughts change the more you listen.
• I liked most being able to hear the perspective of other people who differ from me.
• I liked hearing what some of my classmates had to say and how their answers differed from mine.
• I really liked hearing everyone's different views. It made me feel relaxed and close to my group.
• The questions really made you think and allowed you to explore yourself and your ideas.
• The openness and acceptance of being yourself. The questions were thought provoking.
• I liked hearing everyone's different viewpoints and relating them back to my own.
• Watching other people open up and share their opinions without regard to judgment.
• The depth of the questions; openness in the group.
• The questions and discussion. Also the feeling it gave you afterwards, like being refreshed and calm.
• I really enjoyed getting to discuss questions that provoke consideration regarding the "meaning of life."
• I learned more about myself and others.
• I liked hearing the different ideas of each person in my group. It seemed to open my eyes.
• I liked the thought provoking nature of the questions. They forced us to delve into our hearts and reveal our fundamental values.
• Seeing the complexities of others you interact with on a daily basis, but would never otherwise get to experience.
• I liked that we all had the opportunity to develop our own ideas about things, and we all had the opportunity to be heard, but we could also hear other people's perspectives.
• The overall message of understanding.
• Asking the deep questions to really help you understand yourself and those around you.
• I loved the depth of the questions. They will make me think for a long time to come.