Biotechnology for Health (Biomedical Innovations)

Unit 1: Problem 1: Effective ER DesignBI 1.1Biomedical Innovation: systems & human-centered design

Write a team contract

Agree on roles, norms, and a decision rule before the ER design work starts so the team stays on track.

Builds on (2 levels back)inferred · med confidence

Task vs. role: A team contract assigns roles, so students must first see that a role is an ongoing responsibility, not a single task.
Setting a shared goal: Norms only make sense once a team has a shared goal to protect, so basic goal-setting underlies a useful contract.

Prerequisites are inferred: pending teacher review.

Re-learn the skill with worked practice and clear examples.

A team contract written before the work starts names each member's role, the norms everyone follows, and a decision rule: so the team handles deadlines and conflict on purpose, not by accident.

Step 1: Assign the roles

Give every member a standing role: a lead/facilitator who keeps the team moving, a recorder for notes, a timekeeper for deadlines, and a materials or research manager. Each person owns one.

Step 2: Set the norms

Norms are rules for behavior the team agrees to follow: how soon to reply to messages, what to do if someone misses a deadline, and how to give feedback respectfully.

Step 3: Write a decision rule

Decide in advance how disagreements end: for example, majority vote, or the lead designer decides after everyone is heard. Writing this down before a conflict keeps it fair.

Practice

A team writes its contract. Which item is a NORM (a rule for how the team behaves) rather than a role or a decision rule?

Approved

A.Jordan is the timekeeper
B.We will reply to team messages within 24 hours
C.Ties are broken by a majority vote
D.Priya is the recorder

Show the worked solution ▾

Answer: B. We will reply to team messages within 24 hours

Step 1: Recall the three parts: A contract has roles (who owns what), norms (how we behave), and a decision rule (how we settle disagreements).
Step 2: Match each option: Naming Jordan and Priya assigns roles; the majority vote is a decision rule. 'Reply within 24 hours' is a behavior rule: a norm.

Why it's right: Agreeing to reply within 24 hours is a shared rule for how the team behaves, which is the definition of a norm.

Why the others miss:

A: Naming Jordan the timekeeper assigns a role, not a norm.
C: Breaking ties by majority vote is the decision rule, not a behavior norm.
D: Naming Priya the recorder assigns a role, not a norm.

Aligned to Teamwork: roles, norms, decision rules · reading level ~grade 9

Where you'd see this

A one-page signed team contract taped inside the design notebook, with a roles table, a short list of norms, and the tie-breaking rule at the bottom.

Careers that use this

Health Services Manager: Sets shared team norms and a clear decision process for a clinical project so staff coordinate without constant escalation.

Video library

Watch: Write a team contract

Build a tower, build a team | Tom Wujec

TED · ~7 min

Guided notes

Fill these in as you work through the lesson.

Big idea: A team contract is a short written agreement made before the work starts that names each member's role, the norms everyone will follow, and how the team will make decisions and handle conflict.

Key terms: write the meaning

Role (an ongoing responsibility a member owns):
Norm (a rule for how the team behaves):
Decision rule (how the team settles a disagreement):
Accountability (being answerable for your part):

The rule

A team contract should name each member's , the everyone agrees to follow, and a clear for settling disagreements.

Check yourself

Name three roles a four-person ER design team might assign and what each one owns.
Write one norm about deadlines and one norm about how the team will communicate.
Your team is split two-to-two on a design choice. What decision rule could you agree on in advance to break the tie?

Work one example

For a four-person ER design team, draft a team contract section that lists each member's role, two norms the team will follow, and one decision rule for settling disagreements.