One of the most significant challenges to student learning groups that I have seen relate to the phases of team development. Often, students need help to get their team past the Storming Phase of team development. By working with the teams I am often able to help them get them to create a division of work that makes sense to them and have the team review it with me to ensure that all students have a reasonable workload and that all are engaged. It helps to limit the amount of "Social Loafing" that occurs.
when using student learning groups I think the most significant outcome is the bond the students form when working together and figuring things out. You can see them "shine" as they learn the answers together. The most significant challenge is getting them out of thier "clicks" and have them work in other groups.
I find if you can create a mix of strong and weaker students in the group you can achieve high outcomes for the group assignments. The weaker students working with stronger students can be motivated and improve their quality of work. The big challenge is to keep the students on track as time wears on. They must be engaged and focused. Too long on the subject and they can become bored.
Keeping a close eye on the groups and constant monitoring is extremely important. Always being there for them will give a sense of confidence to the groups.
Hello,
The idea of grouping students together according to their expertise is great; however, in order for students to learn new things, sometimes it might be better to do the opposite.
Hello,
Yes, some students view group work as socializing. I think this is where time management comes into play. An outline, as you mentioned, can be a great tool for keeping students on track. The instructor should also monitor the groups.
Hello,
Students learn from one another - this is one of the best outcomes.
The challenge is to have all students equally participating in the group. This is one of the common complaints students have about group work: "One student gets stuck doing all the work while the others slack off."
On the other hand, there's always the student who wants to control the group, to take on more responsibility, refusing to allow group members to participate.
In my portfolio development class I use formal groups as an evaluation method. The students are put into random groups that will meet 5 time through the quarter. In the groups they will evaluate each others progress using a series of questions that I assign. The meeting time are during class time and in a place that I can float in on each group. The groups work well, the students feel a sense of commitment to helping each other achieve. The also must be prepared and attend each critique or they let the entire group down. The group must turn in the student review questions to me for an individual grade on each evalulation thus all students are participating.
The break down happens when one student does not attend or is not prepared. It not only hurts the student but hurts the group.
The most significant challange I find is that I would like every student to be involved, some times more capable student tend to do more.
I monitor the each group constantly and ask what help they need to complete the assignment
Hi Barry! I think you hit the nail on the head. I couldn't have referenced a group teaching method any better, so I'm taking the liberty of highlighting your post in the hopes that many of our ED106 participants will see it again.
"The best teaching method is to allow the student to act and then adjusting their actions to meet the demands of the assignment, rather then guiding them so directly that they do the work but miss the group dynamics lessons"
- Barry Sacharow
Just curious Barry, could you provide an example of adjusting/amending a student's action to support the team and assignment as opposed to direct guidance (no names, of course)?
Thanks!
Jay Hollowell
ED106 Facilitator
The most significant outcome is the involvement of students who are normally less involved becoming active.
The Most significant challenges are asssiting student in group dynamics and leadership without solving their problem.
The best teaching method is to allow the student to act and then adjusting their actions to meet the demands of the assignment, rather then guiding them so directly that they do the work but miss the group dynamics lessons
The most significant learning outcomes to using student learning groups are that the students seem to relate to their peers and their peer's experiences. The most significant challenge is that they are resistant to group learning, feeling that they are paying me to educate them and not their peers.
I find that my monitoring, by wandering around, is effective because I am somewhat involved by contributing when appropriate and can get them back on track if they become involved in tangential thinking and discussions.
I found this method helpful in teaching high school, but I found it much less successful in college classrooms. Additionally, students who think they know the material typically don't. I would say you can allow the student to participate more than some others, and for group work you can pair her with some of the less advanced students and observe from there if she really knows it or is being a show-off know-it-all who does not know it. Either way, I do not believe adults learners perceive favoritism when it is not there, so that is not a worry. My worry is when the students perceive that students as an expert in your field or as equal to you, and that could be dangerous. If she is perceived as knowledgeable and her information does not jive with yours, who will the class believe?
the most challenging aspect of group of students is too make sure that all of them understand the class and are able to follow the course.
it's important to stop regularly to ask for question and ake sure that everybody understood the content of the course.
Thanks, Kathleen, for your comments. As an icebreaker (just as an example), I will pair students up in a learning group and have each student simply talk/interact for a few moments with his/her partner. Next, each student draws a positive characteristic, feature or trait of his/her partner without using any letters, words or numbers. Then the partner tries to guess the characteristic being represented (and vice versa). I also usually give a small, fun prize to the student who the group thinks has drawn the most creative and representative picture. This really gets the groups going; it sounds silly, but very effective.
I like the idea of handing out individual outlines or tasks; I usually include the expected outcomes from the group as well as individual responsibilities, along with exactly how each student will be assessed individually and from the group perspective.
Jay Hollowell
ED106 Facilitator
Students are initially challenged with not knowing the students in their group. Having them do the icebreaker techniques allows each individual to become comfortable with one another. By giving each student an individual task or outline, they will be held accountable for their own work within the group setting.
The most significant outcome, to me, is laerning through critical thinking. It improves communication skills.
However, the biggest challenge I have faced is with students being afraid of making their team members accountable for the work. So, often times, there are groups where one or two people do everything and the rest just sit back. This is why close monitoring of student dynamics within groups becomes essential.
Hi Jay,
My group project is a class presentation on the foods and cultural etiquette of different countries. This allows them an opportunity to work together to gather the material, prepare the Powerpoint, and present in class (each person must present). I grade them individually for the most part except for 10% of the grade which focuses on how well the team worked together.
One challenge is when some group members lag behind and do not participate or prepare - by grading them individually, it allows me to see who has really done the work. After completing this module, I will allow them to grade themselves for a percentage of their grade.
The use of learning groups is critical in today's educational environments as it mirrors the needs of employers at all levels. This is particularly noted for online environments as many companies shift from f2f collaboration to collaboration at a distance. For online group projects, the biggest challenge seems to be the dynamics and motivation of the individuals in the group. When over-achievers are grouped with under-achievers it is very frustrating for online learners who must depend on communication via largely async tools. It is very important for faculty to set up the groups early in the course, establish and post expectations of the group and individuals within the group, and monitor the small group forums and areas to spot potential problems. Observing via electronic tools is as important as observing in a f2f environment.
Dr. Jeannette K. Jones
In order to be effective when creating group's work, we need to have a clear plan for each face of the work. As an instructor we can provide an outline of it. Be precise as well in given our student the requirements by the group and activities that they have to complete.
Tel my students how these groups will operate.
If my students have clear what will be each one of them contribution to the specific project will help them to be succesful.
Allow my students to meet, and have a icebreak.
Understanding why working is=n groups is relevant and help student to aquire thenecesary skills to be succesful when working on a group set.
Monitoring the progress of the task on hand.
The most significant outcomes begin when you are able to have students contribute without the pressure of having a wrong answer. By brainstorming, students become more pasionate about the subject and are willing to give 100% of themselves.
The most significant challenges to using student learning groups in the classroom is to get the students to feel comfortable enough to give 100% of themselves. As stated in the lesson, give the students tasks according to their ability level and proceed to the next level until they have achieved success.
