Keeping Student Groups on Course
When my students work in groups, I assign a 'mini-goal' relating to the topic at hand and about every 10 minutes or so, I will stop group work and review the groups response to that 'mini-goal'.
What strategies help to ensure student groups will stay on course and be productive?
For a 20 to 30 minute group dynamics for drill, monitoring, reminding of the problem objective, and assisting are some of the strategies that I employ to ensure groups will stay on course and be successful.
Greetings Branetta!
Actually, a class this size would continually be working the group process.
Keep up the good work!
Jane Davis
ED106 Facilitator
Hi Dr. Anastasia!
Without clear direction, task assignments and some guiding principles, groups can easily get off track. An instructor has to stay involved and attentive to any student concerns.
Good job!
Jane Davis
ED106 Facilitator
I totally agree with this! I have used a system where the groups change,and this way all get a chance to work with different people. It gets more information shared and achieves so much more as a class.
This one is difficult due the number of students are either 1 to 4 in my classes. I try to have a diversified class but at time the student are few. I manage by using outline and master plan for the number of students I will have.
The first thing I do is to make sure that the learners have tasks. This could be something as simple as an icebreaker to allow the groups to get to know each other. I make sure they have access to the available resources and a thorough overview of the goals for each group.
I find that the ideal number for the groups/teams is 5.
After a class has worked for a few minutes, I begin to visit with each group. I observe, make suggestions, and ask probing quesiotn. Then, I move to another group.
After visiting each group, I continue to monitor each group for involvement.
I use random groups of about 5, and have them
divide their topic of discussion into 3 sub- topics (since the major topic is often too
broad (e.g., "pollution"). Then they choose one of the sub-topics, that they listed, to discuss (e.g. "air pollution"). I give each group a "group form"(which gets marked), listing their names. As each group member contributes his idea on the chosen sub-topic(which may be conflicting), the "group scribe" records it on the "group form", with the contributor's initials after it. They keep going "round and round" until they list c. 20 ideas & 3 general conclusions (agreed on) by group members.
Mary - I couldn't agree more!
Students get bored with long projects and it is more difficult to keep group members focused.
Good job!
Jane Davis
ED106 Facilitator
Greetings Mary!
I've never had a class of students who did not enjoy learning through games. Making learning fun is - after all - OK!
Keep up the good work!
Jane Davis
ED106 Facilitator
What are some examples of this outline for a group?
I use frequent, small group assignments to keep students when possible instead of a large group project that lasts the entire term. I've found it is easier to keep students on task with many smaller assignments and they get a chance to work with different people in the class frequently.
If I do need to assign a larger project to demonstrate mastery of skills in the course, I break it into stages with a deliverable at each stage, such as a rough draft or outline.
This is a cool idea Kevin. I like the aspect of making the pop quiz into a game and introducing a little bit of healthy competition.
Hi Jon!
I definitely agree that it is important for the instructor to stay informed. This also makes studens realize that the project is important.
I would suggest that if you don't absolutely have to make the project weeks long - don't. I have found that the longer the project the more a student group can get frustrated. Maybe have more than one project short in duration AND changing student members.
Keep up the good work!
Jane Davis
ED106 Facilitator
If the task at hand will require a fair amount of days/weeks to accomplish, I will often check with the groups members to see who is doing what.
I won't question the same group member twice. I feel that this way the group realizes they need to work as a team and that I expect to see an equal amount of participation.
Jon Allen
Jay,
Great question on staying on topic. In order to stay focused I try to make sure the groups have a plan. I always probe them to see if they have assigned certain asepcts communicated with each others contact information.
Thanks,
Nick
With this, I solicit updates from groups and encourage students to keep me in the loop regarding progress. I also think it is helpful to build in checkpoints with deadlines along the way. This way groups are required to turn something in to demonstrate progression and I'm afforded the chance to get them back on track if by chance they are off base.
