Group Projects
I feel group project help build "soft skills" that are hard to teach. Grouping students helps build professionalism through exercise rather than lecture.
Nicole,
I like to do a combo of group & individual grade where each group member gives a grade for each other.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Building professionalism is key for our students. I teach in media production where 90% of your ability to book a job in the field is based off of your professionalism and how much people enjoy working with you. Our industry is almost entirely word of mouth and jobs by recommendation. Therefore, I rely heavily on group projects as teaching tools. Students are given specific roles and duties for the projects, and I try to make sure everybody's roles are worth the same amount of credit in the final group grade so that it is fair. The problem I tend to run into is that certain students do not do their part, which really makes the students sharing a grade with that person very angry with both the student and me at times. What can we do to make this more fair for those who do their jobs without sacrificing the lesson of "you are only as good as your weakest link" ?
Clifton,
and the more we can structure roles & help them with this, the better.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I have experienced both good and not as well with grouping students for projects. Most have been tremendous in enhancing their "soft skills" group interactions and development. I have found in most situations that the withdrawn members got a point that they felt more impowered when it was time for presentations which required all to be a part and speak.
melanie,
agreed that an introvert may no be comfortable in this setting, however many careers require this kind of team setting & so I would suggest that the students need to grow accustomed to this practice. As for the development of soft skills, the projects must be carefully planned, executed, & debriefed in order to see an increase in the soft skills. They do not happen simply by having students work in groups.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I teach a career success class (being canceled) which is "soft-skills." Students who are shy are typically shy within their group and shy in the with everyone in the classroom. I try to develop their skills and encourage them to speak because as a Medical Assistant, they MUST speak to their patients and perform patient-teaching. There is no place for shyness.
I’m not a fan of group projects. I’ve taught for the past 12 years and have utilized student interns for the past six years. I have not seen any “soft skills†developed/improved from this teaching strategy. To an introvert, a group of 6-8 students is no different than a classroom of 30. I think the only way this method could possibly be effective would be to limit the groups to two-three members ïŠ
I also feel group projects are good for students who are uncomfortable speaking in front of large groups. It is more personal to offer an opinion.
Angela,
and these can definitely be developed through these group projects.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I agree soft skills are somthing we need just to talke with each other.
ryan,
this is exactly the reason I like the group projects. Just the other day I had a student ask why she needed to do group work, she's done it before & she doesn't like working with other people. I pointed out, that is exactly why she needs to do more group work.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
