I find it best to just walk around the room as the students are working on their projects. I like to do group work for in-class assignments. We recently changed a term paper project from a group to an individual project, due to the frequent complaints of unequal participation by group members. I think for group work done outside of class, it can be hard to evaluate the individual students.
Elaine,
this is definitely a challenge. A couple of ideas:
-are group projects absolutely vital to your curriculum. I find value in them, but in this course can you get by without them?
-is there a way for you to monitor who is working & who isn't & add that into the grading?
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I teach a Professional Communications course at a technical school. I monitor group activities in terms of individual participation and group activity outcome. This is explained at the start of each term. The problems I face in each class ranges from those who refuse to participate in a group activity because they work better alone to those who refuse to participate because they don't care. When these individuals are placed in groups, the work-aloner will do all the work; the ones who don't care will be doing some other activity. By the time these student reach my class they would have already formed bonds and will "cover each other's back" so peer ratings will not be effect. Any suggestions?
Rhodri,
I think this is a good method to grade the group work involved while still treating each student as an individual.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I believe it is important to have each member of the group grade each students performance as well as their own. These two grades along with my grade as the instructor make up the final grade for the group project.
Being a very new instructor, I would welcome your advice and feedback on the method I tried this semester in evaluating individual effort within a group. Each group was assigned to write a 3-5 page research paper and give a presentation on their findings.
First, I gave the groups my grading rubric so they all knew exactly how they would be evaluated. The paper grade was 90% based on meeting criteria, and 10% based on a peer evaluation. Each student received their own presentation grade, which was based mostly on their individual presentation skills (70%), but also on the overall presentation (30%).
I can be very difficult to evaluate individual efforts when they are working in a group. In every group, there are different levels of ambition with each of the members. So often, we hear students complain that one of the team members is not doing as much as the rest - or that one member is trying to control the decisions of the group. What I have done in the past with group work is assign individual tasks for each member of the group. Each member will not only have to participate in a group submission, but they will also need an individual component that must be submitted as well.
Gary,
I think this is the best idea to try & get all of the group members engaged & on task.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
As an instructor I use groups usually when in the class. I know from my experience as a student, when performing a group assignment there was always that one member who did not contribute but still was graded on the same scale as the rest. Therefore if and when I do have group assignments each member has specific items for which they are graded: contribution, communication, and the actual work turned in. When the group turns in their assignment I have each member turn in their part and then grade them on their part of the research.
This is a struggle for online instructors evaluating group projects.
When I have group projects in my courses, I spend more time trying to encourage individual participation with the group than on any other aspect of the course, it seems. Even so, group projects continue to represent a source of anxiety for more conscientious students who do not get the level of support from their group members that they would like.
In evaluating individual effort, I ask students to submit confidential ratings of themselves and their classmates in various areas that I can use in assessing participation. I also look at emails sent, DB posts, and chat archives to determine level of participation in the project.
These student ratings are usually right in line with what I would expect based on what I see from my view.
I like the idea of peer review. I am going to try using it in class. I'm thinking that peer review should have some formal organization as far as a rubric or form to fill out and remain annonymous.
William,
this is a good point & definitely something we must consider. We want to provide an environment that will encourage maximum effort on the part of all students.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Judi,
that can definitely add to the pressure there. I like the idea of the students rotating & having an experience at each of the roles. This means noone can really shirk & also provides a variety of experience.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Once a group is made up,depending upon its size, it is up to the instructor to let each member in the group what is expected of them,if they feel all of them will be graded equaly or at the same rate they will put out more,Its a level playing field. But if its going to be graded at different rates, how much is enough?
In our laboratory setting, each member of the group has a specific role. By the end of the course, all students will have had multiple chances at performing their tasks in each role as they rotate jobs each class time. We incorporate a rubric in order to evaluate the skills. The difficulty is when one of the team members is not on the same pace as the rest of the team. This is very easily reflected in the evaluation for that lab period, but it puts more pressure on the other students.
During group assignments, I am constantly moving about the room. I like to listen to the conversations, discussion, thinking that is going on among the group members. What are the dynamics? Is everyone participating and adding to the conversation and if not - why? From this information, I can then take time to pull each student and have a very brief discussion of how they feel the group is working and how the information is coming together. Students are usually very honest about their work and that of their classmates. So I am able to have individual time and group time to see each student.
I think the instructor needs to be careful in his/her expectations of certain members of the group. Recently I observed a student was given a poor grade in a group project because the instructor "expected" that student to take the lead in the group and get the task finished. The student didn't in this instance exhibit his leadership skills and preform in the role the instructor expected. If the group is going to be awarded an individual grade for participation, which I believe is one of the best ways to be fair in evaluating performance, then the instructor should look beyond their own expectations for participation. I like the idea of having the group evaluate its own performance and use that evalution as part of the final grade.
Sunshine,
I think you're right that the evaluation of the individual effort can be particularly challenging in the online environment. I believe the key is the active participation & monitoring by the instructor.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Evaluating individual effort in group work is a challenge I have experienced in several of my courses.
Because I teach online, group projects can be a challenge for both me and my students. I try to be very clear with participation expectations from the start and monitor participation throughout the project. I give constant reminders to students to participate, often sending an email encouraging them to respond when one of their group members has posted new information in the group area.
I also request a self and group assessment at the end of the project, giving me a clearer view of the level of support they gave and received throughout the project.
david,
this is a great plan & also reflective of the work environment as many teams are formed based on the individual skills or work areas.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
