Amanda,
this is a great observation & one we all need to keep in mind. While some will still struggle with group work, overall one great way to engage them is to have a meaningful assignment.
Dr. Ryan Meers
I think the number one way to help student groups stay on course and be productive is the type of assignment that is given to them. I believe that the assignment needs to be meaningful and cannot be seen as "busywork." If the students feel that they will actually get something out of the assignment and will gain more by worked cooperatively together they should stay on course and be productive.
Assingning someone as the encourager, who warmly encourages everyone to participate, recognizing contributions, demonstrating acceptance of ideas, and being generally responsive to team members. To assign this role may seem artificial at first, but without this role being taken, members may not be reinforced for participating.
Renee,
this is a fantastic strategy & helps ensure that they are staying on task.
Dr. Ryan Meers
When setting a timed goal for the groups, it ensures they stay on task and gives everyone a chance in the group to participate. At the end of the group sessions, each group is given a little bit of time to annouce their findings to the whole class which keeps them productive.
Some of the strategies to ensure student groups will stay on course and be productive are:
1. Keep the number of group members between 6 to 8 students.
2. Plan each stage of the group work. And let each group-member know what is expected of them.
3. Make the group work relevant to the course and make sure the assignment reflects the skill level and experiences of the students.
4. Ensure that workload is equally divided among group members.
5. Ensure the scope of the project is feasible within the course timeframe.
6. Coach students on coping with group conflict and let them know it is part of the learning process and they will have to deal with group conflict in the field.
7. Ensure the grading is fair and that socre for group work is no more than 30% of total course score.
Some of the strategies that allow students to remain productive and stay on course includes monitoring the students, and having small groups. Monitoring generally allows for individual assessment of the student's progress where interventions can be applied so that the student can further progress.
Placing the students into small groups also allow the students to participate in a lower stress environment where learning and sharing of ideas occur. The student can excel and even evaluate whre they are in comparison with others in the group. Stronger students in the group can help to encourage weaker students, and students with similiar background may remain involved and engaed.
Chukwuka,
I would agree that we need to be clear in the objectives as well as checking in as that helps with accountability.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Strategies to ensure groups stay on course may include giving clear definition of objectives and occasionally checking in on them. Helping them assign different group roles like facilitator and timekeepper might help. What has worked well for me in the past was deadline reminder.
If this is a project where students will meet several times, I lay out clear expectations and point out the boundaries - kind of laying out the field with the boundary lines clearly defined. (step across the boundary, and I will get involved.) I show them how to set up check lists to see where they are. I ask for updates on a timely basis - brief comments about the task issues and interpersonal issues of the group.
I like this concept. The instructor should maintain control of the class and set the pace. Too many times groups will want to speed through an exercise, missing key points along the way.
I have students do a presentation in class and I break them up by making groups from the roster. I was having problems that some students would do all the work and others would disappear when they went to the library. I now have them tell me where they are headed if it is out of the room so I can go and talk to them, see if they need help, etc.
I answering this question, I recall the point made that group work must be designed so that assignments are easy to distribute throughout the group and everyone can equally contribute. I feel that it paramount to both success in group work and productivity as well. Monitoring the work of the group is another key activity to successfully using group work in the classroom. Moving from group to group and observing or asking questions will alert the students that you are paying attention. If issues arise within a group, make sure all of the students know that you are available to mediate, but I also think that reassigning students who don't particularly like their group is a poor decision. The lesson learned is that you will often come across these situations in the real world, so you need to learn to deal with conflict effectively, and it is also disruptive to the new group.
By Eddy mojena
Letting the students know first-hand on how your grading by in time segments so that should keep them on wanting to stay on tract.
As I stated previously, I believe that in order to keep student groups on course and productive, the groups must have constant monitoring by the instructor(s). Additionally, students must have a very clear task (or tasks) to complete. Finally, providing time limits, or constraints, can help to keep students focused on the initiative.
Robert,
I agree that we cannot abdicate our responsibility to monitor the groups.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Effective monitoring along with positive feedback seems to work well for me.
Tracy,
I agree & to me this is also more reflective of what the "real world" work environment is like.
Dr. Ryan Meers
When students are involved in group work, t is beneficial for the project to include different areas that require multi-person participation. the worst case scenario for group work would be one person doing all of the work. One must alsobe mindful of letting students pick their own groups. One big obstacle in group work is the group actually being able to work together and collaborate on achieving the task at hand. so while a group of five close friends could probably work well together and complete the assignment, personal conversations or distractions may become a problem with completion. When a group of random people are chosen to work together, the inclination for every person to want to do good would encourage team work among them.
by assinging individual work to each member withn that group, asking open ended questions.
