A technique that has worked well for me is to assign specific roles to each student: The "Leader" has the responsibility to ensure that everyone participates in the discussion; I explain that leaders should call on quiet group members and say, "Mary, you've been quiet so far today, what do you think?" Then allow time for Mary to respond; don't allow the more talkative members to jump in to fill the silence. Leaders can also politely interrupt talkative students by saying, "John, we really need to move on so that everyone has time to contribute." Another student is the "Recorder" who jots down notes of what everyone says (to share with the entire class later), and another student is designated the "Encourager" to ensure that everyone is given positive feedback for his/her contribution to the group.
When the same groups are used again, the roles rotate.
yes i do small group activities in my classroom. at this point i have not had any challenges. the best way to manage the groups are being interactive and ask each member questions pertaining to their assignment
I do utilize groups, but not as much as I would like to. My experience is the highly motivated student does most of the work, and those I would like to see interacting and participating seem to ride on the strength of the strong.
I recently allowed a class to form their groups, and then I gave each individual within that group a different portion of the assignment. That seemed to go well. The stronger students did support but did not control the individuals.
I have also seen students thrive in groups when they struggle individually. Having a place to be heard and valued with peers can be a turning point for some.
We use peer review in our English composition classes. The biggest challenge is my students' ill-preparedness for the task. I remind them about the multiple purposes of the task:
1. It's sometimes difficult to see what we've actually written as compared to what we were thinking we wrote. An outside reader can see what's really there, and even professional writers make use of this kind of editorial assistance.
2. Often when we see how someone else has responded to an assignment, we get new insight as to the possibilities.
3. We also get to be of service to others in helping them with constructive criticism.
4. It's good training for becoming better at self-editing.
As I also move around the room offering feedback and spot-checks, we place our emphasis on improving the manuscript we're all looking at rather than on the writer. However, the pressure to come prepared is perhaps too subtle, and unfortunately, students quickly learn who cannot be helpful.
Edward, keeping everyone on the same level of participation can be a challenge. One technique I have used is to keep the groups mixed up and each member of the group is to provide an brief evaluation on the contributions of each of their group members. Over the duration of a class cycle you will have several evaluations on each student and get a very clear picture who participated and who did not.
James Jackson
Iuse small groups all the time with my students. If I notice students not getting alog in there groups or having trouble staying on task I usually just move them to another group or go join the group myself to make sure they stay on track.
I use small group activities often in my classes to make students feel more comfortable participating in class.
The challenge to that is not letting the same students in the same groups throughout the term where they start getting comfortable and easily get off track of the topic at hand.
So I have started making them pick numbers when they arrive to class, or form a circle and find someone with same color socks, or count off 1, 2, 3 and then get together with the students that have the same number that they have. (I try different methods throughout the term so the students can't arrange seats to make sure they can work with their buddy.) This way they get to work with everyone in the class and get different ideas about topics.
I have also learned to give a time limit as to when they should have the activity completed and letting them know they will have to report what took place in their group. This usually keeps everyone on task.
I teach technical material and use groups for lab work. This is good for students in that they discuss the lab to resolve their issues.
The biggest problem I have is ensuring that all participate and don't just put in time and take results.
I circulate group to group, ask questions of the group and use this information to help me determine who is working and who is just collecting results and not participating.
At times members of the group will take me aside and indicate that that a person is not contributing. I usually increase my time around the group to observe, then pull the offender aside to discuss the lack of participation based on my observation.
Kathy, by keeping the groups mixed up you also help students to understand that in the workplace they will not always have the option of teaming up with those they already know. You are giving them a very usable skill in getting to learn about new work partners and collaborating with strangers. Keep up the great effort.
James Jackson
Ian, excellent ideas for how to manage groups. Another option is to also have each member of the team rate each others contributions. Ratings in the workplace is common these days so this also helps students understand how they will be rated by their peers. The main focus is to ensure each student carries their own weight within their own talent levels. Thanks for sharing.
James Jackson
I utilize small groups all the time. There are several things I have to be aware of. One is that there, at times, tends to be one person who is either delegated all the work for the group or takes over for the group. This does not allow for true collaborative work amongst the group as one person does all the work and no one else does.
One way around this is to number everyone in the group off. For groups of four I would number each student with a number 1-4. This would put one number in each group. Each number would than be assigned a specific assignment to perform for the group. This allows one student to either be delegated all the work or monopolize all the work.
Another issue I have had is small groups getting together and socializing without getting work down. For this a simple numbering system works as well. Numbering the students to split them into groups will provide the opportunity for students to work with individuals they have not worked with before. It will also break up groups of students who may otherwise keep each other off track by socializing and not working on the assignment.
I often do small groups in the lab setting. I find it works better if I use different groups each time, and not just the the same two or three in the same group every time. I find it makes them learn to work together effectively, even if they are not friendly outside of the classroom. I also find it easier to manage the various groups all at once if I have them group up into the "corners" of the room (not really the corner, but spread out in a square formation) so I can kind of be in the middle and be able to see and hear and quickly get to each group if needed.
I use use small groups in my classes-- often when discussing case studies or in class assignments. In some classes with strong social groups, it is difficult to place students in a way that maximizes participation. I have tried random group assignment and assignment by proximity. Is there a best method to facilitate grouping?
Robert, great example of how class groups can be used to the benefit of the student. Learning how to collaborate and how to solicit feedback from others is a critical skill that is lacking according to some individuals I know within the Human Resources environment. Looks like you are providing a great learning opportunity for your students. Keep up the great work.
James Jackson
As an instructor at a culinary school I often have students working in groups to complete in-class assignments. Occasionally it presents a challenge, but I find that working together in small groups helps the students to better understand what they are doing as the can bounce ideas off each other. In culinary there is not always only one way to do things but several. By working together and trying different approaches, the students usually can figure out which style works best for them.
As an experienced communication instructor, group activities and major team projects are a must in my classes. I find group activities especially useful in helping students get to know each other and communicate face-to face. During team activities circulation through the classroom, making sure each team stays on track. For most classes I, also, assign a major team project, which includes a team presentation. The challenges I see center around the inability to think beyond "me" and understand how their actions or lack of actions impact the whole team, inability or unwillingness to orally communicate with each other, conflict resolution skills and creativity. While these challenges have always been present, they appear to be more challenging, occur at a greater frequency and appear primarily with traditional aged students. Adult learners do not experience these issues, and often emerge as team facilitator. What I do is I anticipate these issues and address them in the Syllabus and discuss the "teamwork" concept before the projects. Secondly, in my grading I grade the team as a whole, but reserve the right to evaluate students independently, if a student or students does not fully participate in the project. Also, for group projects, I set aside time in class for the teams to meet for their major team project, which gives me the opportunity to observe the groups and address any issues that might arise.
octavia, there are many techniques that can be used but one that I have found useful is to establish a group rating system where the members of the group rate the contributions of the others. Each member is responsible for some part of the group assignment. If other members of the group have to make up for the deficiencies of one of the members then the non-participating member would be rated very low and their grade would result. This helps to teach real life skills in that those that do not contribute to the group may find themselves outside of the group or can even be removed from their positions for lack of performance. Of course this may not apply to all environments but wanted to share one of the techniques that has worked well for me in the past.
James Jackson
I have utilized small groups and the biggest challenge i have experienced is the task management, some students do all the work while the others do nothing. I am still in the process of learning how to control this kind of situation in my under 18 groups. I havent experienced any problems with small groups activities in my adult classes.
Kitt, break your students up into groups and each week or periodically through out the weeks or months the group is together, have members of each group take turns being the group leader. Allow the stronger students be the leaders early and remind the other students to take notes and monitor how the other students are leading their groups. When it is their turn to lead, they can elect to request assistance from other class members but they must perform some form of group leadership skill to earn course credit. The extroverts will love this format while the introverts may be less inclined to volunteer but both sets of personalities need to experience how to lead a group as this is what will be expected of them in the real world.
James Jackson
I have found that utilizing group sessions are effective along with a level of competition or a game format. In addition, group sessions assist struggling students by placing them students that have a stronger skill set. However, at times the weaker students may allow the students with the stronger skill set to do all of the work. What suggestions would you make for this challenge?
