Critical to teaching and learning in the collaborative/cooperative environment is being able to define the responsibilities of the teacher and students and to understand what best practices for your classroom are. Ultimately, the goals of collaborative classrooms and cooperative classrooms are non-competition. For effective collaboration and cooperative teamwork, teachers and students must take on responsibilities to support the process. The table below reflects the parallel responsibilities of teachers and students.
Teacher Responsibilities | Student Responsibilities |
Monitor student behavior | Develop the skills to work cooperatively |
Provide assistance when needed | Learn to talk and discuss problems with each other in order to accomplish the group goal |
Answer questions only when they are team questions | Ask for help only after each person in the group has considered the questions and the group has a question for the teacher |
Interrupt the process to reinforce cooperative skill or to provide direct instructions to all students | Believe they are part of a team and that all members of the team work together toward a common goal Understand that the success or failure of the group is to be shared by all members. Understand the group dynamic and learn mathematics by working groups |
Provide closure for the lesson | Reflect back on the work of the group |
Evaluate the group process by discussing the actions of the team member | Appreciate that working together is a process that capitalizes on the presence of student peers, encourages the interaction among students, and establishes relationships among team members |
Help students to learn to be individually accountable for learning and to reinforce this regularly | Realize that each member must contribute as much as he or she can to the group goal Understand that the success of the group is dependent on, and a direct effect of, the individual work of each member of the group Understand that group members are individually accountable for their own learning |
Check out Anne E. Brown's "Ten Guidelines for Students Doing Group Work in Mathematics." She developed the list after viewing the video and audio tapes of more than a dozen group sessions of her students. The list reflects the actions that appeared to be critical to the success or failure of the group.
This week, I'd like for us to work together to develop a list of tips and suggestions both from the teacher's perspective and from the student's perspective on how to make sure that collaborative groups "work" in our classrooms. Possible questions include:
- What should the teacher do to prepare the students?
- How should he/she design the group project?
- How should groups be formed--does it matter?
- What kind of roles should group members take on?
- How will you monitor group interactions and check for understanding?
- What are ways to successfully close or wrap-up a collaborative process?
- What are ways to assess group projects?
- What are some tips that would help students accept responsibility and work together to accomplish the task?
- What are tips/suggestions for working with others in a group?
- What are tips/suggestions for getting a group started on the task?
A collaborative classroom allows the knowledge of everyone to be shared. Every student has their own learning style and through collaborative students can see other styles of learning and learn information in a new way. Collaborative allows us to build on our own knowledge, it allows teachers to be facilitators and guides to the classroom and students become peer tutors.
ReplyDeleteI think groups should be small and each group should have a group leader. I think everyone should have the opportunity to be the group leader. I think teachers should let the groups know that each student is part of the group and they must work together as a group, discuss, and comment on the project and issues. Should an issue not be solved in the group then the teacher will have the final say on any issues.
As a teacher, I find these tips to be helpful when creating groups:
ReplyDelete- Instructions should be very simple and clear.
- It may be helpful to assign small tasks with short deadlines to keep the project or lesson moving.
- It is important to set the expectation that all group members will participate.
- The grading rubric should encourage teamwork by giving everyone the same grade.
A teacher may need to give extra guidance to some groups if they are not self-starting. For example, the teacher may want to have the group elect a leader so that one person feels a sense of responsibility to keep things moving. If groups are still not coming together, the teacher may need to provide more structure or more specific instructions.
To prepare students for collaborative activities. Teachers must first educate students on what collaborative learning is. They must also explain why they want to collaborate and the benefits and challenges of collaborative activities. When designing the group activities instructors should design it in a way the student could learn valuable skills and feel positive about being in a group. Groups should be formed by using a mixture of different personality traits and academic abilities. While in a group all the members in the group should play active roles, they should all contribute ideas to reach their goal. While students work in a group, instructors must keep a close eye and also be available for any questions to ensure understanding. Ways to successfully wrap up a collaborative process would be by giving the students a deadline and just strongly stressing it throughout the activity. To assess a group project as a instructor you will look at the overall performance of the group and how well they collaborated to complete the task, not just on one individual. Some tips that I would help students accept responsibilities and work together to accomplish the task we be to stress the fact of how much your grade rely on this group activity. Tips that I have for others that work in a group for this assignment would be have fun, have positive feelings towards sharing and collaborating your ideas while working in a group. Some suggestions and tips that I have for getting a group started with their task would be for everyone to sit down and just start brainstorming ideas and try to put them together.
ReplyDeleteMary: What happens when the group fails to choose a leader--no one wants the responsibility? Are there other roles that the other members could take on?
ReplyDeleteTamara: You mentioned that groups should be a mixture of abilities and personalities. Is there any time that you would want to separate out by ability-levels? What would be the advantages/disadvantages?
ReplyDeleteAmy: You indicated, "I think teachers should let the groups know that each student is part of the group and they must work together as a group, discuss, and comment on the project and issues."
ReplyDeleteHow do you do this? Just telling them doesn't necessarily work. Remember, we're dealing with different personalities and abilities.
Teachers should let the groups know that each student is part of the group and they must work together as a group, discuss, and comment on the project and issues by, I am going to use math as an example; giving each group member the same math problems and having each member answer the problems, then the group would come together and discuss their results. The group would work together on what as a group they thought the correct answer was to each math problem and the group leader would turn in the final paper with the group’s results.
ReplyDeleteCollaborative groups can be very fundamental when student cooperate together. If the students are unable to come together as a group they will be unable to complete the task they were given as a group. All of the student’s should be given a certain task when in groups, that is why there should be a leader to direct the group. If the teacher provides clear instruction and the specific direction on what the teacher wants the student’s final product to be.
ReplyDeleteThe group should be able to provide the teacher with what the teacher is asking for. If the students are unable to provide the teacher their final product, this means that they have failed as a group or the students that were provided a specific task didn't complete their task. The teacher has the last say on what he or she feels needs to be done. If the teacher has filtered the problem out, then it's the teachers responsibility is to deal with that problem the best way they can, and he or she must be fair to all students.
The teacher should set the entire class up for success when group projects are provided. For example, if the teacher sees that two students cannot work together, then the teacher should not put them in a group together. Another example bad idea, is putting disruptive students together in groups. The teacher must be sincere when he or she puts their students in groups. A collaborative activity or collaborative classroom environment should provide gratification to the teacher and the student's.
I received the Faculty Focus newsletter today which contained an article entitled "Here We Are Now, Entertain Us"--Student Motivation and Technology. I thought John Orlando's comments have bearing on our discussion: Social media needs to be introduced within a context that will invite participation. While I don’t have a magic formula for generating participation, I do have some observations on what can help:
ReplyDeleteMOTIVATE THE PARTICIPATION: In our zeal to maximize the amount of content delivered, we tend not to spend enough time explaining the purpose of a class activity. Spending more time explaining the why of an activity will more than pay off in engagement and learning outcomes.
REMEMBER, STUDENTS HAVE BOUNDARIES, EVEN ONLINE: Activities that use Facebook tend to fail because students see it as their own thing outside of the classroom. In fact, students tend to view faculty who even look at their Facebook page as invading their privacy. It’s thus best to avoid Facebook and set up a social network on a system like Ning that students are not already using for their own purposes.
FIND A STUDENT LEADER: Many students are hesitant to be the first to put themselves out there in an activity, but are happy to follow others. Try to get one or two students to participate first in order to set an example.
One key to a successful CW project is to be certain that student groups are equitably assessed. For the learner, this means offering evaluation procedures that reflect their individual efforts, as well as that of the group. Some teachers worry that when students do the peer assessments and group scoring, the outcome is artificially inflated grades.
ReplyDeleteEffective assessment methods bring clarity and equality to the CW assessment process, while reducing free riding. The more students understand the expectations and the ultimate outcomes, the more receptive they will be. Keeping students in the dark or mass assessing them is not effective.
Hold class discussions on the purpose of group work and assessment methods.
Make project expectations and details clear to all students. Give each student a copy of the grading rubrics and discuss these prior to the project.
Peer assess midway rather than at the end when little can be done to help the group or the free rider.
When teachers use these steps, students understand the reasons for group work and then recognize there can and will be equity in assessment. In this class, notice is given that free riders must hitchhike on someone else’s time.
@Stacy McAllisterWhen you use information from other sources, you should reference the source in your post. If it is a direct quote, you should put it in quotation marks.
ReplyDeleteI found your source information at http://www.suu.edu/faculty/harrisg/ascd-paper.htm It actually says do not cite or distribute--although I'm not sure why he would post it on the Web if he didn't want that.
I think that teachers should imply collaboration meaning "as a team" so that they understand it is not just one person doing the project. I think that kids are hesitant to be the leader because it puts more pressure on them. Sometimes all the broken info comes to them and they have to piece it together. I think picking a team leader should be based on the group, but if it was a younger generation doing it I think the teacher should chose for them. I believe in a classroom with young children, the teacher should put in groups those with strong qualities and some with poor qualities. It will help boost the child with more self-esteem learning how to collaborate. I believe all group members should have the same role, or at least the same amount. No one should be doing more than the other. To give an assessment afterward based on who did what and who participated, I think the group should fill it out and with that the teacher should understand who fell back. I think for the group to get started on a task they should ALL understand what the whole assignment is about. What they need to do and what they need to accomplish as well as due date. If a groups understands this clearly they should be able to start. Now communication is key. Some have computers, some have more advance technology. I think sometimes even though we have technology, I believe in reverting back to the old ways of staying in touch. Meaning phone numbers, meeting up in places to work on it together. Things like that we can still use. For those students who lack in technology skills and don't have a computer, should team up with someone or use a library computer. I know FTCC has computers as well to aid students. I think in order for everyone to get an acceptable grade, they should put for the effort, show their work, and ask questions along the way if they don't know something.
ReplyDeleteIt is best to group students together by ability so that oen person does not get stuck doing all the work. Divide the class into four groups of top performers, above-average performers, average performers, and below average performers. Use their grades or formative assessment scores to determine what group each student belongs. Place top performers with average performers, and above-average performers with below average. That way you don't have groups loaded with one kind or another.
ReplyDeleteI believe when doing a collaborative assignement:
ReplyDelete~the teacher needs to make sure the students understand the assignment
~the teach needs to make sure that one group is not favored more than another group
~the teacher should tell the groups to find a common interest/answer and work it out from there to get started
~the teacher needs to make sure the students have all the materials they may need or make sure they have acees to them
I'm looking for some answers to the questions I posed in the prompt. I need specifics--not generalized suggestions like make sure the students understand the assignment or make sure assessments are clear. HOW would you make sure these are accomplished?
ReplyDeleteHas anyone looked at the "Ten guidelines for students doing group work in mathematics" handout? These are written from the students' viewpoint. How could you use these tips to complete the group assignment for the Teaching and Learning Resources Wiki?
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ReplyDeleteHere is my reply to the question. I've killed the morning thinking about this stuff now time to get the kids. Here is my reply-
ReplyDeletehttp://simulationeducation.blogspot.com/
I think collaborative learning is the process in which a classes formed by students and teacher establishes common goals and participates as partners in the building of knowledge, following specific steps and accepting precise responsibilities. Group work is therefore one of the various tools involved in the execution of the method, however they should not be considered as synonyms. Two major questions that education faces nowadays are how adequate it is to use group dynamics in class to permit students achieve specific goals and if the efficiency of this technique is acceptable for all the branches of knowledge. Architecture, because of its most important qualities professional work in teams, practical skills and creativity appears to be an area in which it is likely that the teamwork technique can demonstrate its most important strengths. In fact the effectiveness of collaborative learning in architecture higher education shall result from the appropriate design of the learning process in order to stimulate future professional skills with adequate methods and techniques.
ReplyDeleteWorking in the classroom collaboratively is a great way to get the most out of learning. Not only is it beneficial it can also be fun. Even before starting a collaborative assignment in the classroom it is a good idea to do some ice breakers to help students to get to know each other a little bit. I believe that it is best for the instructor to choose the groups when dealing with younger students because they will chose friends and it will possibly become more social than academic. Through choosing your groups you can also take in consideration what kind of student they are. For example you can put some high achievers with ones who need an extra push. The expectations of the assignment should be clear. A group project is usually something that is time consuming so providing students with a check list of what exactly is due and when will be helpful in keeping them on task and on schedule. There has to be someone to take the lead at least when it comes to presenting the project. Other jobs that are helpful would be someone to do the writing, someone to research and maybe someone else to help put it all together in the end. For the most part all of it is done as a group yet in order to not allow one person with all the responsibility everyone may need to have their own specific part. A great way to get the group motivated to work together would be for them to share some information on a personal level, just get to know one another, to build a little bit of a relationship with each other. It will first make them more comfortable, but when you know people on a more personal level it changes the way that you approach each other and get things done.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to assessing the project you can make sure that the group completed each task that was on the check list that was provided. If the work was done in the classroom you are there and can see who participated and what they did. If the class is online you can see what each person did, for how long they did it and when they did it. The students can also evaluate each other. This can be helpful but I feel that it should be more or less a guide because personalities get involved and the information you receive may not always be honest. This seems to be about the hardest part of collaborative learning, it is not plain and simple. It is more teacher judgment, which can be tricky.
I feel the best way to close the project would be for each group to present their work. It is helpful in assessing the students. This way all of the groups can learn from each other’s group. If you are going to do group assignments I think that it would be more beneficial to do more than one depending on the time allowed in the class. The first group project is like a “fresh read.” They may have not ever done anything like it before so the first time will not be as professional and as polished as the next one might be. I do think that the groups can be changed in order for the students to be able to learn from different viewpoints but I also think that it is a good idea for the group to do more than one project together. Especially if they did not do so well, they may want a chance to redeem themselves.
In a perfect world everyone that you have placed in the group will get along wonderfully but in some cases you may have to move some people around. Yes the social aspect of learning how to work with others is important but if it is at the point where they cannot get past their differences in order to get their work done it is not going to much of a learning experience.
Collaborative and cooperative learning is a wonderful way to teach and learn. Just making your classroom a place where it is student-learning and you build a community you will have a class ready and eager to learn.
I wrote too much. Part One.
ReplyDeleteI thought the list of guidelines to follow during group work was spot on, but the ones I agreed with the most were the ideas of encouraging everyone to participate, going over the directions to make sure everyone was on the same page of what was expected from the work and then writing it down to refer to later, and checking in with group members throughout the project to make sure everyone understood and agreed with how the project was developing. As a student, these were always the problems I seemed to encounter in groups that frustrated me, especially the last point. I also noticed that the first meeting was almost always a clear sign of how well the group was going to work as a team. If everyone was engaged and ready to communicate about both the work that needed to be done to support the other team members and the work that needed to be done to complete and understand the assignment, the group seemed to work well together. When no one really understood the assignment and there was little time to ask the teacher questions about the work, members lost interest and spent more time gossiping than working. All of my bad group experiences are why I think the “behind the scenes” work a teacher can do to help prepare the students is so important.
From a teacher’s perspective, I think there are several things we can do to help group work go smoothly. For starters, if we postpone the initial group work until we’ve been able to observe the students in natural play, not only will we allow students to begin to know and trust their classmates, but we should also be able to see who the natural leaders are in the class. For example, the girl who tells her friends at recess what scenario their Barbies should be acting out that day, feels comfortable taking control of a situation and may do well as a group leader. If we can pick out a few natural leaders in the class, we can begin to form initial groups around them.
As the year goes on and the students learn what is expected of them during group work, other students will begin to feel more comfortable with the idea of leading the group. If students still don’t feel comfortable switching roles after the first project or two, the teacher could always introduce a rule of students not taking on the same role (leader, record keeper, time keeper, etc) two projects in a row. This would also encourage students to learn and appreciate every role. Eventually, as students become more comfortable with the various roles and working as a team, the teacher could give full role-picking freedom to the students to help them thrive where they work the best.
Also, I think it’d be extremely beneficial if, after having a class discussion about the whats and hows of the assignment like those listed on page 11 of our Collaboration module, we take time to visit each group to go over any initial questions the team may still need cleared up. We need to remember, like the prompt says, to give the groups time to work out any initial problems themselves, but offering time to go over any group questions will help students feel more confident as they continue with their work. I also think continual check-ins with the teacher throughout the length of the unit will not only allow students to receive feedback about the finished work so far, but will also show students that the teacher cares about the progress of their learning. It will also give them time to ask any new group questions that may arise. As the teacher, the check-ins would allow time to check for understanding of the material so far and an opportunity to suggest new resources that may help steer them in the right direction. It may also be useful for helping the group discuss and deal with a conflict such as a lazy group member. If students know that the teacher will be asking and aware of problems, they may be more likely to cooperate with the group and the work. How often these check-ins happen would vary with the length of the project, the comfort level of the students with group work and the age of the students.
Part Two.
ReplyDeleteI do think it matters how groups are formed and I think which students make up the group should vary from project to project. To get the full benefit of a group, students need both someone they can teach and someone they can learn from. By having someone to teach, students will develop deeper self-confidence and a better grip on their understanding of the material. By having someone to learn from, students will continue to feel challenged and will learn new ways and point of views to solving a problem. Changing the members of groups from project to project will ensure that someone who may have been the weaker member of a previous group has the opportunity to reap the benefits of being a stronger member in a new group.
As students near the end of their project, I think a presentation of some form is the best way for to wrap-up. This presentation can vary from each group presenting their work to the rest of the class, to using technology to create a class blog about their work, to inviting other classrooms or parents to a “Project Fair” of sorts with each group setting up a station that showcases their project and allows them to explain what they learned. These presentations, along with the any hard-copies of work turned in (papers, art projects, PowerPoints,etc), notes from the group check-ins and peer evaluations would provide the big-picture of both how well the members worked as a group, which is an important part of the assignment, and how well they understood the material they worked on.
@Gayla S. Keesee
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with what you mentioned about not using Facebook as part of a class activity. I think I mentioned before that I worked with a team that tried to include a Facebook group as part of their presentation for all class members to join and study through. It failed miserably because of both poor execution and lack of interest in something educational on something they considered purely a way to remember crazy nights with their friends. Introducing new forms of similar technology is one way to keep students interested without scaring them off.
@ButchThe comments you posted on your blog are well thought out. However, I expected them to be posted here so we can have a compilation of ideas. Would you be willing to summarize the ideas posted this week? Let me know.
ReplyDelete@smturner2Sharon: The purpose of the class blog is for you to share your thoughts, opinions, reflections. You are free to reference other sources if you properly cite them. That means you put direct quotes in quotation marks and indicate the author. If the resource is available online, include the hyperlink as well. I found the information from your post at http://www.123helpme.com/view.asp?id=33731
ReplyDeleteNOTE: Please resubmit your comment in your own words and reference the prompt to make sure that you are answering the questions.
Collaborative Learning or group work is essential to helping students function in the real world. Students can learn how to work together effectively, brainstorm, and be sociable. I believe that working together in groups is a great thing but it has its pros and cons. In order to make group work successful teachers have to know each individual students academic, emotional, and physical levels. This will make it easier to determine what students to put together in the groups. As a teacher you have to make it known what you expect them to accomplish and that each member of the group has to contribute. At the end of the group activity the students could also evaluate each others performance. When the students leave the classroom they should be excited about what they just learned and accomplished that way they'll remember it. Collaborative activities need to be fun as well as educational because it will motivate students; friendly competition among the groups with a reward for the winner is a great example of group work that is fun.
ReplyDeleteI think group assignment can be successful requires a great deal of effort to begin and continuous attention to sustain. Group assignment requires a change in thinking the ability to see the big picture. I have heard negative feedback from students about group assignment. I personally have heard several of classmates say they do not like group assignments when they take an online class. I do not personal like the group assignment on a online class because I like to see the person I am working with, I do not know what time they are going to be working on their work, do they work and do they have children that are watching while they are doing their work and have I caught them at a bad time. It is just so many other things that come into play while doing a group assignment on an online class. I just do not think it is fair to a person that may not know the technology to do an excellent job on a group assignment, but they could be a smart hard working person that will go that extra mile to do their homework. I do not feel organize in a group assignment on an online class. If I wanted to work in a group I would not take an online class. I do not mine trying the group assignment but it is not like you are in a classroom.
ReplyDeleteThe teacher should provide specific guidance to group members, such as appoint a group leader and directions on what the group is to accomplish. The group project should be listed on handouts with instructions on how to complete the project. Groups should have a variety of learning styles to encourage students to help one another. I think groups should have three roles, a leader, researchers, and presenters. Monitor the group as they perform the project and ask questions to ensure they are completing the project to standard. When closing out a group project the teacher should sit down with the group and review what they discussed while completing the project. When assessing the project, discuss the project with the children to determine what they learned while completing the project and also what they liked or disliked about working together. Teachers should assign individual tasks to group members and encourage them to work together. To encourage all students to work together in a group, teachers should allow each member a chance to participate in all roles. Handouts, with instructions on what should be accomplished, will assist groups in getting started on their task.
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher there are a lot of responsibilities to teach collaborative classroom. Teachers can prepare students by clarify all the instruction of collaborating classroom by reading it at loud and making sure there is no confusion. I believe the teacher should design the group project by previous experience of her/his own training, previous experience by other teachers, or from the knowledge that he/she knows of the student learning ability. A combination of all of them can create a better design of the group project. I believe it does matter to form groups by the teachers because I remember in my classroom I will always pick my friends. It is not good just to pick friends to work because sometimes we can learn from other and it might be a better experience. The role that groups members should take is active role which means all group member have similar idea not individual work. My idea of monitor group will be their progress and make sure every member knows their team progress too because if one of them still needs help they can help each other and they will not be behind and will have a full understanding. One way to successfully close is to review each other work and they can wrap-up a collaborative process by asking each other question and everyone is knowledgeable about the project. If the teacher want to assess the group project he/she can look their performance on how they achieved by collaborating material. Few tips I recommend to help student with responsibility are no matter how hard is it they can always look positive attitude, enjoy will working, and share any idea no matter how silly it can be because they will accomplish the task. I always suggest to have good attitude, be responsible, gather ideas from outside source, ask any question if you still confuse, think out loud if needed, constantly check everyone progress. Listen carefully and read while working together and getting started on the task.
ReplyDeleteA teacher should make sure objective is clear and student has some knowledge of the course. It is important that groups should not be divided into large number of students. It may bring undue stress and difficulty with forming group meeting times because of student schedule. When participating in group assignments, members can take on the role of leader, note-taker, trouble-shooter, reviewer, detail person, creative input, progress-chaser and big picture taker. A teacher can monitor group interaction by periodically checking with the groups and providing them with feedback, orally or written. There are ways that can assess group projects: The times Higher Education, Mike Hethfield 26 March 1999 suggest a tool to measure on 6 indicators: (1) Regular attendance at group meetings, (2) Contribution of ideas for the task, (3) Researching, analyzing and preparing material for the task, (4) Contribution to co-operative group process, (5) Supporting and encouraging group members, (6) Practical contribution to end-product. To help students accept responsibility and work together to accomplish task is to identify member’s role preference and capitalize on member’s strength. Organize and set up regular meeting schedule. The group should build a good working relationship along with getting to know one another. To get a group started on task is to first make sure the students understand the assignments.
ReplyDelete(Part 1)In order for collaborative work to “work” in the classroom there are several items to be considered. The students must be prepared before the project begins. The instructor should detail how the groups will be formed, what is expected of each group as far as the final product, group collaboration, and individual participation. Some students may be resistant to the idea of group work and question the significance of such tasks. The instructor should be prepared to field these questions. If the instructor has prepared the lessons thoroughly and has taken the time to truly sculpt the ideals the students will be working with, the students will be more willing to believe in the mission. According to our module reading, a key to planning a group project is to make the project relevant to what the students should be learning during the course. Placing students in groups to work is meant to give them the opportunity to come up with ideas and an end project that is more successful or involved than what they could have done in individual work. An idea that seems to support two purposes is the idea of using group work during the course of a thematic unit. The instructor is enhancing the learning of a unit that has to be taught and the students have the opportunity to explore the unit in a way they may not have had otherwise. While our module reading suggests groups can be successful in their interaction both when the students choose each other as teammates and when the instructor assigns the groups this does not appear to be definitive. While some students may insist their time in groups is less awkward because they have chosen their teammates, instructors may wish to choose the groups because they have more control over how skill sets and ability levels are paired. Roles the group members take on may vary. Many projects will require that at least one student take on the role of the leader and this person may assume responsibility for keeping the flow of conversation moving throughout the group and in the end they may be the one to combine and possibly blend the group efforts into one voice.
ReplyDelete(Part 2)The module reading suggests that one way to monitor understanding is to have students journal their progress in the group and cite their individual contributions. The reading also suggests having students fill out forms citing what their teammates have contributed, but as a student I know this has the potential to be abused by some students. There are several ways to assess group projects. One way is to provide one grade for the entire group which has the potential to upset students who know they have done the brunt of the job and to give the impression of a free ride to other students. Another option is to give each individual a grade but this is difficult to do without one student suffering from another’s slack or vice versa. The module presents the weighted approach which means there is a grade given to the group and to individuals. To determine participation, again the professor may have the students assess each other’s contributions. To prepare students for this portion, the instructor must teach them how to properly assess one another and make clear what details will be assessed so there is less room for personal opinion in the grading. Anne E. Brown’s “Ten Guidelines for students doing group work in mathematics” explains that students should not engage themselves in out of context conversation. To stay on task and assume responsibility students should each consider themselves responsible for solving the same problems at the same time and to be sure they are actively drawing each other into the discussion. One interesting point she makes is to not interrupt each other. Some people do not understand there is a difference between listening and waiting for their turn to speak. As for group success in accomplishing their task, it is helpful for the instructor to provide feedback by way of individual formative assessments. Also, when the students are clear on what is expected of them in the end they are more likely to produce the quality the instructor is looking for. Some projects may end with a group presentation but it may not be necessary for one blended voice to resound. It is possible the group split the responsibilities and clarified with one another which segment each would be responsible for researching and presenting. For successful collaboration each student must be open about their reservations, strengths, and frustrations with other team members. A starting point is for the team to break the project down into workable steps and allow each group member to identify where they feel the most competent and in which area they feel they may be of the most help to their teammates. I found an interesting article that gave me some things to think about. I thought I would share it to see if anyone else found it helpful.
ReplyDeleteI think teachers should evaluate what skills and knowledge their students already know before they are introduced to new material. My suggestion to a teacher would be to create a fun and icebreaking assignment to keep the children active and engaged. I think group members should be placed whatever their talents are most needed. I would stress to the students the benefits of listening to each others' ideas and have then respond to each other. It is also important to encourage your students to ask questions.
ReplyDeleteThe teacher can do an icebreaker assignment to prepare the students for doing a collaborative assignment. As an icebreaker assignment the students can plan for an interview. One student will ask another student a series of questions for about 3 to 5 minutes, when this student is finish the other student will then ask them a series of questions for the same length of time. When they are finish interviewing each other they will then introduce their partners to the class telling only the parts that that they thought were very interesting to them.
ReplyDeleteWhen the teacher is ready to design the group project they should design it based on the abilities and skills of the students. The more the students learn the harder the assignments become. By the end of the semester students should be able to do a research project proposal and have another group of student evaluate the project.
When it comes to forming groups some teachers prefer to mix the groups with an equal amount of males and females, the optimistic and the cynical, quiet students with those who are very verbal. Others may let the students choose their own groups. I do not think it matters how groups or formed just as long as everybody do their own share.
Some of the group roles are a leader who will keep the team on task and check in with them often to make sure everybody is doing their part. The team will also need a recorder and their job is to keep good notes of the solutions to the problems for the group and then submit this to the instructor. The group will also need someone who will be responsible for giving the responses for the conclusion of the group project.
The group can be monitor by the instructor checking in with the students to see where they are with the project and ask them questions to see if they have an understanding of what they are doing and also address any problems they might be having.
What are ways to successfully close or wrap-up a collaborative process?
When it comes to wrapping up the process the group can review and summarize the learning experiences from the group. See how the group was more or less effective by analyzing the data. Students will provide feedback on their contributions to the team and celebrate the team’s accomplishments.
MissusC,
ReplyDeleteFacebook does not seem like a place for educational purposes, socializing, gossip, not educational. I work at an elementary school and I have co-workers who are on Facebook and they have friended students!!!! Isn’t that a great way to get fired! Do you really want your student to know that you went to a party and got toasted? I am not exactly sure but if you are on Facebook and have friends of friends, can't they view things you post even if they are not your friend. If you ask me Facebook is TROUBLE.
Danielle Keller,
ReplyDelete"One interesting point she makes is to not interrupt each other. Some people do not understand there is a difference between listening and waiting for their turn to speak." This is one good thing about online group assingments, you read what the other person said or view what they did then you have time to reflect and respont. There is no thinking about what you want to say and missing what the other person says.
Nelly,
ReplyDeleteWhen doing group assignments in an online class you usually do not have to worry about students picking friends to do the work and you are not in a face to face class so students may not know who is a hard worker and who is not. Though picking partners or groups for social reasons is not an issue, I still think that the instructor should pick the groups. In our classroom we assign groups by academic levels, this way we do not have "the blind leading the blind." That is kind of how I feel doing this class because I am very unfamiliar with the technic logical aspects. I feel like I am in a dark unfamiliar room slowly feeling my way around hoping to get where I need to me, I have stumbled and fell more than once already. (smile)
@KeiKei You indicated only three potential roles for students. Cynthia in another post indicated "When participating in group assignments, members can take on the role of leader, note-taker, trouble-shooter, reviewer, detail person, creative input, progress-chaser and big picture taker." Could the roles vary depending on the group project/assignment?
ReplyDelete@Cynthia You referenced Mike Hethfield's article but did not provide a URL for anyone interested in reading the rest of the article. Here it is: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=145638§ioncode=26 Also, you misspelled his name. It is Mike Heathfield.
ReplyDeleteThese are good suggestions, but all you did was report them. Why are these suggestions helpful, why did you choose to share them, how could you use them in this course or in your classroom? How are they applicable to what we are learning?
Preparing students for collaborative groups can be a difficult task for a teacher. Having different levels of understanding of a subject, I would assume that the best way would be to put a couple weaker students together with a couple stronger students.(In this class I consider myself a weaker student!) Some students may be very willing and anxious to do the work, but are unsure about how or where to start.
ReplyDeleteAs teachers we would need to make sure that assignments and due dates are very clear but take into consideration that in certain instances, allowances might need to be made. We must be flexible, as our main goal is to advance our students in their learning. We need to let our students know that they can ask us anything without being embarrassed by their ignorance of a topic. If I thought that a student might need some extra help getting on track, I would ask them if there was something I could do to help them better understand. I would also ask the students that are stronger in the particular subject if they would please step up to lead the groups. I don't think they would want their own group to be led by someone who isn't sure how to begin.
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ReplyDeleteMissuc,
ReplyDeleteThe list of guidelines was very helpful for doing group assignment. I believe that if we just follow these guidelines we should have no problem doing the project. The main thing we might have to do is stay in touch with our group partners just to see where they are and if they are having any problems with doing their part of the assigment. If they are having any problems then we can come together as a group and help each other out.
To prepare students for a collaborative assigns teachers need to set clear rules, making sure each member of the group understands what they are suppose to do. I think that if your classroom is going to have a lot of group assignments then the teacher should assign a new leader of the group during each project. This insures that there is always a leader and can help the teacher understand some of the qualities of his/her students better.
ReplyDeleteIn dealing with group members that don’t necessarily work well in one group or another can sometimes be difficult. I think one way to get students to work in their group can be to grade each member for the work they did in the group. I had a teacher once that let us write about each other and what each member brought to the group. I liked that I got to express to my teacher what my group members did. I think that was a very effective way to get every member to work their best on the project.
I personally think that to get each group to work well that the teacher should assign who is in which group. Otherwise every time you have a group assign the same friends are always going to work tighter and never experience what other students can bring to their group. Having the teacher pick allows each student to work with everyone in the class at least once.
To test how well students understand the project or how successful they are at the task or even just getting the group started all depends on the teacher. There your students, by the time you get to a group project I believe it is important that you know each child and understand their different personalities. Make sure you’re always there to answer any questions your students have and occasionally go to the groups and ask them questions about what they are doing, this will help you to determine if they understand the project.
(Sorry my post is a little late.... I didn't realize we had a class blog? I assume we have one every week??)
Class Blog Assignments are scheduled for Weeks 1, 2, 3, 8, 13, and 15.
ReplyDeleteThe teacher should send out very specific guidelines and directions explaining exactly what the assignment is. The teacher should assign students to groups based on their abilities and past performance. Hardworking students should be grouped with other hardworking students and slackers should be grouped with other slackers. It is more likely that they will work with the same amount of enthusiasm on the assignment as the other members of the group. It is less likely that one student will be doing the work while others take the credit. One student should be the group leader and compile the project. Each student should do part of the project on their own. The teacher should be e-mailed every part of the project to see how hard each student worked. In an online course, the teacher could set up a discussion board for just the group members where they could post their parts of the assignment, questions, or concerns. Having a set time that the parts of the assignment need to be turned into the group leader wouold give students a goal to have their individual parts of the project finished. Another way to assess the group project would be to ask the students who did what. The downside to that method is that if a conflict arises, it's one student's word against another. Group members should always be respectful and considerate of other members' time and schedules. They should try to have their parts of the assignment finished as soon as possible so that the leader has time to put the project together. They should also be sure that they have spell and grammar checked their work so that it is easy for the group leader to read, understand, and combine all parts of the project. The group leader should send a final copy of the assignment to each member of the group to be proofread by the other students in the group before sending it to the teacher. The group leader must always send the assignment to the teacher before the due date and time.
ReplyDeletePreparing for collaborative classroom is encourages a new kind of relationship between students and teachers. Studies have shown different benefits to collaborative learning including academic achievement, improved self-esteem, active learning, and social skill development. The idea behind collaborative learning comes from recognizing the traits of successful learners and identifying how to bring out those traits in all students. Traditionally teachers hold the role of expert and generally the knowledge flows from the teacher to students not the other way round. In order to make this information flow go both ways, teachers need to draw out students’ experiences to build on the lessons they are trying to teach. Often a student is able to share things about their culture to add to the class. Students have more influence on creating classroom goals and coming up with ideas for assignments that incorporate many different ways learning and different options for presenting analysis. The role of the teacher changes from the take-charge leader into more of a mediator who helps students figure out how they learn best. The mediator is essentially teaching the student how to learn, instead of just what to learn. To implement this in the collaborative classroom, make sure that the students are segregated by skill level, interests, etc. Students should be grouped with other students have different abilities backgrounds, etc. They can all learn from each other.
ReplyDelete@BrandiShould the group decide on the deadlines or the teacher? What would be the advantages and disadvantages of each?
ReplyDelete@Booker BrownYour comments should reflect your own thoughts. If you reference an outside source, you should preface your comments with something like--According to... or John Smith asserts that... If you copy and paste directly from the website, then you should also put the information in quotation marks. You should also include the hyperlink to your source so others can access it to read the entire article. I found most of the information for your comment at this site: http://ezinearticles.com/?Teacher-Professional-Development-Promotes-a-Collaborative-Classroom&id=5205824
ReplyDeleteWell of course the group would decide on when they wanted to send their parts of the project to the group leader. The teacher already has assigned the deadline for the finished product. The students can set their own schedule and work around anything that may come up unexpectedly. The teacher wouldn't know what the students have going on in their personal lives and so she really couldn't decide what would be best for the group.
ReplyDelete