Pitfalls of running groups
Teachers and students alike have experienced unproductive groups and so they are reluctant to run groups. The reality is that groups are likely to fail unless they are structured to be productive. Below are some common pitfalls of running groups and solutions to those problems.
1. No positive interdependence structured
There must be a common group goal and each person must have a valuable and necessary role. There must be a clearly stated goal that group members need each other in order to achieve. The goal can be as simple as, “each group member will learn…”. In fact, especially in the beginning, it makes sense to keep it simple. Each role must be necessary in order for the group to succeed. A timekeeper is only necessary if there is a clear time constraint. Consider roles that will require members to combine their efforts in order to achieve the goal.
2. No individual accountability structured
One of the biggest complaints about groupwork from teachers and students is that one person ends up doing all the work and social loafers go along for the ride. This happens when individual accountability is not structured. Teachers have control over this. If the goal is for everyone to learn a certain skill then there should be an individual assessment given to determine whether the goal was achieved. Perhaps if everyone gets an 80% or better on the assessment, an incentive could increase the positive interdependence as well.
3. Unclear instructions
Group tasks can be complicated. Make sure there are clear instructions provided. If students don’t know what to do once they get into groups, they will find something unproductive to do. It is good practice to write out a script of what you will say. Be concise, leaving out extraneous information, but make sure students have all the information they need. Don’t forget to tell them how they will be assessed as a group and individually. Make sure you have everyone’s attention while you are giving instructions. Providing a written copy of instructions can be a way to provide students with a resource to refer to in case they get into groups and get stuck. Providing students instructions through video is another way to, not only get their attention, but provide them with a resource they can review if they get stuck.
4. Behavior expectations are not taught, practiced and reviewed enough
Choose a few behaviors that you can really focus on. Describe what these behaviors look and sound like. Assess the behaviors while groupwork is happening and give feedback to students when they are exhibiting or not exhibiting these behaviors. You may need to process the behaviors as a class after groupwork is over. What worked and didn’t work? And, finally, review the behavior expectations frequently. Students will need to hear them daily, get feedback regularly, and once they get it, review the expectations regularly (weekly or monthly). If you are not regularly using groups, then you will need to review expectations every time you have students meet in groups. Many teachers think that once they have “told” students the expectations, students “should know how to do it” but this rarely occurs. Don’t risk it!
5. Don’t give up too soon
If groups don’t go perfectly the first time, don’t give up. Review the expectations and try again. Add more positive interdependence, more individual accountability, or other structures to improve the functioning of the groups. The more groupwork becomes a routine, the better students will get at it. Don’t let unproductive groupwork slide. Address the issue every time. It takes time for students to get good at working in groups. They will test you like a toddler having a temper tantrum and if you give in they will learn that if they misbehave in groups, they won’t have to do groupwork.
6. Don’t start too big or too complex
Start small. Pairs are a great way to get kids started working together and they require less structuring. After a mini-lecture, ask students to answer an open ended question on paper and then have them discuss it with a partner. Finally, call on random students to summarize the discussion. Something simple like this is not only easy for students, but it is easy for teachers to implement with a high level of success.
7. Don’t let students choose their own groups
Groups should be chosen deliberately to achieve a specific goal in a lesson. It is the job of the teacher to determine the best mix for the particular goal of the lesson. Students cannot do this. At some point, student choice may become a possibility and may be motivating. One way you can choose groups or pairs and also allow students to have some say is to set boundaries around their choices. For example, if you would like to pair students based on their understanding of a skill, you could provide half of the students with a red card and half with a green card based on this understanding. They could be required to choose someone who has a different colored card than they have. This allows the pairing purpose to be sort of invisible, provides student choice, and allows you to still pair students deliberately.
Remember that there are resources out there when things don’t work. Do a quick google search for cooperative learning and you will find plenty of resources that can give you ideas. I also highly recommend ClassDojo as a management tool. I find it indispensable for running groups. I’d love to hear your biggest pains about running groups. Please post comments below.