Navigating Group Projects or How to Support a Collaborative Process
Based on Writing Instruction Opportunities WOW session on April 27 2009
Presenters: Tara Perry (Communication), Sylvia Tag, (Library), Robert Kjesrud, Jaima Lindell and Jake Herman (Writing Center)
Challenges of Doing Group Projects:
- Varying levels of interest, investment, and engagement with topics
- Varying levels of skill in working as part of a team
- Scheduling difficulties
- Lack of clarity on purpose of group work generally and of assigned project in particular
- Lack of clarity on roles within a group
- Lack of clarity on how to coordinate/integrate project pieces into a coherent final product
- Unequal division of labor
- Inadequate support or structure for resolving conflicts/communication breakdowns
- Poor technological support for collaborative writing
- Faulty assessment/grading procedures
A Dozen Promising Practices for Successfully Navigating Group Projects:
- Provide process for scheduling early including building in class time for doing group project.
- Allow choices for project topics to ensure individual buy in.
- Articulate a clear purpose for group project and talk about anticipated results
- Inventory group members’ teamwork strengths/goals; use to compose teams/build a sense of team.
- Develop a shared contract or team plan.
- Stage the project into manageable pieces and employ frequent progress reports/check ins.
- Give *space* for development of teams including providing for some ungraded pieces.
- Incorporate team-building activities into regular classroom activities.
- Provide a structure and a process for negotiating differences and equalizing the workload, including providing for consequences - for example, see Perry’s “firing policy.”
- If group gets stuck in resolving differences, consult with Writing Center Assistants. Best to schedule a group conference.
- Explore and use groupware technology such as Google Docs or wikis.
- Develop an evaluation scheme that allows for assessment of individual work that does not rely totally on collective performance; include a place for self-assessment.