Group work
Group work, also known as "groupwork," is an educational approach that fosters collaboration among students to achieve specific tasks set by instructors. This practice promotes teamwork, knowledge sharing, and social interaction, helping students develop essential skills for future academic and professional environments. By engaging with diverse perspectives, students enhance their problem-solving abilities and gain support from their peers. Group work can be classified into informal and formal categories, with informal tasks typically being shorter and ungraded, while formal assignments often involve assessments and presentations.
The underlying philosophy of group work aligns with constructivism, which posits that students learn through interaction with their surroundings and peers. Theoretical foundations from educators such as Lev Vygotsky and John Dewey emphasize the importance of collaborative learning, where students support each other's growth and understanding. However, group work can also present challenges, such as unequal participation, conflict, and difficulties for students with social anxieties or developmental disorders. Effective group work should strive for equal participation, with instructors monitoring group dynamics to ensure a positive and productive learning experience for all students.
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Group work
Group work (or "groupwork") is a method used in education to encourage participation of all students. Students come together to accomplish a particular task set by the instructor. This practice can encompass lessons about teamwork or about sharing one's knowledge and skill set with others. Group work helps prepare students to work with others in both higher education and professional environments. Engaging in lessons with others helps students make friends and gain support and knowledge from their peers. When students have to work together to solve a problem, various perspectives and types of intelligence come into play. Instructors use group work to strengthen comprehension of the content being taught and to enhance the skills and knowledge of their students.
The two kinds of group work are informal and formal. Informal group work is short and is usually not graded. Formal group work is longer than one class, and students are usually assessed on the assignment. These ongoing group work assignments often include presentations. The responsibilities are divided among students, and each student must do their required work or face the disappointment of their peers.
Background
Group work puts into practice the educational philosophy of constructivism. This philosophy suggests that students build, or construct, their concept of the world around them through experiencing and interacting with the world. Students then reflect on the consequences and results of their action and inaction. Constructivist lessons include assignments that require students to use problem-solving skills and experiments.
Lev Vygotsky was a Russian psychologist in the early twentieth century who believed that children's learning progressed through interaction with those who are more learned than they are. Vygotsky dubbed the more learned individual "the more knowledgeable other." The more knowledgeable other does not have to be a teacher or even an adult; it can be another student with experience and understanding of a particular subject. The more knowledgeable other provides the student with assistance, called "scaffolding," to help the student learn and accomplish a task. After a time, the student will no longer need the scaffolding and will be able to complete the task alone. Scaffolding is when an educator assesses a student's base knowledge and assists them in building upon that knowledge; this is the role of the educator in a constructivist classroom.
Vygotsky created the sociocultural theory of development. This theory suggests that students learn when working together to solve difficult problems. Students draw on the knowledge and perspective of their peers to come to a resolution for a problem higher than their development level.
John Dewey, an American philosopher, was also a constructivist. He was adamant that rote memorization was ineffective and that students' education was best served by placing them in groups, exposing them to practical knowledge, and letting them collaborate with one another to solve problems. Dewey believed that learning should naturally occur as a result of students sharing experiences among their peers. The teacher's role, according to Dewey, should be to assist students in finding meaning.
Overview
Group work can help students develop knowledge and skills. Besides the obvious socialization and problem-solving skills, students learn to plan, manage their time, give constructive criticism to their peers, and improve communication skills. Group work also helps instructors. If a teacher breaks their class into small groups to complete an assignment, the teacher will have fewer assignments to grade than if each student turned in a separate one.
If a teacher is not careful, group work can present some problems. Sometimes certain students in groups will do more than their share of the work. Other students coast by on the efforts of their more motivated peers. Some students in groups may be more invested in their academic success than others. These students will take the project seriously and ensure they fulfill their obligations. Other students may not care enough to do their part of the work, potentially diminishing the grades of their harder-working peers.
Sometimes conflict will arise within student groups. Students may disagree on a topic for a presentation or on the best method for completing an assignment. Students can learn compromise and conflict-resolution from these types of situations, but if students are slow to make decisions, projects may end up being delayed.
More outgoing and forceful students may appoint themselves leaders of groups without the approval of other members. These students may dictate what other members must do and may not be receptive to input from the others. Ideal group work should be collaborative with equal participation. A group should not passively follow the orders of one self-imposed leader.
Some students, such as those who struggle with social anxiety or those with an autism spectrum disorder, may have difficulty participating in group work. Children often avoid situations that make them afraid or nervous. In such cases, these students might be wary of their peers' judgment or fearful of making an error. These students may "freeze up" when it is their turn to contribute to the group discussion. Fear can make students become frustrated with the situation and divert their rage and negative feelings toward their peers. When people are anxious, concentration can become difficult, and they may lose track of the group discussion. It is important for instructors to closely monitor groups in the classroom to ensure group work is both effective and beneficial to all students involved.
Bibliography
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