Tag: Groups

Posts related to the Groups Tool in Brightspace

Why and How to Teach Teamwork

smantleBest Practice

A recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Why and How to Teach Teamwork written by Jane S. Halonen and Dana S. Dunn (November 15, 2021), provided some great suggestions on how instructors could improve the structure and design of group projects. “We ask students to exercise their leadership and interpersonal muscles, but we rarely offer any instruction on how to operate effectively in a group.” There is great value in improving students’ experience with working in groups, and adopting even one of their suggestions could make a huge difference.

The article requires a username and password (access is free), but the key takeaways are:

  1. Link group projects to future success on the job.
  2. Improvise a model of a dysfunctional group.
  3. Have students practice how not to cooperate in a group.
  4. Guide their group discussions with a structured list of questions.
  5. Dedicate precious class time to group projects.
  6. Enlist students to provide feedback to one another.
  7. Ask groups to rotate the leadership role.
  8. Conduct equity reviews at the end of major projects.
  9. Require self-assessment.

Why and How to Teach Teamwork, by Jane S. Halonen and Dana S. Dunn – https://www.chronicle.com/article/why-and-how-to-teach-teamwork?cid=gen_sign_in

Creating Group Based Discussions

smantleBrightspace

Link to PDF

Using group activities can help build community and establish peer communication and connection, especially in online and blended learning. In large enrolment courses, assigning groups for participation in discussion forums is one of the ways to make online discussions more effective and manageable. Setting up group discussions requires knowledge of the Discussion Board hierarchy and how group restriction settings work within the Brightspace system.

Creating Group Based Discussions [PDF]