Productive Group Work is filled with many suggestions, rubrics, and ideas for teachers who wish to use group work daily. The ideas were not new to me, but it was nice to have a refresher. Sometimes, mostly because I time, I forget to explain how to function as a group. I just assume students know how. I also just count students off for time sack. I like changing my methods to keep the novelty of group work.
There are many approaches teachers can take to make sure that all students participate in group work. I will briefly explain the approaches by the authors. The first is called down and up or Cube it. On page 17, the authors explain the method as students “going around the table to give each student a chance to speak. Each member of the group folds a piece of paper into six sections and takes notes as others speak. The discussion leader creates a bulleted list of notes that captures the key ideas and main points for each question. These notes become visible record of the group’s collective thinking and also provide each member of the group with a record of his/her own thinking and the thinking of other group members. The students know that after their group discussion, groups will be asked to participate in a while-class discussion of the topic, during which any member of a group may be asked to answer any of the six Cub-it questions.”
Another approach, that most of us use, is jigsaw where “Students meet in their home group to discuss overall goals. Then they meet in their expert group to focus on one specific aspect of the content” (27). Students then return to home groups to report.
A third approach is called reciprocal teaching that asks members to take on roles such as:
1. questioner-ask a question that can be answered in the text, ask an opinion question, show your teammates where you find answers.
2.
Clarifier: ask if anyone got stuck on a word or an idea, help team by using resources.
3. Predictor-tell your teammates what you think the author will tell you about in the next section.
4. Summarizer- tell your teammates the main ideas of the passage and the important supporting details. (30-31)
In order for a group to function, each member needs to know what to say. The authors suggest having students use quickwrites to first gather their thoughts and then share. A graphic organizer might also help. Another method that might be new to students is to create role playing or simulations such as mock trials.
None of the above approaches are new to me, but I forgot about them. I plan on using them next year right away hoping that my students will work well together for the semester.
The book also suggests having students practice listening skills, provide peer feedback, and consider having a group discussion from different perspectives-much like the five minute conversation activity we did with Dr. Parks.
Many teachers, including myself, sometimes veer away from group work because it may create problems. I especially do this with my LA 201 students because the work usually ends up on one person’s lap. To avoid this, the authors suggest and supply rubrics for grading and checking in with groups. I cannot share the rubrics, but I plan on using them so stop by my room if you would like to see them this fall. Also to help with accountability, the authors suggest:
1.
Design tasks that emphasize larger learning goals (like a driving question)
2. Give students experience with small tasks before asking them to tackle longer projects.
3. Establish timelines
4. Create steps
5. Self evaluations (56-57)
The book also stresses the importance of setting expectations first, observing students, and providing feedback on how the group functions. Another idea is to make the role of a group checker who is in charge of keeping track and explaining each member’s thoughts and roles in the group.
Another check point that teachers can have for students to make sure every student is doing his/her part is to have students write one paper, but change colors when writing. At the end of the project, the teacher would then interview each student individually to explain the content of the entire paper, not just their part.
The last stressful part in grouping students is how to group students. On our Moodle page, Keith supplied us with a list of ways to pair students. I have printed it out for my class next year. I would suggest that you check it out. The book suggests that teachers do not group by ability.
Overall, this book made be excited about incorporating more group work next year with a refresh of ideas. I especially like the rubrics that will help me make my students more accountable in groups.
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