Using Groups Online
Using Groups Online
Learning in an online course can be a solitary experience in which students may feel isolated, rather than connected to one another. Generally, students want to form social relationships with their classmates. Collaborative learning – teamwork – in online classes is one way to positively foster a sense of connection, using small groups and groups working as teams to bring important aspects such as these to a class:
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Reinforcement of course concepts and use of higher-order thinking abilities.
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Demonstration of course competencies.
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Establishment of social relationships and interdependence in learning.
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Practice with real-world teamwork skills.
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Promotion of collaboration and a sense of community – i.e., connectedness among students.
Regardless of the group project, all teams begin as a collection of individuals and go through predictable stages in the group;s life-cycle. One aspect is that some form of conflict, however slight, seems inevitable with any group and ignoring it by assuming that an issue will resolve itself is a misperception. The important point is to recognize that conflict will occur and that conflict is not necessarily unconstructive or harmful.
When to Use Groups
SIDE NOTE: Studies in online learning indicate that students tend to do best when discussion groups involve no more than 10-12 students. Larger discussion groups inhibit getting to know one another and hinder the collaborative learning process (it’s hard to read and react to 25 other students’ discussion postings, for example!, while smaller groups foster a sense of connectedness and promote more effective discussions.
A common use of groups in online courses is to create smaller discussion groups when the class size is larger than 20 (see side note).
Other uses of groups in online courses include project-based activities or forming teams to complete group assignments when “many heads are better than one” for finding creative solutions. The ability to work in groups is also important in most forms of employment. Therefore, teamwork provides students with practice in a real-life transferable skill.
A Group Use Caveat
Sometimes groups succeed and sometimes they fail, both in the classroom and online. An understanding of group dynamics—how groups form, the stages and processes in group development, and leadership issues in groups—may assist you in the creation of successful group experiences for your online courses. Additionally, if a group begins to go experience challenges, you can often constructively address those challenges and through applying techniques for the effective facilitation of online groups.
Considerations
As you begin to consider group dynamics, building community online, and project-based teamwork, consider these aspects:
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Teamwork builds bonds and commitment between people as a result of meaningful, purpose-driven interactions, valued group goals, and a shared sense of group identity. Thus, through teamwork, students can build an authentic sense of classroom community.
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Teamwork enhances the learning process by motivating students to search out, remember, and apply course content, often in deeper or more meaningful ways than they would be able to in individual work.
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Through the application and combination of many minds, teamwork results may be greater than what an individual alone could accomplish.
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In today’s world, teamwork emphasizes collaborative leadership and participatory management among members who have individual functions in fulfilling that process. This is in contrast to the old hierarchical, top-down, “boss-driven” model of teamwork. Many students need to learn and practice this newer, more collaborative form of teamwork skills for up-to-date business and industry teamwork functions.