Guide to Group Work
Introduction to Group Work
Working in groups in educational settings is a common occurrence (Video 1). Instructors often require group work because it is such an important skill, particularly as you look ahead to entering the workplace. Learning to get along and work with others is important in and of itself, but working effectively as a team can also allow for increased learning and a better outcome than each individual group member can achieve on their own.
Video 1: Introduction to Group Work. Closed captioning is available. Click HERE to read a transcript.
Understanding the Team
Effective groups build a solid foundation for the work and stages that follow (Video 2).
Video 2: Understanding the Team. Closed captioning is available. Click HERE to read a transcript.
Groups are most likely to be successful when members attend to both the climate within the group and the process by which they accomplish their tasks. Click on each link below, and then on each item in the interactive lists to learn more.
Skills for a Healthy Group Climate
Skills for an Effective Group Process
Communicating Effectively
Ongoing and open communication—in which group members share their thoughts, ideas and feelings—is essential for successful group work (Video 3). Unspoken assumptions and issues can be very destructive to productive group functioning.
Effective communicators do the following:
- explain their ideas
- express their feelings in an open but non-threatening way
- listen carefully to others
- ask questions to clarify others’ ideas and emotions
- sense how others feel based on their nonverbal communication
- initiate conversations about group climate or process if they sense tensions brewing
- reflect on the activities and interactions of their group and encourage other group members to do so as well
Video 3: Communicating Effectively. Closed captioning is available. Click HERE to read a transcript.
Planning the Project
There are a number of strategies and techniques for effective group project planning to help your group stay on track and meet deadlines (Video 4). These include identifying and negotiating roles and learning about tools and approaches that can help you plan effectively.
Video 4: Planning the Project. Closed captioning is available. Click HERE to read a transcript.
Addressing Challenges in Teams
One of the most common—and most frustrating—challenges students experience in group work is dealing with teammates who fail to contribute or who rely on others to carry the workload. The article below, “Coping with Hitchhikers and Couch Potatoes on Teams,” offers strategies to manage such situations and to help students foster accountability and equitable participation within teams.
“Coping with Hitchhikers and Couch Potatoes on Teams” by Barbara Oakley
This article is an essential component of this chapter. Don’t skip it!
Chapter Attribution
This chapter incorporates material from the following sources:
Learning Commons, York University (2020). The student guide to group work. https://learningcommons.yorku.ca/groupwork/. Licensed with CC BY 4.0.
Shier, M. (2020). Student Success. https://opentextbc.ca/studentsuccess/. Licensed with CC BY 4.0.
Media Attributions
Video 1: Teaching & Learning at York U. Libraries. (2021, January 8). Introduction to group work [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/UL0uEywO-EA. Licensed with CC BY 4.0.
Video 2: Teaching & Learning at York U. Libraries. (2021, January 8). Understanding the team [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/L_uMkCwqSsw. Licensed with CC BY 4.0.
Video 3: Teaching & Learning at York U. Libraries. (2021, January 8). Communicating effectively [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/1svJa8epAMA. Licensed with CC BY 4.0.
Video 4: Teaching & Learning at York U. Libraries. (2021, January 8). Planning the project [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/DDK924YPBf4. Licensed with CC BY 4.0.
