Working as a group successfully!

From my own past educational experience, I don’t remember having been exposed to successful group work such as we have been learning about and experiencing during this Teacher Certification program. Sure, we were sometimes put into groups and given a project to do, but there was never any structure to the task and it never failed that certain people who were the overachievers (I’m guilty, I know) would take over and others who were quieter would just go along with whatever the rest of the group was doing. How much were we really getting out of it?


The article by Rachel Lotan (2003) is one that I know I will be keeping close by when I begin my new career as a teacher. It’s a whole new way of thinking about collaborative learning that I am excited by! Designing Groupwork by Elizabeth Cohen has also been added to my pile of books that I am waiting to read (found 1994 edition on Abebooks for cheap!) The planning for these types of lessons may be more intensive, but I think it’s not only more interesting and educational for the students, but for me as well.

By using group worthy tasks, we are not only helping the students to learn whatever subject(s) they are learning, but they are also learning vital life-skills that I think are maybe even more important in many instances. Learning how to work well with others does not come naturally for many people, but if we are able to aid them in learning these skills, students will carry those tools away with them and use them for the rest of their lives…even if they no longer remember exactly what it was they were doing in that particular project. This is an admirable goal, even apart from the math, science and history that they will be putting into a useful context while in these groups.

Well done group work makes learning interesting and accessible to all regardless of abilities. Taking into consideration your student’s strengths and abilities by giving them roles that will help them to be successful contributors to the group allows them to feel that they are a successful part of the learning community. What a wonderful goal to strive for!