Group Projects.

[Lexicon]

How do you deal with them?

Personally, I can't stand group projects. And yes, I'm stuck trudging through one presently.

If you skim through this article about learning styles, I think it explains why I just don't learn most efficiently doing "group work."
Felder & Soloman: Learning Styles and Strategies

(Also, I'm INFJ.
I'm pretty sure my learning styles correlate with this.)


Looking at each section of the article, I am more:

of a Reflective Learner than an Active Learner
more Intuitive than Sensing
more of a Verbal Learner than a Visual Learner
and definitely more of a Global Learner than a Sequencial Learner.

I find much of my natural means of taking in data/interpreting it/arriving at solutions, etc to be terribly restrained in a group setting. It's endlessly frustrating.


I feel like I don't really need to explain further as to why my learning preferences are hindered; it's fairly self explanatory based on the info provided, I think..




I'm wondering, though, those of you who have the same learning preferences,
What's your MBTI type?

And also.. how do you handle group projects??

Personally, I end up just doing the whole thing myself, and more often than not, I supplement my classmates' portions of the project. If I don't do all or most of it, then I can't be certain until the last minute whether or not my piece of the project will fit with the group's properly. I can't work that way. Maybe it's a J-thing...

 

[Randomnity]

I don't share your type, but I dislike group projects too. This is what works for me:

1) meet to evenly share up the work. agree to meet in a week (or whatever) to see some progress and see if it should be redivided
2) second meeting, plan final results (ie comment on others' work, suggest changes), plan to meet again to go over any little details, etc.
3) meet again to make sure everything is beautiful.

Of course, if you have retarded group members, this won't work. But otherwise, most people are pretty good about doing work as long as they feel it's fair.

 

[Lexicon]

I don't share your type, but I dislike group projects too. This is what works for me:

1) meet to evenly share up the work. agree to meet in a week (or whatever) to see some progress and see if it should be redivided
2) second meeting, plan final results (ie comment on others' work, suggest changes), plan to meet again to go over any little details, etc.
3) meet again to make sure everything is beautiful.

Of course, if you have retarded group members, this won't work. But otherwise, most people are pretty good about doing work as long as they feel it's fair.

I have retarded group members.
AND it's a webcourse... so people don't ever meet up. We discuss things via email, sporadically.

But those are really helpful suggestions otherwise, and I could see how they'd work. I've done something similar to that in live classroom situations. It's one of the few occasions I go out of my way to take the lead.

I'm going to try to implement these strategies in the online course setting, though. Just contact everyone and try to come to an agreement for meeting small goals before the due date.

Thanks!

 

[Tallulah]

The best scenario is when the teacher recognizes that everyone needs to be held responsible for a section of the project on their own...so if someone drops the ball, they've mostly hurt themselves.

I'd say restrain your J just a bit and make sure everyone feels like their contribution will be welcome, and that they will be trusted to do their part.

I like Randomnity's idea of having a weekly meeting to make sure everyone's on task...maybe frame it as a rough draft kind of thing so you'll all know if your section fits in with everyone else's, etc.

A group project in a web class seems a little counterintuitive, though. I'm not sure what your teacher is thinking.

 

[Nocapszy]

How do I deal with them?

I don't.

 

[Darjur]

I rarely if ever do group work and I absolutely hate it.

I tend to demand to be assigned the group project to me alone without participating in a group. It's easier for me to prepare and do the work of 5-10 people than having to compromise and rearrange everything together.

 

[nightning]

On the part of the instructor.
Have each group member evaluate the contribution of each person in the group.
Announce this ahead of time so people don't shrink from work

On part of the group members
Have an early enough meeting to figure out the scope of the project.
Divide work up, and have it done by a specific time.
Meet up in different stages (or for small project after the work is done) and see if everything makes sense once you put it together.
If it doesn't, divide work to fix it up.

It's mostly just early planning and trusting that the other person is equally concern with their marks and they don't need to be lead by the hand.

 

[Nocapszy]

Cool. I'm the only extravert here.

What a surprise that this thread has only introverts.

 

[Lexicon]

Cool. I'm the only extravert here.

What a surprise that this thread has only introverts.

I wasn't surprised at all.

 

[Rajah]

Great. I just had to give my students a group project today.

Group work comes with a bunch of hassles, but it can actually produce a better product at the end. Remember that part of the assignment is doing the actual job, but another equally important part is learning how to manage your group.

You'll slog through it.

 

[JocktheMotie]

Actually I'll let the leader assign my portion and I'll just do it. If the rest of it falls apart, at least my contribution will be the light of the project. Fuck em. If I get deducted for the group's poor effort, I basically blitz the teacher to grade me independently.

 

[Lexicon]

Actually I'll let the leader assign my portion and I'll just do it. If the rest of it falls apart, at least my contribution will be the light of the project. Fuck em. If I get deducted for the group's poor effort, I basically blitz the teacher to grade me independently.

Yeah, we each have the opportunity to evaluate our group members; I iagine the teacher takes that feedback, as well as the actual work into consideration when grading.

I'm supposed to be working on said proect right now!
I haven't heard from any of my 3 group members.
What the heck.:steam:

 

[Rajah]

What class is this for?

I teach a business school class, so it at least makes sense they'd need to learn how to manage groups.

 

[Lexicon]

What class is this for?

I teach a business school class, so it at least makes sense they'd need to learn how to manage groups.

It's a webcourse on anatomy.

 

[Rajah]

Okay, that makes no frigging sense. You have my sympathy.

 

[Lexicon]

Okay, that makes no frigging sense. You have my sympathy.

Yeah, I understand what you mean, with the collaborative effort being a factor in the overall learning experience. It's definitely not all that applicable to this kind of class, nor is it practical, in my opinion. ESPECIALLY since my group members haven't emailed me back once!!! Gah!

I'll live; it's nothing too difficult. I just enjoy my classes; moreso when the assignments ...make sense..

 

[Rajah]

What kind of group project do they have you doing on anatomy?

...


Tee hee.

 

[Lexicon]

What kind of group project do they have you doing on anatomy?

...


Tee hee.

Ha.. oh jeez..


It's about tissue structure, and the effects of sunlight. The group's split into 4, & we each have a bunch of hypothetical questions for our "roles." Someone's a tourist from FL, someone else is a physician, another person is a Botox consultant [or something], and I'm.. a Finnish tour guide?
And we're all at a tropical resort.



Kinda does sound like the premise for some sort of bizarre naughty film..

 

[Rajah]

It sounds like a new take on this classic gem.

 

[Lexicon]

It sounds like a new take on this classic gem.

I just read "Anne Rice novel"
and stopped.