Over the weekend I viewed Strategies for Groups, led by Claudia Faulk and also viewed Google Forms, led by Barbara McPherson. I appreciated the insight that Google Forms could be used to help organize groups and keep them on task. I noted that the forms should be embeded in a separate document and not be listed in an announcement or main page.
I like working in groups and I find value in having students work in groups, but there are challenges to effective group work. Although I don't have an online class, I found many ideas apply such as: keep the group size small (around 3 people), have assigned roles - but switch it up week to week if possible, have different people report back week to week, have the group divide a project into smaller goals and set mini-deadlines. Claudia mentioned that working online can help introverted students participate more, as they are given more opportunity to think about what they want to say. I'm hoping as I add some online aspects to my class, it will invite more participation from introverted students.
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