Group work
A graduate from the University of South Australia can work autonomously and collaboratively as a professional (graduate quality 4). A teaching and learning arrangement that can help develop many graduate qualities, including graduate quality 4, is group work. This web page brings together internal and external resources on group work for staff .
- University of South Australia group work resources
- Additional group work resources
- References on group work.
University of South Australia group work resources
This section brings together relevant University group work resources which may be helpful in developing your own teaching, learning and assessment practices.
Tutoring @ UniSA
This 3 hour workshop and web site are particularly for academic staff who facilitate tutorials. Staff can register for upcoming workshops online. The web site contains resources and UniSA discussion groups to provide ongoing support to UniSA tutors.
Working collaboratively - a learning object for teaching and learning about group work
This web site provides learning and teaching support for working collaboratively. It uses a simple and proven model for supporting learning about the dynamics of successful collaboration and provides strategies for addressing problems with group dynamics. Students can explore the model of effective collaboration using images, text and animations. In addition, students are encouraged to self assess their understanding as they progress. Scenarios are included that allow students to practice their collaboration skills.
A section within the web site that is available to both staff and students describes options for authentic assessment of group collaboration. It includes strategies for assessing the process of group collaboration using this model. Embedded within the web site is support for students to record their collaborative skill development using UniSA's electronic portfolio, Transcript2.
Supporting materials for students on group work
The Learning Connection web site contains resources for students about group work such as the working in teams online workshop and the Graduate qualities web site has information sheets for students on developing graduate attributes including Graduate quality 4.
Additional group work resources
This section brings together relevant group work resources from sources external to the University.
CSHE - Assessing group work
The Centre for the Study of Higher Education have produced a resource called Assessing learning in Australian University where they provide 5 practical assessment guides, including one on Assessing group work. In particular there are multiple tables that look at the advantages and disadvantages of different group assessment options.
Assessing group practice in the performing arts
This web site focuses on different approaches to developing and assessing group practice in higher education resulting from a 4 year research project entitled Assessing Group Practice by a consortium of 6 higher education institutions in the United Kingdom. The project aimed to ensure that assessment of collaborative activity within the performing arts can be demonstrated to be fair, robust and practicable across the sector. Some key questions which prompted the team’s research included:
- What are we assessing, the skills or the person who applies these skills?
- What are collaborative skills and when should they be evaluated / assessed individually or as a group?
- How might we demonstrate and evidence creativity beyond the stated learning goals?
The University of Technology, Sydney
The Institute for interactive media and learning at the University of Technology Sydney, have developed a web site called Enhancing experiences of group work which contains multiple units looking at group work including; designing group assignments, preparing students for group work, forming effective groups, getting groups started, monitoring groups, assessing groups, and helping students reflect on their group experience. The resource section of this web site contains exercises, templates, readings and different ice-breaking activities that can be used in group work.
UTS is also the place where you can trial an online group work assessment program called the Self and Peer Assessment Resource Kit (SPARK).
References on group work
Smith, K. A (1995) Cooperative learning: Effective teamwork for engineering classrooms http://fie.engrng.pitt.edu/fie95/2b5/2b54/2b54.htm