Collaborative activities benefit academic and social-emotional learning. I’ve seen in my students collaborating creates a spark that extends to subsequent individual activities. Industry leaders ask that students learn to collaborate because this ability is needed on the job. To support students’ collaboration, provide scaffolds for discussion, scaffolds for product-work, and develop a classroom environment of respect and trust.
Discussions
– Have students develop positive discussion habits starting with pair work and then increase number of group members to maximum of four-six.
– Ask more vocal students to hold back a bit and invite quieter students to contribute more frequently. Each group’s student facilitator can ask students who haven’t voiced their opinion on a topic whether they have thoughts about the topic they would like to share.
– A checklist or rubric students fill-out at the conclusion of each group discussion to self-assess their discussion participation and the quality of the group’s discussion reminds students of effective discussion descriptors, presents the opportunity for reflection and improvement, and is helpful for the teacher as part of formative assessment.
– Sentence stems support students in effectively contributing to group discussions.
Discussion sentence stem examples:
My opinion is______because______.
I agree with______ because______.
I disagree with______ because______.
I’d like to go back to what ______ said because______.
I agree with ______ in part because______ and a part I disagree with is ______ because ______.
More discussion sentence stems
– Students need to realize positive discussions don’t mean everyone is in agreement all the time. In fact, stronger outcomes will occur when those who have divergent viewpoints express them, respectfully.
– Explain and discuss using consensus as the first choice for decision-making.
– Using non-emotional topics, provide practice in understanding diverse perspectives.
– Conduct fishbowl activities where students sit around a group that is having an effective discussion, and then analyze what was effective. You can also do this with a group that role-plays ineffective discussion to analyze what was weak.
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Product Work
A concern about collaborative group work is some students will do most of the work and some students will do hardly anything. Or that the overall group will not be productive. To prevent these scenarios:
– Use group contracts.
– Provide checklists or rubrics students use to self-assess their product-work collaborations.
Students contributing to contract content and checklist/rubric content makes the contract and checklist most
powerful.
– Provide a group work organizer, for example a Scrum Board.
– Provide individual work management organizers. As students become more advanced, support them in learning how to create their own time management/productivity organizers.
– Use exit tickets where students state what they accomplished towards their group’s product(s).
– At the end of each session each group’s spokesperson shares with the larger group what the group accomplished.
– In addition to a group product, require individual products, such as an essay, where students demonstrate
academic learning and might also reflect on their and their group’s process.
- If group work is graded, only give individual grades.
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Respect and Trust
A school and classroom culture of respect and trust will go a long way in supporting positive collaborations. A culture of respect is developed by the tone of your and other school adults’ daily communications with students, for example non-sarcastic. Equally what you tolerate or not among students and from students towards you makes a difference.
Have students brainstorm qualities in people they trust. Discuss.
If respect and trust are lacking among your students don’t give up on collaborative activities. Collaborations, supported with scaffolds, can help develop these attitudes.
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