Collaborative learning can help students uncover and address gaps and misconceptions in knowledge. Despite the potential of collaboration, groups are too frequently a source of aggravation for individual members, leading to wasted time and feelings of discouragement. Therefore, group work must be carefully planned, run, and assessed. The purpose of this workshop is to introduce participants to theories of peer interaction and learning, the logistics of implementation, and techniques for assessing collaborative work, with the goal of easing the burden often associated with planning and facilitating group work that is more likely to produce learning gains for students.
By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
- summarize both the benefits and the challenges of group work
- describe best practices for designing group work
- develop a plan for composing, monitoring, and assessing groups in their classrooms.