Groupwork is often a helpful tool for interaction in a language classroom, but may lead to classroom management issues, as we saw in the teaching demos on Tuesday. Considering the usefulness of groupwork, this is an issue that we hope to overcome to be able to successfully use groupwork effectively. Think about the following questions (choose the appropriate one for your pair), and discuss them with your partner. Post your answer on the comments to this blog post. Make sure you include (a) the question, (b) names of both partners, and (c) a well-thought-out response.
cow: How can random group selection be both advantageous and disadvantageous? When would you choose to randomly select groups? When would you not allow random selection? What about groups selection by ability levels? When would you use/not use this technique? Add in some personal experiences if possible.
cat: How can group assignment by teacher be both advantageous and disadvantageous? When would you choose to assign members to groups? When would you not assign group members? What about student-selected groups? When would you choose to allow/not allow students to select their own groups? Add in some personal experiences if possible.
pig: Think about group work in general. It works well for some concepts, with some groups, for some teachers. Other times it's not so successful. Discuss how we as teachers can better ensure the success of our groupwork. Add in some personal experiences if possible.
turkey: Think about classroom management in general. Think about and discuss several ways (don't just repeat the book!) that a teacher can work toward a well-managed classroom. Add in some personal experiences if possible.
When you have finished posting (make sure you are ready to discuss!), move on to part 3 in the next post.
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Random group selection can be advantageous in that it is random, a surprise, not pre-planned. Students that are in cliques together may be less likely to be grouped together. A disadvantage is that it is random. You could end up with groups of students who were not willing to communicate with each other. Same language groups could be formed.
ReplyDeleteWe would choose to randomly select groups when the students needed a change in routine, and in larger classrooms where we had a limited amount of time.
We would not allow random selection when we had certain students with strong personalities, or significantly higher proficiency levels comparatively speaking.
Concerning selection of group by ability levels, a student could lose confidence if placed with a "lower" proficiency level group if they perceive themselves as having a higher level.
If we had a limited number of students, example: 3 students of an advanced level, we could arbitrarily assign those 3 students together and have the rest of the class on random group selection. We would not recommend this.
In Ronda's experience, random group selection has generally worked well. Ronda has had students' count off by number or select popsicle sticks randomly for group formation. The students' have commented in their evaluations at the end of the session that they liked working with different partners and people in groups. They liked working with a variety of cultures and different people. Ronda specifically remembers one student who commented that her previous teacher assigned partners/groups at the beginning of the semester and never changed them. That teacher could benefit from the random selection technique!
Jason & Ronda
Erica Gott and Allison Crews:
ReplyDeleteturkey: Think about classroom management in general. Think about and discuss several ways (don't just repeat the book!) that a teacher can work toward a well-managed classroom. Add in some personal experiences if possible.
Erica: Early in my tutoring career with SOAR, I had a Polish student who wanted to read books with me. He would have me read a line, and then he would repeat the line verbatim. I would correct his pronunciation, if needed. We read his computer science technical books, as well as many fiction books. I found this extremely boring, yet I did not feel able to take the reins, so to speak, and change the way our sessions were conducted. This went on for a year. I don’t feel like I really accomplished much with him; I think he just wanted some companionship because he was lonely.
If I had it to do over, I would incorporate his desire to read into the lesson, but I would be more of a director in what I helped him with. For example, I would use more personal dialogue between us, or I would insist that he read to me. He needed more work in comprehension than in simple reproduction of sounds. This person didn’t seem to be socially very aware, so I might have tried harder to find something he was interested in to get him talking.
Allison: In my experience, like Cindy was saying in class, knowing your students is the first and foremost thing in classroom management. As a teacher, I like to have a very open, relaxed environment, but I have very high standards for my students. To achieve this balance, I make sure that I state my expectations regularly and make sure to remain consistent in all situations. I feel like when incidents arise, you don’t need a go-to set of strategies or a mental flow chart of “if this, then that”—each incident is an individual incident, and so it should be responded to in kind, however, the reaction should be fair and reasonable…consistent with the established expectations.
Holding your students accountable and pushing them to take ownership of their education goes a long way toward having students that manage themselves.
Teachers should assign groups when they have a specific objective requiring a certain group dynamic that assigning groups would be required to obtain.
ReplyDeleteAlso, teachers can assign "energetic" students into less energetic groups, so that the students can initiate interaction and participation.
Students should occasionally be allowed to choose groups to feel free and comfortable in the class.
Teachers should also assign groups to avoid personality conflicts/clashes and instances when students get along too well, e.g. chatting, L1 usage, etc.
ReplyDeleteDerek, Matt, and Yilmin
The way we as teachers can ensure the success of our group work is by:
ReplyDelete1.Planning ahead.
a. Knowing your students
b. Making groups based on their proficiency level or their personality.
2. Be prepared.
In case of dead time prepare an extra activity if some get done before others.
3. Think about previous group work
Consider previous experiences doing that particular activity and if it was successful or not. Make changes where needed for the next activity.
Yuni & Katie