We are going to study volcanos. Can your group think of four things that they
already know about volcanoes, and four new things they would like to learn.
Do not feel that you have to use every role when doing
group work. The main roles are the manager, encourager,
recorder keeper and reporter. The entire group/class could
evaluate and reflect at the end of the activity.
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• The teacher chooses the less able child in the group to speak first. S/he may
know less information than the others in the group and his/her confidence is
developed if the group agrees with them or reiterates what they have to say.
• The manager gives each child an opportunity to say what they know about the
topic in question.
• The encourager praises all those in the group who have spoken. It is important
to ask the children in the class how they could/why they should encourage
others. Allow children to give their suggestions, for example, well done, cool, ace,
brilliant, thumbs up, high 5 and so on.
• The record keeper writes the points stated by the individuals within the group.
This could be in the visual form of a concept map where single words are linked
to the main idea (volcanoes) in the centre of the page.
• If the record keeper is a weaker speller, the teacher should employ strategies that
will alleviate any worry or tension around spelling and so help them to improve.
Children should be encouraged to take risks with spellings and reminded that
making a good effort is what is most important.
•
The reporter/spokesperson reports back to the whole class on what the group
has decided/found out/already knows. The job of reporter becomes very sought
after as children gain confidence at group work. Even less able children realise
that they will be able to read from the record keeper’s notes. They also become
more confident at speaking through talking within the smaller group of their friends
and peers.
•
The secretary distributes materials that the group may need, for example, fact
books if the group are researching a topic or a specific worksheet to be filled out
by the group. They may also need to collect and hand up documentation at the
end of the group task.
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•
The evaluator keeps a record/short notes on how well the group have worked
together, what they did well, where they might improve and so on. Reflecting on
and evaluating the group work experience is very important.
Assigning children to a group
The main ways of assigning children to a group are as follows:
• Random selection – the children are selected randomly, perhaps by choosing a
coloured piece of paper or a ticket from a jar.
• Teacher selected groups – the teacher strategically decides on the composition of
each group, perhaps to ensure that there is a good reader in every group, or that the
talkative children are well distributed. In a multi-class situation, the teacher may wish
to ensure that each group consists of a child from each of the class levels.
• Self selected groups – the children choose their own partners. It is sometimes
stated that this is the least preferable way of assigning children to groups, as high-
Remember
• Do not feel that you have to use every role when doing group work .
The main roles are the manager, encourager, recorder keeper
and reporter. The entire group/class could evaluate and reflect at
the end of the activity.
• Revolve the roles within the group on a regular basis.
• Adapt the roles to suit the activity and needs of the class, for
instance, if you are using group work in creating art, you may not
always need a record keeper.
• Groups work best when there is no more than four/five within the
group. It is proven that groups of seven or more are not productive
and do not work efficiently.
• After modelling allow the children time to create rules for group work
in order to optimise time and learning.
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achieving children tend to select other high achievers, or boys tend to choose other
boys. (Johnson, Johnson and Holubec, 1994). There is also a danger that the same
child may be frequently left out. However, the teacher knows his/her class best, and
there may be occasions when the self selected group is a good option.
Promoting group work: some strategies
The following strategies can be used in any subject area.
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