Assessing group work: the benefits and drawbacks for mixed groups

York St John University | www.yorksj.ac.uk

Group work assessment symposium:Collaborating or fighting for the marks?

Students’ experience of group work assessment

Rachel Wicaksono

Senior Lecturer, English Language and Linguistics Faculty of Business and Communication

Monday November 10, 2008

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York St John University | www.yorksj.ac.uk

Assessing group work: the benefits and drawbacks for mixed groups

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York St John University | www.yorksj.ac.uk

Background and aims of the research

“As companies adopt a more global outlook, greater collaboration is a vital corporate need…”

“…a diverse workforce makes both moral and, increasingly, economic sense.”

But did my students want to work in groups?

1. What do you think about group work?

2. What effect does group work have on students’ marks?

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York St John University | www.yorksj.ac.uk

backgroundQ1 What are the benefits and problems for students of assessed group work?

64% of students (both UK and international) said that they enjoyed group work.

Positive outcomes: ‘Sparking ideas and discussion – help each other to make sense and bring out ideas through questioning’.Negative outcomes: ‘People have different standards of work, one member may be A grade another D so may bring marks down for some’.

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backgroundQ1 What are the benefits and problems for students of assessed group work?

Communication: ‘I found communication with international students difficult’.Ability: ‘Group work has been the most enjoyable when all group members have had similar abilities and level of understanding’.Nationality: ‘No commitment of local students as they only talk about their night out and hangovers when the group meets’.Social goals: ‘[effective groups] have a good laugh with group members because they get on well’.Task-oriented goals: ‘I enjoyed working in a group when all the members were committed to the task set and did a fair percentage of the work’.

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background

Research into the benefits and drawbacks of mixed groups has shown………very mixed results.

Why? Perhaps because ‘mixedness’ is not a fixed quality. What we notice about other people, and the importance of the things we notice, depends on our context (where we are, what we’re doing, what other people are telling us etc.).

Q2 Do you prefer to be in groups with

people who are the same as you or different from you? Why? Which similarities/differences matter?

Drawback 1Social identity and self-categorisation theory,

similarity-attraction theory

Benefit 1Peer effects and information-

processing theory

INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT

TASK DESIGN

Drawback 2Free-rider

theory

Drawback 3Expectancy

bias

Benefit 3Expectancy

bias

Benefit 2Free-rider

theory

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backgroundQ3 To get the best mark, is it better to be in a group with students of similar or

different ‘ability’ as you? Why?

Individual achievement (X)

Group mark = X +/- ?

Lowest +13

Average +4

Highest -7

BUT…….

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York St John University | www.yorksj.ac.uk

backgroundWhat do you think so far?

Peer effects? ‘One-way pooling’

Free riding?

Expectancy bias (markers and students)?

Assessed task design?

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York St John University | www.yorksj.ac.uk

backgroundbackgroundConclusions?

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York St John University | www.yorksj.ac.uk

background

Email me for a copy of ‘Assessed mixed nationality group work at a UK university: does it get results?’ [email protected]

Free copies of Enhancing the International Learning Experience are available from [email protected] and [email protected]

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