ProduProducctive Group tive Group WorkWork

CCooperative Groupsooperative GroupsWIWICCRR

Conversations are central to high-quality professional development.

Look at NSDC, Title II, or your state’s standards for professional development. The standards are laden with references to conversations; planned, collaboratively, continuous feedback, reflection, self-assessment, inquiry, and peer coaching.

--Carol Corwell-Martin JSD, April 2010

How is group work relevant?

Moller and Pankake (2006) describe professional learning: “The real learning happens in the cycle of conversations, actions, evaluation, and new actions.”

PurposePurpose Reflect on your experience with group work Understand four phases of releasing

responsibility Characteristics of productive group work How do we trouble shoot problems Making a plan for success

Collaborative groups and cooperative learning refers to a variety of structured classroom management techniques and grading systems.

Definitions for this workshop: Cooperative Groups—A group of participants that

work together to complete a structured assignment Collaborative Groups—A group of participants that

work together to create a product based on appropriate resources found by the group to meet an assigned objective

Reflect on Your Experience

Think about a time when you worked in a group or when you had your students work in groups.

What would have make it a better experience for you and/or your students?

Quick Write for 3 minutes about this experience and be sure to list What worked What did not work How it could have been better

One—One—Two Minute Partner Share Move around the room at the direction of the

facilitator Pair up with the person closest to you at the

end of the movement Label yourselves A & B in your pair A – Tells B about their Quick Write for 1 minute B – Tells A about their Quick Write for 1 minute A & B have a conversation about their Quick

Writes of 2 minutes

Better Learning Through Structured Teaching By Nancy Frey and Douglas Fisher

The Gradual Release of Responsibility Model of Instruction (David Pearson)

4 Phases of Gradual Release Model Focused Lessons Guided Instruction Independent Learning Collaborative Learning – Time when students work

in groups to consolidate what they know from previous lessons and to gain valuable insights from each other

Chunk this

information

Productive Group Work: The Role of Collaboration in Learning

By Nancy Frey, Sandy Everlove and Douglas Fisher

Done properly, productive group work results in: Increased self esteem Improved relationships among students Enhanced social and communication skills Higher levels of academic learning and retention

than peers working individually We know it works! The question is How and Why it fails? Chunk this

information

Why do we resist working in groups?

Teachers & students rarely experience genuine collaborative learning

Usually “thrown” into a group with good intentions to produce a product, practice a skill, or complete a task

1 or 2 students take over and do most of the work Worker Bee’s feel put upon, taken advantage of, or

shackled by group Others feel inadequate, unable to keep up, or they have

nothing valuable to contribute

In successful cooperative groups, each member has a task with the teacher as a frequent monitor and “guide on the side” instead of the “sage on the stage.”

Chunk this

information

How do we know when Group Work is productive?

Knowledge is built and extended between the exchange of ideas

Task must require Individual Accountability Level of difficulty so students can consolidate their

understanding Too Easy – Students will divide and conquer and

reassemble to turn in Should be hearing academic language and

academic vocabulary If the conversation is mostly about logistics then

we’ve missed the mark

What if they fail? Fear of failure keeps teachers in front of the

classroom lecturing and in our comfort zone Failure is underrated Wrestling with the task causes students to rely on

one another Groups need a task that might result in failure Learners who had tasks that were difficult (but not

impossible) outperformed those where success was guaranteed

If success is guaranteed, it does not result in higher learning

We have Special K because Special A-J failed!

What to do if it doesn’t work?

Is the difficulty related to an one aspect? – Assist the group in reaching a decision

Is the task the problem? – More guided instruction

Model, Model, Model Consider reconstituting the groups Task cards or checklists of items that must be

completed Resist the urge to allow students to work alone

Chunk this

information

How do we ensure success?

Scaffold up to collaborative learning Explicitly teach the skills of collaborative group work Start small to build confidence & competence Teach procedures and routines of how to interact to

create products that represent their thinking Teachers examine their own beliefs Start small – Group work does not = long extended

assignments Teach – How to ask for, decline, offer, and accept

helpChunk this

information

Why and How are AVID Tutorials Collaborative?

Students are specifically taught the skill and they are reinforced in the process by trained tutors (We scaffold up to Collaborative Learning)

Students are gradually released from Focused Lessons to Guided Instruction to Collaborative

Students work in groups to consolidate what they know from previous lessons and to gain valuable insights from each other

Each group member has a task and Individual Accountability Level of difficulty causes students to consolidate their

understanding Language is academic and not logistical Difficult but not impossible and might result in failure Success is not guaranteed Students rely on one another

Review

your notes!

Fill in gaps!Write

questions

you still have!

Summary:

List 2 ideas

you gained!

Brain Storming

Using the experience of the table Discuss and list the reasons why some group work

is not successful. Discuss and list reasons why some group work is

successful. Narrow the list of reasons why some group work is

not successful down to the top reason for the table

Culture Analysis

Take a piece of chart paper and write that top inhibiter of successful group work on the top of it.

Brainstorm ways to eliminate or decrease the effect of that one inhibitor to make group work successful and productive by answering these questions:1. What do we need to stop allowing?2. What do we need to start allowing?3. What do we need to continue allowing?

Gallery Walk

Each group will begin at their poster and have a short stack of Post It Notes and a pen.

Each group will move clockwise as directed by the facilitator.

At each piece of artwork, you will leave comments or questions to consider for the authors of the chart.

Let’s Reflect: Cube It

Roll a die. Share your ideas from today’s training based on the number you roll: Describe itAnalyze itReinvent itApply itTake a stand on itChoose a different perspective

Thanks!

www.avid.org