Group work in Ped 2 subjects

My learning this week throughout several Teaching Pedagogy 2 subjects gave me greater insight into the importance of group work, and how it can be structured in these subjects. At out first maths on-site class, we were advised against group work involving groups larger than four pupils. This message was reinforced for me this week when I studied a session in a different module (Preparing for School Placement 2).

I have learned that it is vital to gradually build up to group work by having pupils first work independently. The next step is to introduce pair work and the Think-Pair-Share activity. It is only when pupils are reasonably capable of cooperating in this setting that larger group tasks should be attempted. Teachers should be mindful of the cognitive and social demands posed by group work. From my reading of Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences (M.I.), I can see the relevance of inter-personal and intra-personal intelligence here.

There is a real risk of off-task behaviour, or a diffusion of responsibility effect as no-one takes responsibility for a task. I saw this firsthand on School Placement 1 with a fifth class group, where I put pupils in groups of six to create a short dramatic pieces. In each case, the task was not successfully completed.

I can see the benefits of using group work in Pedagogy 2 subjects such as maths, where exploration and experimentation is key to understanding new concepts prior to rules being formally taught. For example, pupils should be enabled to discover for themselves that the area of a rectangle may be calculated by finding the product of its length and breadth. In the teaching of languages, children could be given opportunities to collaborate on group projects, such as creating a photo story project. This would require the skills of cooperation, communication, planning, division of labour and exercising patience.

As the children grow older they will be expected to work in groups more and more, for instance as they progress to secondary school and later college, and beyond. The skills that they acquire at primary level will stick with them as they mature, and will be built upon. It is crucial that teachers do not just give pupils opportunities to work in groups, but that they also equip them with the skills needed to do so.