Laboratory exercises are often designed to be collaborative, with activities completed by small groups that typically work together throughout a semester. Groupwork presents challenges for instructor and students alike but also can present opportunities to educate students on a critical part of real-world scientific research. The goal of this workshop is to share strategies that can be incorporated into any lab sequence to mindfully construct and manage groups to make them more effective. Participants will begin by considering how they might imprint upon students the importance of collaboration in scientific research to get them ready to understand the need to work together effectively. They will them use the guild model to build groups among workshop participants and work together on a team-building activity designed to reveal their group dynamics. This will be followed by a discussion on approaches students take to constructing a group contract to help self-manage their group effectiveness, and an example of how members can evaluate each other constructively during the semester. The workshop will wrap-up with a lively discussion of issues encountered in different courses and different ways participants have found to make groups more effective.
Keywords: Groupwork, collaborative learning, class management
University of Manitoba (2025)
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