Effective Group Work Strategies

Effective Group Work Strategies

Individual commitment to a group effort that is what makes a team work, a company work, a
society work, a civilisation work. Vince Lombardi (American Football Coach)
Working with other people at university may occur in a variety of different contexts. Some group
work may be organised by academic staff but you may also choose to involve yourself in some
group activities. Examples of group work situations are:
group work assignments
group presentations or seminars
mentor situations
self-directed study groups
online or face-to-face discussion groups
support groups
work placements
PASS (Peer Assisted Study Sessions)
laboratory groups

Assigning roles
Each group member brings their own experience and attitudes to the group. To help identify your
individual strengths and weaknesses, each group member could complete a skills inventory.
Roles could then be assigned to suit each group members personal strengths, weaknesses and
learning styles. Your group will need to decide:
Whether it will have a team leader and who will that be?
Who will organise and chair meetings?
Who will take notes and keep records of decisions made?
How you will allocate the work.
Who will organise and supervise your research?
Who will organise and supervise the final submission document?

Planning and managing your project

Project management skills and tools can aid group success and help resolve potential conflicts.
As a group you can:
Develop ground rules and even develop a mission statement to guide group behaviour and
activities.
Prepare a meeting schedule and keep minutes of meeting proceedings.
Record decisions made and the allocation and progress of tasks.
Plan for and communicate how the group will resolve problems that occur.
Allow time to reflect on the groups successes and failures and do not lay blame on individual
group members.
As a group, check the assignment criteria. Is everyone in agreement about the task the group
must complete? Does everyone agree when the assignment is due? Seek clarification from
your lecturer/tutor if there is any confusion.
Set and monitor deadlines for each task/component. Keep in touch and report progress on
your particular task to the group.

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As a group, plan your research design. Will you be using primary or/and secondary sources?
How will you manage the research component of your project? Who will keep records of
sources used? How will you organise your materials?
Plan the production phase. Who will write and edit the final submission? Leave sufficient time
for the proofreading and editing phase. There are other self-help resources available to help
with these tasks.

Engaging with group members

When you are engaging with other members of your group:
Listen actively and with an open mind to other peoples points of view.
Use non-verbal as well as verbal communication. In other words smile and make eye contact.
Give reassuring nods and avoid looking disinterested or fidgeting.
When giving feedback on ideas or work carried out by other group members:
Focus on positive aspects rather than only negatives aspects when giving feedback.
Provide examples to help others understand the point you are making.
When receiving feedback:
Dont view constructive criticism as a personal attack. We learn by seeing things from other
peoples perspectives. Thank people for giving you constructive criticism.

Dealing with conflict and problems

Group management has two key focal points: group dynamics and the task. The groups primary
goal is to complete the task, therefore the most effective conflict resolution strategy is to identify if
the problem relates to group dynamics or completion of the task. Strategies to use when conflict
occurs are:
Identify and categorise the problem (task or group dynamics). Is everyone seeing the same
problem?
Brainstorm to find solutions. Present and consider different ideas without criticism.
Confirm ideas. Restate the idea to the original speaker to ensure clear understanding.
Elaborate on ideas, build on original suggestions and try to predict consequences.
Criticise ideas constructively and specifically. Focus on the idea not the individual.
Identify possible solutions, test, apply and evaluate effectiveness.
Modify original solution in response to evaluation.

Further Reading
Cottrell, S. (2008). The study skills handbook (3rd ed.). London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Turner, K., Ireland, L., Krenus, B., & Pointon, L. (2008). Essential Academic Skills. South
Melbourne, Victoria: Oxford University Press.

External Links
UNSW:
http://learningandteaching.unsw.edu.au/content/LT/teaching_support/groupwork.cfm?ss=2

Additional learning tools / Sources of information

See www.griffith.edu.au/library/workshops-training/self-help-resources for further resources to
complement this information sheet.

Griffith University 2011 Apart from fair dealing as permitted by the copyright law of your country, this work may be
reproduced in whole or in part for non-profit educational use, provided correct attribution is given. Abstracting with credit is
permitted. Other uses should be discussed with the copyright owner.
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