Some preparations are necessary to make collaboration between learners work as smoothly and efficiently as possible:

Learning intentions and criteria for success - it must include a process whereby teachers and learners clarify and share learning intentions and criteria for success.

Learners’ existing understanding - in order to involve the learners actively in the learning process, the teacher has to start from the learners’ existing understanding, building on their own knowledge, connecting new ideas and experience to existing knowledge and experiences.

Articulate goals for the group work, including both the academic objectives you want the student to achieve and the social skills you want them to develop.

Involve the Learners in the process of understanding the rules and criteria for the learning task, including knowledge, academic competencies, and collaboration itself. By involving learners actively in this process, you will develop a common language on both learning objectives and cooperative learning. In turn this will give learners a sense of themselves as learners, includes a view of their own purpose in learning.

Here are some examples of open questions that can be used by the learners to reflect upon initially when collaborating in groups:

… How do we work together to support efficient accomplishment?

… How do we make sure everyone takes part (actively and constructively)?

... What does good collaboration look like?

... How can we help each other to learn?

... How can we show each other respect? Build steps towards this…

... How to show our appreciation of ideas?

... How do we understand and solve the tasks?

... Plan the steps and actions to get to the goal.

The learners can function as instructional resources for one another. They must be taught how to assess their progress and peer progress as they proceed, in line with learning objectives and criteria for the particular learning task. A couple of methods that can be used in different ways (self, peer and group assessment):

● Journal reflections

● Two stars and a wish

● Assessment arrow

● Exit ticket/question

● My favourite no

● Traffic light/thumbs up

● Think-pair-share

Self-assessment

For example:

● Journal reflections: voice note, written, reflective video (screen recording while explaining).

● The student can prepare feedback from peers or teacher by using two stars and a wish, describe their favourite mistake or place themselves on the assessment arrow.

● Portfolios as a place to you collect work and reflect on the process and progress

Peer and group assessment

Ensure all learners have the same understanding of the assessment criteria being used, and what constitutes quality work so the feedback given to each other moves learning forward. For this, some modelling exercises can help. The learners most likely must be taught to collaborate in peer assessment. Peer assessment is a useful tool in helping learners develop their own capacity for objectivity as well as their understanding of assessment criteria. (Black, 2003) When discussing the self-assessment already done with others, the language about learning, the objective is developed together. For example, you can ask for feedback “two stars and a wish” from peers or collaborate on making exit tickets or questions. The teacher can use the feedback from the groups to keep the whole class in a learning loop where they learn from each other in the process. After a lesson or during an assignment, the teacher can pause and have a class discussion: Where are we now? What have we learned so far? How can we help each other move on? Where do we need help? My best tip…

Determine the group formation that will help meet the objectives. The learners can benefit from becoming involved in this. Heterogeneous groups are preferable as they provide the best learning outcome for most learners. In addition, heterogeneous groups will adhere to the principle of inclusion.

Teachers constituting groups: In formal group learning, the teacher should form groups that are heterogeneous with regard to particular skills or abilities relevant to group tasks (e.g. design capabilities, programming skills, writing skills, organizational skills and leadership skills) (Johnson, 1991)

Learners form groups: Another option is to let the learners form groups themselves according to known criteria. That will require attention from the teacher to the process of group formation to make sure groups meet the requirements and that all learners are included.

Group size: 3-5 learners in each group is appropriate.

Assigning roles: It can be useful for learners who are unfamiliar with or unskilled in group work to practice and rotate in regular fashion the assigning of roles in the group. This also increases the chances of avoiding common problems in group work, such as dominance by a single student or conflict avoidance (manager, sceptic, educator, conciliator, timer, secretary etc).

To give and help with group dynamics in a collective way, it can be helpful to “frame” the learning situation. Explain the group tasks, including goals for their academic achievement and social interaction.

Task: Explain how the task involves both positive interdependence and individual accountability, and how you will be assessing each other and the group as a whole.

Group goals: There must be group goals so that learners are working as a group, not just working in a group.

● What is the purpose of this project? Group purpose? Academic purpose?

● What are we expected to produce?

● How will the task or project be assessed? What are the criteria? Make assessment criteria?

● What are the main components of the task?

● What are the deadlines?

● Are there guidelines?

● Assigning groups roles: individual member self-assign or agree on roles, if not assigned by the teacher

● Guidelines for group meetings: Help groups establish and model good practices from the first meeting.

● Give prompts for effective forms of interaction.

● Provide practical exercises for building group dynamics.

● Provide opportunities for groups that need to experience negotiation and model this.

● Individual responsibility.