I think one of the biggest challenges that arises when students are tasked with a collaborative assignment is ensuring that everyone is motivated to contribute to the group. It is very easy for some students to slip through the cracks and actually participate very little. Then other members of the group end up carrying the unmotivated ones and doing all of the work. The more motivated students end up earning the grade for everyone else which isn’t fair but the more important consequence is that not everyone in the group is learning. One strategy that can be used is to have students work together regularly so that they build the group work skills necessary to rely on one another and participate effectively. The school in this video utilizes discussion maps and a designated moderator to determine when the group needs to move onto another topic or when the workload needs to be better balanced. These tools and strategies can help to give students the scaffolding needed for them to learn how to work together. I think it is important to note that if you want students to work well collaboratively then you might want to consider actually teaching that skillset first.
http://www.edutopia.org/stw-collaborative-learning-math-english-video
The following videos discuss how motivation is not just a game of incentives and rewards. Both Dan Pink and John Seely Brown hit on how we as human beings have an innate desire to learn and improve. Dan Pink applies this concept to the work force where increases in salaries and bonuses don’t necessarily equate to higher quality work or more productive workers. In actuality people are more motivated and productive when they are working toward a goal or objective that they find meaningful. John Seely Brown applies this concept to education itself and arrives at the conclusion that if we can harness this innate desire to improve and use collaboration we can help students achieve more in school and go onto bigger and brighter futures. I think that structuring collaborative school work is important because students need to not only be challenged but motivated so that they feel the desire to excelle. This will help them work more efficiently which will in turn allow them to learn more thoroughly.
http://www.edutopia.org/stw-collaborative-learning-math-english-video
The following videos discuss how motivation is not just a game of incentives and rewards. Both Dan Pink and John Seely Brown hit on how we as human beings have an innate desire to learn and improve. Dan Pink applies this concept to the work force where increases in salaries and bonuses don’t necessarily equate to higher quality work or more productive workers. In actuality people are more motivated and productive when they are working toward a goal or objective that they find meaningful. John Seely Brown applies this concept to education itself and arrives at the conclusion that if we can harness this innate desire to improve and use collaboration we can help students achieve more in school and go onto bigger and brighter futures. I think that structuring collaborative school work is important because students need to not only be challenged but motivated so that they feel the desire to excelle. This will help them work more efficiently which will in turn allow them to learn more thoroughly.
http://www.edutopia.org/stw-collaborative-learning-math-english-video
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