Thanks to visit codestin.com
Credit goes to www.scribd.com

Scribd
Upload
56 views16 pages

Getting More Group Projects

The document discusses problems with traditional group projects in education and proposes using online project management tools and techniques to help students better organize, communicate, and collaborate on assignments. It introduces a free website called EntertheGroup.com that provides templates and tools to help structure projects into phases, assign tasks, track status, and conduct lessons learned reviews in order to teach students useful skills for professional environments.

Uploaded by

spellett
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
56 views16 pages

Getting More Group Projects

The document discusses problems with traditional group projects in education and proposes using online project management tools and techniques to help students better organize, communicate, and collaborate on assignments. It introduces a free website called EntertheGroup.com that provides templates and tools to help structure projects into phases, assign tasks, track status, and conduct lessons learned reviews in order to teach students useful skills for professional environments.

Uploaded by

spellett
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 16

Getting More from

Group Projects:
Finding a Better Solution

Sal Pellettieri
EntertheGroup.com
Who Needs Group Projects
Anyway?

• Group Projects are a way for students to learn to


work collaboratively
• Enables them to work on larger, more complex,
assignments
• Teaches students organization, communication
and conflict resolution
…or do they?
What’s the Problem?
• Students routinely complain about group
projects
• Common problems include:
– Lazy group members (free riders)
– Unreliable members
– Clashing personalities (lack of compromise)
– Don’t know how to get started
Some thoughts from the
peanut gallery…
The Slackers
Why Should We Care?
• For Instructors:
– Want students to gain useful experience
– Want students to be successful (better grades
and fewer conflicts)
• For Students:
– Want to overcome problems and gain
experience
– Want good grades and useful skills
What’s the Future?
• Social media is here to stay
– Facebook has over 400mm users!
• Students adopt to technology quickly
• We need a standardized method which utilizes
project management and the internet
What’s Project Management?

• PM is a set of learned skills and processes which


improve project results
• An actual body of knowledge with associations
and certifications
• We can use PM theory to help students manage
their projects
Getting Organized
• Projects can be broken down into four phases:
1. Defining
2. Planning
3. Executing
4. Analyzing
• Need to provide students an understanding of
each phase and tools to manage them
Plan to Succeed
• A Project Outline is a way to define your
objectives, goals and communication plan
• By writing down your goals you’re more likely to
achieve them
• Complex projects need to be broken down into
pieces or milestones
• Devising a way to communicate actually
encourages communication
Execution: Getting it Done
• Once students decide What to do, they
need to decide How to do it
• Work should be broken down into tasks
• Tasks should be divided amongst the
group and documented
From Group to Team
• Frequent communication is key
• Group members need to report on their
status
• Meetings and online contact go a long way
• To gain trust, the group needs to see
everyone is committed
Post Project Depression
• Building skills requires analysis of
successes and failures
• The group should document their
experience to remember and improve
• Instructors should require a Lessons
Learned document completed with project
– This would be helpful to both instructors and
students
What Have we Learned?
Successful group projects The Required Tools:
should teach students:

– Goal setting – Project Outline


– Compromise – Tasks & Milestones
– Communication – Status Updates
– Conflict Resolution – Calendars/Messaging
– Planning/Organization – Lessons Learned
Our Humble Offerings
• Enterthegroup.com is a free website which
offers productivity and communication tools
• Users can create their own private group
pages
• Instructors can create ‘Classrooms’ where
members can interact and keep updated
• We offer templates for outlines & status
updates, messaging, blogging, task lists and
much more
Thank You!

Please send questions or comments to:


[email protected]

You might also like