This document discusses perceptions of group work among faculty and students. It begins with an introduction to teamwork and defining perceptions. It then explores the differences between groups and teams, and reviews faculty and student perceptions of the challenges and benefits of group work. Recommendations are provided for faculty on how to structure group work positively. The document also discusses tools that can be used to facilitate online group work and provides resources on the topic.

1. Davetta A. Henderson, Ed.D.
September, 2015

2. 
Welcome
“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward
a common vision. The ability to direct individual
accomplishment toward organizational
objectives. It is the fuel that allows common
people to attain uncommon results.”
Andrew Carnegie, American Industrialist and Philanthropist
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3. 
Agenda
• Define and Discuss Perceptions
• Group vs. Team
• Faculty Perceptions
• Student Perceptions
• Student Challenges
• Recommendations
• Areas to Create
• Tools
3

4. 
The Reality of Perception
• What are perceptions?
• Influences on perception (perceptual set)
4

5. 
Some Perspectives on Perception
• Signal Detection Theory
• Top-Down Processing
• Bottom-Up Processing
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6. 
Group Work vs. Team Work
What’s the difference?
Group – little collaboration
Team – collaboration, working toward a goal
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7. 
Faculty Perceptions of Group Work
• Group work is important for career success
• Group work is an important skill in the workplace
• Allows students to play an active role in the learning
process
• Faculty professional development is needed in this area
• Group work requires more of a time commitment
• The group community is established with interactions
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8. 
(cont’d.) Faculty Perceptions
• Students know how to delegate tasks
• Group work is more challenging in an online environment
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9. 
Student Perceptions of Group Work
• Classmate and faculty interactions have an impact on
satisfaction
• Sufficient learner support that is connected to the campus
is needed
• They have to ‘give in’ to others ideas
• There is lack of individual accountability – social loafing
• Group work is used to reduce faculty grading
• Group work would be better if they could select their own
group members
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10. 
(cont’d.) Student Perceptions
• Appreciation of the help from peers
• This is an opportunity to socialize with peers
• They understand the application of group work to
employment
• Others will cause me to fail
• Group work is a positive experience if everyone
participates
• Working within a group will slow me down
• Influenced by personal factors
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11. 
Student Challenges With Group Work
• Communication between group members and the
instructor (includes language barriers)
• Time management
• Differing levels of expertise, opinions, and learning styles
• Challenges with bringing the group together
• Differing perceptions of level of engagement
• Differing levels of commitment
• Differing levels of motivation
• Adherence to deadlines
• Resolving group conflicts
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12. 
(Cont’d.) Student Challenges
• The concern of social loafing in others
• The lack of participation or withdrawal of group members
• Social skills
• How to initiate and maintain the group interaction
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13. 
Changing Perceptions
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14. 
Faculty Recommendations
• Make group participation visible
• Use an online sharing area or a wiki
• Decide whether or not to assign group roles
• Post a guide that list successful group processes
• Provide audio feedback to the group
• Emphasize why the group work is valuable and necessary
• Provide an outlet or suggestions of help with group
conflicts to increase group collaboration
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15. 
(Cont’d.) Recommendations
• Create small groups (but not too small)
• Elicit feedback on the group experience (reflection) – not
shared with other students
• Assign a group leader/recommend students assign a
group leader
• Provide timely suggestions – timeline for project
• Provide feedback on group progress
• Focus on the benefits of collaborating with others and the
brainstorming process
• Keep a constant presence in the classroom
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16. 
(cont’d.) Recommendations
• Provide students with group/team resources
• Monitor the group’s progress
• Introduce the student group members very early in the
term
• Explain upfront how the group project will be graded
• Provide consistent and broad communication
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17. 
Areas to Create Positive Perceptions
• Discussion Forum
• Course Lounge
• Messaging
• Announcements
• Resources
• Outside reference material (articles, links, a video, etc.)
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18. 
Group Tools
• appear.in
• Skype
• Discussion boards
• Wikis
• Wiggio
• HipChat
• GroupMe
• Bindle
• Google Groups/Google Docs
• Groupbox
• ooVoo
• Other
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19.  19

20. 
Resources
• Burke, A. (2011). Group Work: How to Use Groups Effectively. The Journal of
Effective Teaching, Vol. 11(2), 87-95.
• Fedynich, L., Bradley, K. S. & Bradley, J. (2015). Graduate students’ perceptions of
online learning. Research in Higher Education Journal, v27, 13 pp.
• Jackson, D., Hickman, L. D., Power, T., Disler, R., Potgieter, I., Deek, H. &
Davidson, P. M. (2014). Contemporary Nurse: A Journal for the Australian Nursing
Profession. v48(1), p117-128. 12pp.
• Jones, K. A., & Jones, J. L. (2008). Making cooperative learning work in the college
classroom: An application of the “five pillars” of cooperative learning to post-
secondary instruction. The Journal of Effective Teaching, 8(2), 61-76.
• Marks, M. B. & O’Connor, A. H. (2013). Understanding Students’ Attitudes About
Group Work: What Does This Suggest for Instructors of Business? Journal of
Education for Business, 88: 147–158.
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21. 
(cont’d.) Resources
• Morgan, Kari, Williams, Karen C., Cameron, Bruce A., Wade, Christine E. (2014).
Faculty perceptions of online group work. The Quarterly Review of Distance
Education, v15(4), pp. 37–41.
• O’Neill, S., Scott, M., & Conboy, K. (2011). A Delphi study on collaborative learning
in distance education: The faculty perspective. British Journal of Educational
Technology, 42, 939–949.
• Portolese, D. L. & Trumpy, R. (2014). Online Instructor's Use of Audio Feedback to
Increase Social Presence and Student Satisfaction. Journal of Educators Online,
v11(2).
• Smith, G., et al. (2011).Overcoming student resistance to group work: Online
versus face-to-face. Internet & Higher Education, 14, 121-128.
• Xu, J., Du, J., & Fan, X. (2015). Students’ Groupwork Management in Online
Collaborative Learning Environments. Educational Technology & Society, 18 (2),
195–205.
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