This document provides guidance on effective principles and best practices for working in online groups. It outlines four parts: preparation, assignment, technology, and evaluation. For each part, it lists several checklist items to ensure groups are set up for success, such as making sure students understand the value of collaboration, providing clear guidelines and adequate time for assignments, using collaborative workspaces and communication tools, and implementing evaluation strategies to monitor individual involvement and accountability. The document also shares advice from students, such as recommending tools to facilitate out-of-class meetings, having multiple contact methods, reviewing roles, and providing benchmarks and guidance on dealing with difficult group dynamics.

1. Principles for Working in Groups

2. WHY?

6. WHEN?

7. When there is more than one solution

8. When discussion will benefit them

9. Different skill sets complement each other

10. ADVICE from the Experts…Faculty Focus Magazine And some of our students of course

11. Online group work checklistPart 1: Preparation Students understand the value of both the process and product of the collaboration. Students have guidance concerning how to work in an asynchronous team. Group size is small enough to allow for full participation of all members. Course provides numerous opportunities for community building prior to group projects.

12. Online group work checklist:Part 2: Assignment Assignment is an authentic measure of student learning. Assignment will benefit from collaborative work. Students have clear guidelines of the expected outcome of the collaborative assignment. Assignment creates a structure of positive interdependence in which individuals perceive thatthey will succeed when the group succeeds. Assignment is scheduled to allow adequate time for preparation and communication. Assignment is designed in a manner to allow students a level of personal control.

13. Online group work checklist: Part 3: Technology Students are provided with tools and instructions to facilitate online communication. Each group has a collaborative workspace within the online course. Students have technology skills relevant for asynchronous communication. Back-up procedures are in place to deal with technology failure.

14. Online group work checklist:Part 4: Evaluation Grading and/or evaluation strategies differentiate between the process and the product. Strategies are in place to monitor interaction processes. Clear grading rubrics are provided at the start of the assignment to guide student work. Self and peer evaluations are included in the process to monitor individual involvement andaccountability.

15. Now a word from our students

16. Give us some tool recommendations to help us meet out of class ~Josie

17. Remind us to Always have two or more ways to contact each other~Juan

18. Go over the roles. It helps to know if we are missing something.~Leslie

19. Can we vote a member off the island or at least grade them if they aren't doing their work?~Jennifer

20. Don’t put too many people in one group!~Tamara

21. Remind us that the other person isn’t always the problem. ~jamaal

22. Give us guidance on how to deal with “difficult member roles”.~Anonymous

23. Can we have some benchmarks please? Don’t just throw is to the sharks! ~Maria

24. Make certain we have enough time to get to know each other and complete the project!~Jon

25. Davis, B.G. (1993). Tools for teaching. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass (Excerpt can be found here: http://teaching.berkeley.edu/bgd/collaborative.html) Rothchild, J.D. (2010). In mixed company: Communicating in small groups and in teams/ Chapter Two: Groups as systems (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth Publishing The Faculty Focus Series: Download available for members here: http://www.facultyfocus.com/free-reports/effective-group-work-strategies-college-classroom/ Recommended Readings…