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Team and group collaboration is an increasingly important component to many workplaces, including brainstorming ideas, co-writing reports, and working together to solve complex problems. In this resource, we discuss why and how to implement group and team learning into your courses. This document discusses two types of group and team work: 1) low-stakes group activities and 2) higher-stakes team projects. Each type has its own role/purpose in the classroom. Overall, group work and teamwork are beneficial to student learning but require careful planning, oversight, and implementation.

Before we begin: Why should you use small groups and teams in a classroom? Learning is social and working with others helps create an active rather than passive learning environment. By working with groups and teams, students can practice collaborating, brainstorming, and leading. They can also practice their communication skills and learn to deal with conflict. However, none of this will happen productively without careful planning and oversight by the instructor. We hope this resource is a helpful guide for you to engage in this important work.

Recommendations for Structuring Lower-Stakes, Informal Group Work

This first section provides some recommendations on structuring lower-stakes, informal group work, where students engage in “low-stakes” discussions, explorations, and problem-solving.

1. Distinguish between “informal groups” and “formal teams.” Research demonstrates that there is a core difference between more informal groups students may participate in during class time and more intentional teams students form and work in throughout a longer time period. Students do not experience them the same, and they hold different characteristics and expectations. An important first step is to determine which is better for your particular assignment or pedagogical context. Consider these major points:
   • Groups engage in “low-stakes” discussions, explorations, and problem-solving.
   • Teams work on a “higher-stakes” longer-term project that requires them to figure out procedures for working together, managing conflict, writing and revising as a group, and distributing work. 
   • A mix of both can be beneficial in the classroom, with some groups changing every time and other teams sticking together
2. Form short-term, low-stakes groups depending on your goals. You can form short-term groups in a variety of ways, depending on your learning goals. For example, students can sign up for groups depending on the questions or problems that interest them, they can be randomly assigned to groups, or the teacher can form groups based on students’ strengths, experiences, or interests. In a face-to-face class, for very informal or impromptu activities such as discussing responses to a prompt or reflection, you can ask students to pair or group with a students(s) next to them.
3. Design group activities that can engage students with each other to work through hard ideas and tasks. Sometimes, there can be a tendency to throw students into “group discussion” or “group work” without much direction or guidance. Be purposeful in assigning group activities and always give students specific guidance and direction. For example, have each group tackle a different side of a problem or scenario, ask questions that don’t have just one answer, etc.
4. Utilize both synchronous and asynchronous group work strategies. Especially in online course contexts, there are various ways to engage students in group work activities. For synchronous activities, consider the following options: in-class activities, Zoom breakout group meetings, live social media posts, collaborative presentation-building and then presenting. For asynchronous activities, consider these options: writing and responding to each other via Google Docs, participating in Canvas discussion board conversations, responding to social media or blog posts. There are times and reasons for using each of these types of activities. Consider using a blend of both.
5. Vary the types of activities students do in small group contexts. Students can do many things together in small groups. Whatever they do, the purpose for the group work should be clear, as should the directions and timeframe for completing the work. Some things you can ask students to do in small groups include: responding to questions or discussion prompts; reading drafts of other people’s work (can be shorter, earlier pieces of a text, not necessarily a late draft); compiling, sharing, and comparing reading notes; discussing and analyzing a case or example; conducting a genre analysis of readings or sample texts; or solving a problem together.
6. Be clear and explicit about expectations. Assign groups ahead of time and, if necessary, create spaces like a Google Doc or Canvas Discussion Group where they will meet. Instructions for the activity should be shared with students in an easily-accessible format; for example, use a GoogleDoc for instructions if students are going to be responding in GoogleDocs. If you are introducing the assignment in a full-class chat, make sure they can access the instructions if they leave that chat to meet with their small group. Be sure to write down your instructions, don’t just give them orally.

Recommendations for Structuring Higher-Stakes, Formal Teamwork

This second section provides some recommendations on structuring higher-stakes, more formal team work, where students engage in a “higher-stakes,” longer-term project that requires them to figure out procedures for working together, managing conflict, writing and revising as a group, and distributing work. 

1. Talk with your students about the differences between “group work” and “team work.” Students have no doubt participated in several different variations of “group work” and thus bring with them important knowledge and experience. Have a conversation at the start of a team project about what “group work” is and how what they are doing in a team will differ (and why).
2. Assign a pre-team strength inventory that each student completes. One strategy for arranging students in teams (as a forthcoming step outlines) is grouping them together based on strengths. Have each student complete a strengths inventory where they are asked about their strengths, comfort, and experience with various skills. You can then use students’ results to form them into teams (for example, making sure each team as a good note-taker/listener as well as a talker/ideas-person). Here are a few examples of inventories you could assign: one from the and another from .
3. Form teams intentionally. There are a number of methods for forming teams, such as based on their responses to the above-cited strengths inventory or team-work questionnaire, based on their work schedules or availability, or based on topics that students are interested in. Determine what would work best for your particular assignment context. Can you pair students by interest and also strengths? Does a lot of the collaboration happen in-class, or do students need to be able to meet together outside of class? More information about these methods can be found in the following handouts:
   • Assigning Group Members
   • A Process for Forming Teams, created by Ellen Yezierski on forming teams for high-stakes projects.

4. Utilize team contracts or charters at the beginning of the team project. Once teams are formed, have students complete a team contract or charter as their first collaborative assignment where they outline team expectations and agreements. Each student should contribute to the document, and you can even allot some time in-class and guide students through discussion around their documents. At the end, students can even sign the document to demonstrate their agreement to its terms.
   • For an example contract, see Developing Team Charters.
5. Incorporate progress reports and reflection throughout the team project. Team writing, like all writing, benefits from regular reflection and time to sort through ideas and progress. Build in a couple “progress reports” students have to submit throughout the project—perhaps one written as a team (like the charter), and one written in confidence by each member. This can help the team stay on track and organize themselves, and also help you as the instructor see how teams are doing and any of them need you to intervene. 
6. Assign self- and team-evaluations. These assignments provide team members the opportunity to reflect on their individual and team work. This can be folded into the project’s grade at the end or serve as another lower-stakes assignment along the way. See these ideas for assessing group projects from .

Further Reading/Resources

• “” by Caitrin Blake
• by  
• by Tamara Babarian and ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Schiano  
• Engaging Ideas: The Professor's Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom, 3rd Edition by John Bean and Dan Melzer
• by Online Learning Insights
• by ActiveCollab
• by Marie K. Norman, Susan A. Ambrose, Michele DiPietro, Marsha C. Lovett, and Michael W. Bridges 
• by Team Based Learning Collaborative
• by Mark Lieberman 
• by Vanderbilt Center for Teaching
• by Life Cycle Engineering
• by Joanna Wolfe
• by Drexel University Online 
• from Vancouver Island University