Lots of interesting ideas in response to your query, Steve! Over many
years of forming student teams, I have finally concluded that it's best to
have the students form their own teams. Bill Ferris' idea is a great way
to do it that ensures diversity in key team-related skills. You
definitely should write it up!
The approach I have used recently that works well is to let the students
know that they will be in teams for the semester, and to specify the size
(usually 4-5). Then I give them time in class to meet in small groups and
talk about what it takes to be successful in a team. I ask them to be
considering whom they would like to work with as they listen to others
talk. After 10 minutes I ask them to form into groups with a different
set of people and have the same discussion. I try to give them
opportunities during the first two class periods to meet everyone in
class. Then I ask them to form their own teams. It has worked well
though it's tough when students sign in to class late. The teams that
they form have made a lot of sense, but I would not have known to put
those folks together at the beginning of the term.
One thing that I have noticed is that the highly motivated and the less
than stellar students find each other. While it might not seem like the
best idea to have these students segregated into their own teams from a
diversity perspective, for student teams, it works well. When the
students who are lax about assignments end up on the same team, they have
only themselves to blame and it's kind of interesting to see how they cope
with it. In any event, when they have picked each other, they have more
of a commitment to making it work and I don't end up being blamed for
sticking them with someone they find difficult.
The other thing that really ensures a positive group experience is to use
the technique of individual and group quizzes. In this system, students
take a weekly quiz first on their own, and them immediately afterward with
their assigned teams. Their quiz scores are based on some kind of average
of their individual and team scores. Since the teams almost always
outperform the individuals, the team almost always helps an individual's
grade (I never penalize a student if he/she outperforms the group).
Through this system, individual social loafers are identified and feel a
lot of pressure to do a good job. And since the team score helps pretty
much everyone, it sets up a positive dynamic within the team. So even
when I randomly assign students to teams and then use this quiz method,
the students love their teams and are strongly committed to them. This
method has been written up, but I'm afraid I'm blanking on the author(s).
Probably one or both of the Johnsons who've written numerous editions of a
group dynamics book.
Good luck. Hope this is helpful.
Carol Watson
> Does anyone know of a good tool that instructors can use to assign
> students to teams for a course project? At SUNY -- Oswego there is an
> undergraduate business course for freshman with 15 sections. Each
> section has 20 students who need to be divided into four teams. We
> prefer for the instructors to select the teams but I was wondering if
> anyone knows of a good tool that the instructors can use to decide which
> students to put together on each team
>
> Thank you
>
> SEA
>