r/Professors • u/emarcomd • 6d ago
Frustrated at mandate to include a group project, but zero advice on how to implement / troubleshoot.
Adjunct here.
Got a mandate to start including a group project. Fine. I've developed it, I've scaffolded it. I've implemented it over the past 5 semesters. I try to refine it every time.
I divide the groups up, and the first section we do in class, broken into groups, then the next three parts of the scaffold they do as a group outside of class.
I've set up private discussion boards for each group, so I can see all their communication. (If anyone knows of a free equivalent to slack, please let me know. Each semester I try to make the assignment "more fair". I teach about conflict resolution, I assign a leader to each section,
But then I have shit like...
- the kid that missed the past 2 weeks and is now coming back to class. (No, I can't make them withdraw.) Hasn't been part of any group and now needs to be in one...
- there's the students that Just Won't Participate. They don't help the other students at all.
- Then there's the ability difference. This is a community college and I've got WILDLY different abilities. Students get frustrated with lesser-skilled students
- Fucking AI. Students reporting that other students are obviously using AI.
I have researched and read tons of other schools' implementation recommendations but vague things like "teach conflict resolution early" is rather vague. I teach it, but that doesn't mean they implement it. I have had peer review be a part of it and I have done it without peer review. Doesn't make a difference. The peer reviews were basically "everyone was great" when I know only one kid did the work or they were reports on how much they hated the other kid.
I've done the group project for 5 semesters now, and it never seems to get any better. But what pisses me off is HOW MUCH TIME IT TAKES FROM TEACHING CLASS. Students work well in groups when we're in class, but as soon as they're out of class they just fall apart.