A. Assessment of Group Assignments

With group assignments, assessment is done on two levels: the group product (be it a case study or report) and the individual contribution of each member of the group. As a facilitator, your role is to guide participants in their roles and set guidelines for individual and group participation. Once the guidelines are in place, individual contributions to the group project can be self assessed, or each group member can assess all group members.

Getting Buy-in on Group Work

Many learners are wary of group projects because they fear not all group members will contribute equally. One of the most effective ways to get buy-in from the participants is to have them set up the guidelines of how participants should contribute to a group project. This can be done in a discussion, with some suggested criteria to get them started. Ask the group what they think is a reasonable level of contribution to an online discussion or collaborative project. Once you have their ideas, you can use this as part of your evaluation of contributions. These could also be included in a scheme that members evaluate each other in a group.