Group Work in Higher Education Computing Courses

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Group Work in Higher Education Computing Courses

• Neil Gordon
• Department of Computer Science
• University of Hull, Hull
• HU6 7RX England
• n.a.gordon_at_hull.ac.uk
• http//www.hull.ac.uk/php/cssnag/

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Introduction

• We consider some of the aspects and issues
  involved in including group work within Higher
  Education Computing courses.
• These include
• the context as to why group work is important,
• the approaches that can be used including
  different types of learning
• some of the problem issues that can arise.
• We summarise some of the prior experience of and
  perceptions of group work by students, and
• give details of the use of technologies which can
  support group work

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Why use Group Work

• It is perceived as a key skill
• QAA expect it
• Employers expect it
• Accrediting bodies require working with others
• It is a useful skill for our students one which
  they will need after their studies

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Practical Issues

• Group work and team work can be considered as
  types of cooperative learning
• Considered as cooperative learning
• provides a good match to the kind of practical
  application that would be expected of computer
  science graduates as they worked in industry

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Suitable Tasks for group work

• Can avoid problems by choosing tasks which
  naturally subdivide
• But require task interdependencies to ensure it
  is a collaborative activity
• Requires identifying suitable learning outcomes

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Setting Groups

• Many different approaches
• Self-selection students are given the
  specifications (e.g. group size, any special
  requirements) and self organise
• Groups organised by the teacher
• Random assignment (perhaps by surname)
• Assigned according to degree type, with a mix of
  students from particular degrees to ensure a mix
  of knowledge and skills within the group
• Grouped according to ability as measured by some
  previous assessment

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Assessment

• Considered a major issue for students
• Many fear some group members not contributing
  fully and damaging their marks
• Clear L.O.s can avoid this
• Need to consider whether to assign a group mark
  to all, a weighted group mark, or individual
  marks (or a combination of these).

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Reassessment

• Can be an issue
• Especially when reassessment is in a resit
  period, and if only one student is taking a
  reassessment
• One approach requiring students to describe how
  they (should have) carried out group work e.g.
  task assignment, gannt chart etc.

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Organisation

• Success can be assisted by ensuring students have
  timetabled and organised venues to meet,
  supplemented by collaboration tools
• With well defined tasks, groups can work well
  independently, but still need a mechanism to
  monitor progress and
• Have mechanisms to deal with problems

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Students Prior Experience of group work
Question Percentage who said yes
As part of your pre-University education, have you worked in groups with other students? 92
Did you enjoy working in groups with other students? 71
Have you ever used computers to work online in groups with other students? 'Working online' includes things like communicating and sharing work with other students through discussion boards, email and other computer technology. 58
Did you enjoy working online in groups with other students? 46
Have you ever been assessed by self and/or peer assessment? 71
If you have undertaken self and/or peer assessment, do you like it as a form of assessment? 71 of those who said yes, (50 of all respondents)
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Technology and Group Work

• Use of technology to support team activities is
  standard in industry
• In the context of CS, use of these technologies
  in education helps develop real world skills,
  alongside its educational value
• Many technologies now (especially with Web 2.0)
  VLEs, GroupWare and Intranet, Wikis, etc.

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Peer (and self) Assessment

• Many benefits especially in ensuring that
  students become aware of marking criteria
• It can reduce the marking burden
• Different approaches e.g.
• group agrees a weighting for each group member
• Each student assesses each other student
• Groups of students assess other groups
• Can be problems with the volume of data gathered,
  as well as mediation issues

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Student Views of group work

• Some students would not contribute, and those who
  were active would end up doing all the work
• A desire to be able to choose their own groups,
  so they were confident that people would put in
  the effort
• Concerns about random groups, where members do
  not contribute fully and the workload is
  unbalanced
• Concerns about having to rely on others
• Acknowledgment that group work is essential in
  the software industry
• Concerns that criticising the work of a fellow
  student may mean that student gives them a low
  mark in the peer assessment
• Perceptions that it is more fun than working
  alone, but more complex

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Student views of peer assessment

• Asked do you like the idea of this form of
  assessment - This question generated more
  negative responses, many from those who has not
  experienced it in practice
• concerns were about biased marking
• About other students not taking it seriously.
• Several students felt that as long as the teacher
  was involved in the marking process, then it
  would be acceptable.

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WebPA a tool for peer assessment

• WebPA provides a tool to automate much of the
  above with regards to peer (and self) assessment
• Allows groups to be set up, and for students to
  assess their other team members
• Uses a simple algorithm to allocate a weighted
  mark
• Provides for students to enter marks in a
  faceless environment

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Example Peer marking criteria

• Students asked to assess each other in terms of
• Contribute to meetings/online discussion
• Offer constructive input to discussions
• Contribution to production of report
• Overall contribution to assignment
• Marked in the range 0 (no input) to 10 (excellent
  input)

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Conclusions

• Group work is a key feature of the professional
  skills expected of CS graduates
• Peer assessment can be a useful tool in
  encouraging students to engage with group work
• Technologies can assist in supporting group work

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Ongoing issues and points of discussion?

• Should we group students by ability
• Is group work suitable for summative assessment
• How do we deal with issues where group
  interactions become a severe problem