I began blogging about Hacking Project-Based Learning a few weeks ago. Specifically the first chapter: Encourage Risk-Taking. In it, the authors explained how building relationships, showing empathy, and inciting curiosity help foster perseverance and intellectual growth.
The second chapter, or “hack”, described in the book is Teach Collaboration Skills. A successful project depends on fruitful collaboration, and several teaching strategies can be employed to help students work together effectively.
A Marketable Skill
Teamwork is not just academic. Cooper and Murphy point out a National Association of Colleges and Employers 2016 survey. It found that the ability to work in teams is valued by 78.5% of employers surveyed, the second most highly prized attribute. (This updated 2018 survey finds much the same.)
Pre-assessment
A first step in teaching collaboration is assessing students’ current skill level. You can do this by asking them to reflect on previous experiences working in groups. Also, instructors should observe student groups throughout the process to gauge their collaboration.
Formative Assessment
The authors encourage the use of rubrics for formative assessment, but caution teachers against using them to assign grades. They say merely handing down a final verdict may constitute “educational malpractice”, as it misses every opportunity to learn lessons and ameliorate weaknesses.
Teacher Self-awareness
As an instructor, be attentive to your own collaboration habits, such as:
- Communication
- Body language
- Transitions
- Prioritization
- Task management
Four Steps
Cooper and Murphy set forth these steps for teaching collaboration skills:
1) Define and model what collaboration looks like
Bring students to existing collaborative classrooms to observe. Or, gather video examples of teamwork from other contexts (classroom and non-classroom) to showcase effective collaboration. Have conversations with your students to provide direct feedback on their communication and organization.
2) Define and model what collaboration sounds like
Using your curated examples of teamwork, highlight moments of stress or disagreement. Prompt them to find strategies to avoid getting personal and focus on ideas for conflict resolution. Explain how questions should be used to elucidate or draw out, not to embarrass or evade.
3) Define and model what collaboration feels like
Strive to balance passion with sensitivity. You want students to take pride in their work, but not to become peevish or captious. Praise in public; critique in private. Emphasize that compromise is used to achieve the best possible result.
4) Repeat
Attempting to teach collaboration skills just once will fail to impress. Iterating and reemphasizing these steps will solidify the students’ collaboration skills and drive home their importance.
Conclusion
By posing a wicked problem and having groups propose a solution, the necessary discussion and exploration, brainstorming and iteration, will make collaboration integral to the activity