Teamwork can increase knowledge and skills in ways that enhance individual learning. Teams need to be formed, guided, and managed carefully and deliberately in order to achieve desired learning objectives.
Here are some additional tips that can increase the likelihood of success of teamwork techniques as paraphrased by Oakley, et al. (2004) and Felder & Brent (2016, p. 255).
Clearly establish team policies and expectations and follow consistently throughout the course.
Make the team assignment too challenging to be completed individually. This necessitates group members to rely on each other.
Define unique and distinct roles for team members (e.g., coordinator, recorder, monitor).
Allow students to bring their unique expertise to the team or provide supplementary training for unique technical contributions.
Give bonus points for good team performance on tests.
In oral reports, arbitrarily assign team members to report on different parts of the project. All team members should be able to explain various parts of the project.
Collect one final product per team but adjust the team grade for individual performance.
Ensure individual student accountability:
Give individual tests on project content
Monitor individual understanding
Give credit only to active participants using team signatures
Use peer ratings to adjust team project grades for individual performance (see Peer Assessment Rubric for Group Projects)
Provide last resort options of firing and quitting
Use self-assessment strategies to monitor progress
Explain how and why teamwork is being used.
Deal with difficulties as they arise using active listening and conflict resolution. This may be performed as an in-class-crisis-clinic or out-of-class-special-cause as deemed appropriate.
Felder, R. M., & Brent, R. (2016). Teaching and Learning STEM: A Practical Guide. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. https://iucat.iu.edu/catalog/16014698
Oakley, B., Brent, R., Felder, R., & Elhajj, I. (2004). Turning Student Groups into Effective Teams. Journal of Student Centered Learning. https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.422.8179&rep=rep1&type=pdf