Session+Two

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​Think back to an experience you had working with groups (either online or face-to-face). What was one challenge you had with this experience? Please add your challenge to the table and offer strategies to address the challenges posted by others.=====


 * ~ Face-to-Face Challenge ||~ Strategies ||~ Online Challenge ||~ Strategies ||
 * //Use the rows in this column to describe face-to-face group work challenges you have faced.// || //Use the rows in this column to suggest strategies for the posted face-to-face group work challenges.// || //Use the rows in this column to describe online group work challenges you have faced.// || //Use the rows in this column to suggest strategies for the posted online group work challenges.// ||
 * Alex: I would add my face-to face challenge in this box. || I would add a strategy for this face-to-face challenge in this box. || I would add my online challenge in this box. || I would add a strategy for this online challenge in this box. ||
 * Ashley: I always hated group work because I was the "smart one" in the group and all of the responsibility fell to me. If someone didn't fulfill their part, I felt like I had to do it for them so that the project would be complete. || Ashley: In my classroom I deal with this problem by dividing the project into equal parts. Each student is graded soley on the part they were responsible for.

Undrea: Parts are great but can you ensure equality in the division. Some is inevitable going to have the bulk of the load. Ashley: Not with every project, no, but with the group project we just completed everyone had the exact same instructions with a different topic. At the end the pages were combined to make a book. In that case, yes, I believe it was entirely equally divided.

Jen: I've noticed even in dividing tasks up, you can't watch the kids 24/7 and some will sneak doing other kids work and never say a thing. I watched a boy who avoids doing all work by saying he doesn't understand convince 2 smart kids to read his research and highlight it for him until I caught them! I might try a daily log each day of group work, where students write about what they did accomplished that day and could make comments about other group members work or lack of quietly for me to see and take note of. Nanci: I think that having all participants in the group evaluate everyone as well as themslves would help make certain that everyone does their part. Maryam: I take that approach also. Making the entire project everyone's responsibility helps develop ownership. Until students have extended practice working on group projects, there is a natural tendency to want to make sure "my part" is right. Giving students a scoring rubric for the finished project in advance and having everyone evaluate everyone else is a great idea. || Ashley: I have taken several online classes, but have never been asked to do a group project. From the reading I would anticipate one major problem as being friction within the group. People feel more free to say things they wouldn't in person, so I can see disagreements being worse within an online group. || Cindy: I think the best idea I have heard of for this is letting each person in the group rate the others. Of course, this did not seem to work for Jen who had her younger college classmates "gang up" on her and all say negative comments about things she had no control over because she was teaching all day and getting up early. I'm not sure what strategy would work. || ​Faye - I know what you are talking about. That's exactly what happened when I was in school. I learned to not give my suggestions because someone else would look at me like I had two heads and then use my idea. || Undrea: Roles, roles, and __ rotating __ roles. Watchful Facilitator, group leaders to get the ball rolling. I agree with you totally on this one Undrea. Keep those roles rotating and that way everyone gets to play a different part. **Jody** This is an excellent idea, Undrea. Sometimes leaders benefit from following, and followers (or sliders) need to have the responsibility of being a leader. Susan || Undrea: In the last online course, when the group experince happen this was about the time the other's started jumping ship. I fully could identify. You felt as if your hands were tied. You do your part as much as possible and the ship still sinks. I have yet to do this successfully as a participant or facilitator. Jen: Undrea could you tell us a bit more about this scenario? It might help me come up with a strategy. I'm wondering what kind of group experience it was and did these people drop the course entirely or just not do that activity? Was it a PD course or a college credit course? Undrea (bit more): It was an online pd course. I was a particpant not the facilitator. It was the best online course I have ever taken, Intel. In session three or so, we were grouped by grade level K-6 and 7-12. Next the dynamic was elementary, high school and media. "That is when the kettle spilled." There were three of us in media, then two, then me! The particpants dropped out one by one who were participating in the media group discussion. They did not drop out of the course, but the discussion. The facilitator closed that part of the session. She said, "Don't worry about it!" when I enquired about what I should do since I had posted and no one had responded. (Sorry, I wasn't clear the first time.) ​
 * Undrea: I, like Ashley __hated group work__ because the Ashley's would take over and Ashley's/Undrea's would do it all. I would give suggestions because no one would begin and they would look at me and make other suggestions, "say what I said" "again", in their way. No one would take the initiative and one person carried the rest.

**Dana**: I think I would have been upset that the instructor said "don't worry about it." For someone who has done his/her part of a project, I would have made sure to showcase that person's effort. In a college class, there is more autonomy with how to teach, but fairness still needs to apply, and when someone drops the ball, I think we need to have them pick it up and keep running. || Strategies for Undrea: Jen: Thanks Undrea. I'm at a loss for good strategies. As pointed out, in an online course for college or high school credit, there are certainly things you could do since they need the grade or they fail. I find online PD particularly challenging because we don't give a grade, just you did enough sessions to get your hours in STI/PD or not. Maybe the facilitator could have emailed them individually to get them going (I'm sure she did) or posted something to build upon what you did in the discussion. Maybe the others would have joined in and if not, then you'd have had someone to talk too at least. Undrea: Students must take ownership or it will not work. I know that is what everyone is saying. Whether grades or points or some incentive. There must be something to make them want to participate and learn. ||
 * JEN: I always liked group work when I got to pick my group, but when you get thrown in a group with random people you don't know and have to do a long term project - now that is a challenge! While getting my masters, I had to take a special ed survey course. The teacher put us in random groups. My group was entirely made up of full time college students who had not taught even one year (I was on my 3rd year of teaching). Our schedules never synced up. They always wanted to meet either before class ( I left school to go directly to class so early was no possible) or late at night (like 8pm when honestly after working all day long and having to get up at 5:30 am just was terrible for me). In person they said they understood why I was late or couldn't make it. I did all my work on time, communicated via email all I had to do, and knew more about the subject than anyone in the group, having been involved in a ton of IEP meetings and having best friend special ed teacher. When it came time to rate our group members, they bashed me saying I could never meet and didn't make enough effort. I had to speak with the teacher about it. She didn't seem to care and still took points off my grade.

**Dana:** That again can be a problem at any level in a F2F; with online classes, there would be less room for excuses - - - even though I had two or three one time in an online class tell me that their computer at home "died." It was an easy fix for me! I suggested that they use work computer and schedule a little time before or after school to make sure they completed the assignments/group work. I am sorry your instructor didn't seem to "get it" that your schedule did not mesh with everyone in the group. That is a huge problem! || As a teacher in a college course like this I might try grouping based on schedules (ie. a group of those who all teach full time and those who don't) or not grade students based on other students' ratings which can be biased. In my classroom, I might get this feedback from students, but wouldn't trust other students with a grade for their group members. Terry:​ That same thing happened to my daughter in a college class. She had gone out of town for the weekend, and the group leader sent out an email on Friday afternoon to set up a group meeting on Sunday. My daughter got back to town and checked the email, but it was after the meeting had taken place. She spoke to the teacher about it and they didn't seem to care, just took points off her grade. If she hadn't said anything, she would have gotten the same grade as the other students. She was very frustrated. I think the teacher should have given more guidance to the group leaders as to working with group members. College students didn't seem to be worried about all group members, just themselves. Maryam: Another great example of the importance of good facilitation. || I haven't really had to do much group work in my online courses, but discussions are collaborative and sort of like group work, right? One problem I noticed in an online course I took was a very antagonistic, opinionated individual who made biased, rude comments, which weren't backed by the readings, just his opinion. The online professor didn't do much to stop the rantings at all! It really made me not want to say much in the discussions. I would agree with you here Jen, if the professor was not going to step in and stop the negative and rude comments, I wouldn't want to say anything either. **Jody** Faye: I agree with both of you. I think the facilitator should have emailed or called the individual and found out if there was a problem. Maybe at least let him know that he needed to be a little more understanding of other people in the class. || As a facilitator online, I'd certainly make sure to communicate with the individual right away privately to curb this. Depending on the nature of the comment, I may also remove it from the board or ask the individual to fix his comments. Undrea: I agree! I would email that participant and ask what I could do to help. I would tell him that entry would probably be better in the "soap box" or "coffee stand chat" forum. I would ask him to amend it and even better place it in the appropriate forum.

Jen, I also like your suggestion for Ashley of a daily log of your accomplishements. It is good thinking, but what about the time. Do they have time to accomplish all these task; the project, a rubric and a journal. What has been your experience? Tell me more. Awww...yes! Time is always an issue for me no matter what I do. I plan over eagerly to say the least. The daily log or journal would be like our exit activity on group work days. It worked well for a while when I had a large long term group project (turning fractured fairy tales into musicals then performing them). The last 5 minutes of class was clean up and journal/logging. I had trouble keeping up with all their comments each day though. It was more of an issue for me w/130 kids at the end of the day. I had them have a folder for the project that stayed in the room and I looked at them just not all at once. In the end I did participation grades 50/50 my take and their take on each other. I loosely took off points if there were lots of complaints form group members. I've done rubrics too, but it was too much copying and paper for daily use. I've done it in the end of the project though for group members and to rate themselves. Terry: I would have sent the participant an individual email telling them what was and was not acceptable and removed their post from the discussion board. ||
 * Dana: I have had some classes that I have taught and also taken that have essentially had the usual one or two people who had to do the work because the others either refused or didn't have the committment to earning good grades/interest in the class. As a student, I always was one of the people who did the work because there was a group grade; as a teacher, I am aware of this problem, so I try to avoid this scenario for my students.

Another problem with my students f2f is that many times they live far away from each other and it is difficult to get time and places convenient to work together. Email and attachments help, but it is not always workable in every situation.

Betty: I see how logistics can be a problem in group work. I find it easier to communicate f2f when working on a group project especially during brainstorming. I seem to run my life with email however there are times I just pick up the phone and call! Seems more productive and easier. My point is that I agree with you that email & attach just won't work all the time. For example, in posting these comments in the context of this large group, I'm wondering where all this is going to end up! Who's listening? || Dana: I assign groups to my classes; I try to vary abilitiy and interest levels to insure that everyone has someone who can model and assist them if they need help. Another thing I do is assign roles in the group for leader, note-taker, reporter, and researchers. I also give them a rubric before the work begins to make sure they know what I am looking for in quality of the work. I think this has helped reduce problems! Additionally, I also allow them to grade themselves, their group members and I count that for part of their grade. I ultimately assign the grade for everyone, but they do report what percent of the work they did and what percent classmates did. They are very honest about this too.

Ashley: I have also used "grade yourself and groupmates" as part of grading group work, and I felt like it worked well. I, too, found that they are mostly honest about it. And I conference with them individually if I am given conflicting reports. I ask for rough drafts and "proof" of work (which they know upfront they need to keep because I'll ask for them).

Linda: I think getting people to grade fairly/honestly is hard. People have a tendency not to want to have a negative impact on someone else's grade unless they have really done something major to annoy the grader. || Dana: I have used group collaboration with Smartboard and webCT classes when I teach grad school for UA. Routinely there are more serious students in those classes who will not allow someone to jeopardize grades for the group. Again, there are rubrics and I check in to make sure there are no problems, but occasionally there will be those who want to procrastinate and make the group "late." In that case, I always note who in the group posted on time and the grades reflect that. I have taken classes also with group work; in those classes things went well except for one instance when in Ed. Admin post Doc I had a group of principals who wanted me to do all of the work and always wanted me in "their" group. I soon let them know that my time was valuable too, and that if they didn't do their part, it would just not be done. || ​Dana:Back to the old problem of some always wanting to shift work to others, I feel that the checking on progress, posting and editing work online via emails has helped, but I can see already from my reading that there are many better ways to create groups that work well together. Undrea: I like proof of work that is awesome. Forgive me but are some examples of proofs (rough drafts). For example, ... Ashley: I agree - I think that the first step is in the grouping itself. It would be a lot of work to take all of these different things into consideration, but I think it would make for a more enjoyable experiance and produce more productive groups. || Jillian...ha!! I have fallen for these words many times and ended up doing all the work. It was my own fault. **Jody** Betty: I've observed manipulation in group work and it's interesting to me how slick some can be in doing nothing but "talk." ||  || I've never had an online work group, but it has been tough to get well-designed group projects from my participants! Jillian **Jillian, Didn't we do some group work in the original facilitator's course that we took with Kristen? I'm trying to recall what it was but the brain isn't working too well tonight! TERRI** Yes, Terri, and I ended up doing all of the work for my group! And then another group posted my (our)entire project as theirs! It was weird, and K couldn't figure out why they did that! Jillian ||  || ​ I agree; by giving the students a comfort zone in letting them have a role in which they can excel, they are able to contribute to the group! I also think that mixing up the roles and groups is a good idea as they gain confidence and are able to move into other roles. Dana || Sally: I really haven't faced any online challenges with group work, as I have not asked my members to participate in a group. A challenge I would expect would be the simple thing of a participant not doing any 'extra" work- just enough to get by! Faye: I haven't done any online group work either so it's really hard for me to know what some of the challenges would be. I think that in any group work that there is always going to be the problem of someone doing more of the work than some of the others. || Sally: I would attempt to discourage any negative attitudes toward group work from the very beginning. To set boundaries for group work at the start of the course would be very beneficial to making it work successfully.  Many participants in online classes have the same fears and concerns that we do. They are remembering past negative experiences and that is a wall to break through at the beginning of a course. Also, fear of not being able to use the technology effectively is a concern for many who are novice users of technology. Dana || On one occasion, I was put in a group with a group of teachers from the same school who were probably 20 years younger than I. They insisted on meeting at 3:30 at a coffee shop near their school. My school system got out at 3:15 and I was 30-45 minutes away minimum because I had to go down Hwy. 280 to get there. By the time I could get there, they were always finishing up and didn't really want to share what they had done. Being totally frustrated is an understatement of my feelings at the time. I made it through it but I'm not sure how. || Cindy, I think being able to work with others nearby is a definite plus. But I think a collaborative site might be the only way to achieve that in an online course where people are spread out! Jillian || Nanci: I do not like group work, online or f2f. Depending upon the dynamics of the group, it seems that one or two people do all of the work while the others coast. There is also the situation where one person takes the lead in order to get the job done, and one or more of the others get angry. We don't all see eye-to-eye on the quality of work we produce, and this can cause problems. || I think designing the project so every one's contribution is included in the final project might be one way around that. Jillian || I agree Angie...planning is the key to the whole process. A facilitator cannot let the group fall behind or any one member of a group take over. **Jod**y || Dawn I have the same problem..I hate the confrontation and tend to "clam" up when this happens. **Jody** ||  || My prior group experience online usually involved problems generated by trouble with technology. It was a while back and we were all new to online learning. We had several problems with deleting each other's posts etc. || Maybe one of the ways around the techonolgy problem is to model the collaborative tech tool from the beginning and suggest they try it, to kind of ease them into using it. After a session or 2, it would be easy to see who was resisting and contact them to find out why. We could also try using "mistakes" as light-hearted teaching moments rather than failures. Jillian Undrea: I agree, making light of mistakes is the only way to build community. This is a defininte in being a successful facilitator. ||
 * One of the challenges in f2 group work is the easy, friendly way people can cajole others into taking over their work because "you're so much better at it!" While it may be personally flattering, it defeats the purpose of combined perspectives and learning. Jillian
 * Sally: I have found in F2F settings, group work can be intimidating for the very shy. There is always a "Type A" personality who tends to dominate, leaving the shy ones "under the table'. That has been my biggest challenge- toning down the leaders while encouraging the shy ones! || Sally: It is fun to mix things up a bit when assigning group roles. It's fun to place a rather shy student as the leader and an outgoing student as the recorder. It is amazing how this forces some students to perform outside of their 'comfort zones"!
 * Cindy: The last time I was in grad school the teacher was very into project based learning and working in groups. The teacher tried to set the groups but there were 4 other people from my school system in the class and somehow we usually managed to work it out so that we could work together. I knew that the teacher was trying to get us to branch out and get out of our comfort zone but since we were teaching all day, we just wanted to get it done as efficiently as we could. When we could work together, everything went fine bacause we understood each other and everyone did their fair share.
 * Angie: For me the challenge of face to face groups is you have to make sure that everyone knows they have a responsibility to participate and share in the work. || Clearly define and assign roles for each member of the group. Set a timeline for completion of the project and all it's elements. || I think group dynamics would be a major hurdle in an online situation because you are not able to see each other and let's face it people can "sound" one way online but be another person face to face. || Again, I think planning is the key. Plan the group roles and set a timeline so that each person know what is expected of them. Have a set of expectations for group behavior that everyone is aware of. The facilitator may have to jump in when the group gets out of hand.
 * Dawn: I find it challenging when others get emotional about the issues. I become very withdrawn when others start to "heat up" over their viewpoints.
 * Terry: I know this has been said so many times, but the f2f challenge I've had in group work was that some in the group did all the work, while the slackers in the group did nothing. All received the same grade.

Linda: this is the challenge for me, too. Fairness, equity, whatever you want to call it. || Terry: A strategy to solve this is to have everyone in the group grade everyone else. Participants' grades would be based on their effort. Terry...what a great idea. I have done this in my classroom but never thought to do it in an online course. **Jody** || Terry: A challenge for online group work is trying to find the time! I participated in a group project and we started off with gusto and then just petered out. There were no consequences, so consequently we still have not completed the project. I do feel really bad about it, but just can't find the time to get back to it. Betty: I think that the "time factor" is and will be a major factor with online groups and though we have good intentions, it's just sometimes impossible to find the time. || Terry: One strategy to help solve this challenge is to have regular feedback from the course facilitator and some rewards for finishing/consequences for not completing the project. Possibly more specific guidelines from the course facilitator would have helped, but the main detractor was lack of time and too many other committments. Linda: I like the idea of regular feedback from the course facilitator and a combination of rewards/consequences. Very specific guidelines are helpful no matter what the system for grading. || Monica: Jody I agree. Well defined roles and responsibilities can help with the faciliation of a group. It also gives them a sense of direction. || Jody: I have not had a lot of experience with working in online groups - just the face to face groups. The biggest challenge I can see would be that one person (or two) would dominate the group while the others just hung on for the grade. || **Jody:** I agree with Angie's comment about planning. The facilitator of the group has to have an active role in what is going on in each group. If there is too much negativity or too much of one person doing all the work, the facilitator needs to Terristep in and address the issue.
 * **Jody**: I too always hated when we had to do group work. When I was doing my graduate work, we had to work in groups and it always seemed that since I was older and had more experience in the classroom, I had to do the most work. I was not happy. Sometimes, and I hate to admit this, I had to treat the other people in my group like some of my students in school. || **Jody**: Usually when working in a group, I either assign roles to the students or bring up the subject of who should do what. Most of the time this works.
 * TERRI: Perhaps using a WIKI as the "meeting place" for online projects would solve that problem. Requiring all contributions/discussion to be submitted online as the project is completed would provide evidence of //who did what//. ** |Cindy: Terri, that is a great idea. If it is all on the Wiki, then it is just right there for everyone to see those who really worked and those who were slackers! It would be hard to argue with the evidence!!|

|| **Linda Shields**: The problem that I encounter the most frequently when workng with groups is that members of the group often do not complete a fair share of the work. I have found this situation to occur in group work with my students and in the groups in which I am a member. || I believe that one of the primary reasons for this situation may be due to differeces in learning styles among the group members. When I have some control in the groups, I can assign roles within the groups that are better 'fits' with the students' individual learning styles. || The geatest challege for me will be that I am not able to observe my students as they work on their projects. || I can schedule frequent submissions of materials so that I can check progress. As in f-2-f classes, I can determine learning styles and get to know my students well in order to assign roles that I know will fit their learning style and their interests. ||

Good resource, Maryam! There's another one on that site called Adding Multi-media to your course! Jillian
 * ======**Maryam:**The biggest challenge I have had in group work has been developing a group project so that it is truly a group project. That is, the project is designed so that everyone’s input is needed for the project to be successful. It is not just a series of activities to complete, but a series of inter-related activities, where one part’s successful completion is dependent upon another; where the group truly has a symbiotic relationship.====== || **Maryam**: One solution I have used when developing projects is to collaborate with others either online through discussion forums or f2f and seek their input regarding ways to make the project better. Also I often use projects designed by others and I tweak them for use in my classes. However, the best method is to actually have students do the project and learn from my mistakes. However, that means I will have a group who gets a version of the project that is not exactly the best. || **Maryam**: I have not completed an online project either, but from past experiences with the online discussion forums, I would be concerned that participants would not complete their part of the project in a timely manner which would impact other group members completing their part.I always have some course participants who wait until the last minute to post. || **Maryam**:As has been mentioned previously, a facilitator who takes control of the situation is most important. I have seen the following used to encourage last minute participants: personal emails, messages, calls, posting of grades, and the regular nudging that facilitators naturally do. I am sure these methods would work in online group projects also. However, as with f2f group projects, the quality of the group project will help to eliminate many of the problems.Check out this group project motivator: http://introductiononlinepedagogy.pbworks.com/Facilitating-Group-Work.

​ |Cindy: Maryam and Jillian, thank you both for these great websites. I can't wait to see the one on Adding Multi-media into Your Course. Thank you both for sharing with us. If we stay on the topic of group work any longer, I just may be won completely over. It is sounding "doable" now :)| ||  ||   || TERRI: I have **always disliked group work for many of the reasons already stated. I guess my challenge is to overcome my dislike of it in order to be able to use it effectively in my online classes.** ||   ||
 * Jamie: I am a mix between the "one with ideas" and the "shy one". I will share my thoughts and ideas in a group setting but not push for someone to use them. In some cases, I have done all the work because the group knew that I would do it. At other times if there was a person who wanted to take over, I might not be heard at all. || I think setting up jobs in a group will help and possibly changing roles at specific points in the project so that all voices can be heard would be beneficial. || I have not used Group work in an online setting. I see some of the challenges as: everyone not participating, some participants not having a voice because others take control, participant drop out. || I can see GoogleDocs or the Wiki working well so that everyones voice can be heard. The participants can input their ideas and see all of the others view points at the same time. I like how this table shows the new ideas with color changes. That helps to keep track of new ideas when posted. The most important part in making an online group project work is planning, planning, planning. ||
 * Linda: Having a few who run the show, some who are afraid to comment, and some who are not willing to put forth the effort is the challenge. || Assigning very specific roles with timelines and some type of checklist requiring each person's input might alleviate this problem. I like Jamie's ideas of rotating roles to share the responsibility. || I have not yet implemented group work online, but I intend to give it a try. I will try a scatter-approach of role-switching, checklist/timeline, and timely feedback throughout the project. || Definitely think GoogleDocs will be a help since people can access the same work. Motivation and encouragement will be very important as well. ||
 * Susan: Problems include having too many strong opinions in the group along with those who want to slide by and depend on others to make contributions. And then there are those who are shy about expressing themselves and others whose goal is to socialize first, and be on task only when absolutely necessary. || Having assigned roles that are specific, assessed, and rotated are great ideas that have been mentioned. Although consistent outside monitoring and guidance will probably be necessary to insure success. || The challenge with online group work, since the participants are in different locales, is to have a method for the group members to "meet" to choose roles and to share their contributions before presenting the project. || Having access to chat rooms and synchronous interaction would be preferable. I really enjoy participating in Elluminate or Wimba sessions because there is a sense of belonging to the group that is a little more personal than asynchronous interaction. Yet Wikis, blogs and GoogleDocs could also be used effectively. ||
 * Monica: I have always enjoyed working in groups. However, I can recall being faced with group issues. It can be a challenge when you have to coordinate different schedules and try to meet at a time that is convenient for everyone. It is even more of a challenge when all the group members live in a different city.

Amanda: I have always utilized group work in my own classes, but I have not had many positive experiences in group work as a student. In college, I once was the only group member to show up for an hour and a half presentation. In graduate school, I was in a group where we had a three hour presentation, and I was the only person who fulfilled the 30 minute minimum presentation. I don't like "whole" group grades, and I believe that is why in my own classes that I developed an individual group rubric based on a group project where students were getting a grade based on how well they fulfilled their "role" in the cooperative learning group. || Monica: As a group facilitator, it may help group members acomplish their task if the groups were divided according to geographical location. Another solution would be to use some of the class time to help the groups get organized and decide on how they will work together to accomplish their group goals. The faciltator can assist by defining roles and clarifying responsibilities of the group.

Amanda: I truly believe I would have several roles that each person would be responsible for in the group. I would definitely allow the group members to discuss and choose their own role. I think this would allow for some autonomy within the group. I think autonomy in the group is vital for success, especially among adults. I would also create a wiki to facilitate discussions, and I would have frequent communication with all groups. || Monica: Although I have not had the opportunity to participate in an online group project, I can imagine that getting all students to participate may be an issue. One person may dominate the group and that could be a problem also.

Amanda: Unfortunately, I have not had the opportunity to facilitate an online group project. I hope to implement a project in my class in my next session. || Monica: I believe well defined roles and responsibilities will assist with online group issues. The expectations for the group project should be communicated so that everyone is on the same page. The facilitator should also monitor the group project, so that one person is not doing all the work and others not working at all.

Amanda: I definitely would utilize the Wiki. I think this would be a great way for group members to communicate with each other and the facilitator. E-mail is definitely a plus. After each group member finished their final project, I would email them out to everyone in class, so they may use the information in their own schools. Also, I think it would be great for each group to present via webinar! ||

was never my favorite thing to do. If I can work with 2 or 3 people that I know I do find but I don’t like working in a group of people I don’t know. In school when you worked in a group it was always with someone that thought they knew everything and usually appointment themselves as the leader. If anyone else in the group had any suggestions or comments the “leader” always made them feel stupid. I hated that. ||< Faye: I would assign the groups. Define the roles and the assignments so that everyone understands what is to be done. I would have to make sure that I am available if questions or problems come up. ||< Faye: I think as a facilitator if I chose to divide teachers into groups I would either assign the group based on geographical area or I would list the groups I would assign and ask the teachers to pick where they would like to work based on 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice. I would try to put them in their first choice but if not at least their second choice.This way they would be able have a say in what group they would be comfortable working in. ||< Faye: A challenge in setting up a group would be the time. I would have to make sure that I had a great leader (which would be hard since most of the teachers in an online class I don’t know personally.) I would have no idea who would be good as a leader. I don’t think this is something I would want to do. ||
 * < Faye: Group work