Examples of good practice

1. Examples of good practice for group work - introduction

Before moving on to examples of good practice, it is necessary to mention a couple of types of group activities and digital tools that serve to support them: we can talk about interactive activities, cooperative activities and collaborative activities (Queens University).

Interactive activities

These activities are designed to encourage students to connect while working on assignments and interacting with each other. They are often called “group work,” but are more appropriately understood as interactive learning. The level of interdependence is low, and students are largely responsible for their own contributions.

Examples of activities:

• discussion forums
• blogs
• role playing
• debates
• "think-pair-share" technique.

Cooperative activities

Here, students help each other learn. A certain level of interdependence exists, but each student still retains individual responsibility for his or her own work. Students do not produce a joint final work or product, but contributions are combined or shared.

Examples of activities:

• peer feedback
• peer tutoring
• laboratory exercises
• brainstorming sessions
• jigsaw puzzle method.

Collaborative activities

In collaborative activities, students work together to achieve a common goal or outcome. Collaboration usually takes place over a longer period of time and requires a high degree of interdependence, with all members having to contribute in order for the task to be successfully completed. Well-managed collaborative work is associated with a number of positive effects on learning. When designing activities, it is important to ensure individual accountability to prevent feelings of injustice due to “slacking off” by individual members.

Examples of activities:

• case study analysis
• problem solving
• laboratory work
• creation and execution of presentations
• workshop planning
• drafting policy proposals.

Cooperative and collaborative activities are often used interchangeably in practice, but in pedagogical terms there are subtle differences between them. Cooperative activities usually imply that tasks are clearly structured and divided among group members, with each student having a defined role and part of the work that contributes to a common goal.

Collaborative activities, on the other hand, emphasize the joint creation of knowledge through open interaction, negotiation of meaning, and equal participation of all members. There are no strict boundaries between different roles, and learning is the result of shared reflection and agreement.

In lesson planning, it is necessary to distinguish between these two activities due to the different levels of structure, the role of the teacher, and the dynamics of group interaction.