This original teaching idea uses an adaption of the STEM activity the Paper Tower Challenge to have students examine task and maintenance roles as well as non-functioning behaviors in small groups. While problem solving as a small group, students navigate conflict and frustration, assume various small-group roles, and then reflect on their own and…

Responding to change is a critical workforce competency and an essential skill for effective leadership and management along with abilities to work in a group, problem solve, and demonstrate critical thinking capabilities. In this experiential exercise, students collaborate in groups, think critically, and respond to customer demands in a…

Many teachers have designed lessons for students who will be working in groups to discuss and solve a problem. After investing time in constructing an interesting problem, creating strategically designed groups, and introducing the problem carefully, teachers may be left wondering how to help students collaborate to make sense of mathematical…

This article considers two small groups of students in the same Grade 8 mathematics classroom whose approaches to the same mathematical problem result in very different experiences. Using videotapes and written transcripts, an analysis of the groups' working processes was undertaken using Sawyer's pre-existing structures required for the presence…

This handbook presents a collection of over 35 experiential and adventure-based activities using only a single item of equipment--a 15-foot long section of 1-inch tubular climbing webbing, called a raccoon circle. Some of the activities are quiet, some are loud, and they range from low to high challenge levels. Different-sized groups can be…

There has been much discussion recently of the effect that gender and learning style have on student performance. Educators have attempted to develop new teaching and assessment strategies that accommodate a variety of learning styles, and both males and females are becoming more aware of gender-related traits and their relationship to classroom…

This book is designed to provide individuals with practical assistance in introducing and using critical reflection strategies. It is intended for workshop facilitators whose aim is to assist committees, organizations, and various groups in solving problems. The book explains procedures for Critical Reflection Strategies using Teams (CReST), a…

The article provides practical information and techniques for effectively using creative problem-solving. Six stages of problem solving, with both convergent and divergent thinking phases, are discussed. Also discussed are equipment, time frames, and environmental requirements for creative problem-solving sessions. Sample exercises are offered.…

This facilitators' handbook is intended primarily for use in workshops for parents and teachers involved in cooperative preschools. The handbook provides practical resources for anyone working in a group setting, and is designed with the aim of developing learners' skills in leadership and group activities. After introductory information, chapter…

Examines the dynamic common to the English-as-a-Second-Language classroom in which the teacher takes from the student the burden of the next step in solving a problem, identifies four reasons this is inappropriate, looks at why teachers do it, and offers techniques for handling such situations. (MSE)

The use of neutrals in higher education collective bargaining is considered, with specific reference to a pilot project in which a neutral worked for over a year with the administration and faculty union at a two-year public community college. Eighteen propositions that may promote the creative use of third parties are offered, including the…

Describes an introductory geology course for non-science majors that focuses on problem solving and group dynamics at The Ohio State University. Reviews its format and contents and compares it with other course options for non-science majors. Includes evaluative comments and provides a listing of group studies project topics. (ML)

Describes the mechanics of group work in the college mathematics classroom specifically group formation, preliminary class work, class and group discourse, individual and group assignments, and impact on test taking. Includes examples from a first-semester calculus course. (JJK)

This book offers 35 lesson formats for use in secondary or higher education settings and appropriate as alternatives to the usual "lecture-presentation." The formats draw on principles of collaborative and cooperative learning and concepts of group interaction and information processing. Most lessons require substantial…

Leadership training materials, to be used by both students and teachers, are organized in the following sections: (1) self-awareness; (2) what leadership is; (3) goal setting, the foundation of success; (4) communication, key to leadership; (5) organization, putting all the pieces together; (6) group process, working together; (7) problem solving,…