As the importance of online collaborative writing is recognized as an effective teaching strategy, studies have investigated how factors such as gender, ability, and group size affect learners' collaboration. However, few studies have explored the effects of group formation, i.e., student-chosen groups (SCGs) and teacher-assigned groups (TAGs) in…

Courses Leadership, Strategic Communication, and courses within communication that include a complex group assignment. Objectives The Zombie Apocalypse (ZA) learning activity is part of a second-year course in an international master's program. The course introduces students to key concepts in strategic communication and leadership and encourages…

In teacher professional development (PD), grouping teachers with varying levels of experience can be a productive and empowering way to stimulate the exchange and co-generation of content and pedagogical knowledge. However, less experienced teachers can face socio-emotional risks when engaging in collaborative science content reasoning tasks with…

Instructors of college level business courses utilize group assignments to stress the importance of collaborative work in professional organizations for students. How instructors determine team formation, whether assigning students to groups or allowing students to form their own groups, could impact the effectiveness of the group regarding their…

Reducing free-riding is an important challenge for educators who use group projects. In this study, we measure students' preferences for group project characteristics and investigate if characteristics that better help to reduce free-riding become more important for students when stakes increase. We used a discrete choice experiment based on 12…

Cohorts are student groups who begin and complete a course of study together over time. Though cohorts have been linked to positive outcomes, researchers note that many students report negative experiences, including scapegoating, irreconcilable conflicts, and strained relationships resulting in unlearning. This paper describes using arts-based…

Group formation is a critical factor which influences collaborative processes and performances in computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL). Automatic grouping has been widely used to generate groups with heterogeneous attributes and to maximize the diversity of students' characteristics within a group. But there are two dominant challenges…

Over the course of their work at the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) the authors observed that their students had an especially hard time functioning well in groups, in the context of both video production and media studies classes. An example of the latter is Introduction to Contemporary Media (MES 152). This paper looks at…

This study investigates the application of action research to enhance the development of research methodology knowledge among graduate students. Students, in this study context, were dissatisfied with current courses, leading to knowledge gaps and limited application of research approaches. Through iterative cycles of action research, a book club…

Many studies have explored the effect of grouping and task distribution strategies in collaborative learning in the conventional condition, for example, grouping based on student's learning style, gender diversity, and motivation, but few studies have investigated the impact of heterogeneous grouping with mixed gender and ability factors and the…

Micro lessons in teacher education are intended to empower student teachers by developing skills which are necessary in their teaching careers. The study used student teachers' reflections to explore how participation in micro lessons develops skills which are key in the teaching profession. Experiential learning theory was the theoretical…

Scholars have put a great deal of effort into studies focused on the undergraduate student experience, during this time the empirical literature on graduate and doctoral student experiences has been largely ignored; specifically studies on the positive aspects of Black women's doctoral journey. Hence the purpose of this qualitative study was to…

The ability to work effectively in teams is an essential skill. There has been recent interest in applying knowledge of striving instincts to improve student attitudes and performance within teams. The authors report results from a mixed-methods study examining the impact of utilizing striving instinct categories for team formation, along with…

Purpose: Against the background of empirical research on computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL), the purpose of this paper is to advocate implementing collaborative learning activities into online distance education courses to engage learners in interactive knowledge construction. This study uses empirical evidence to illustrate how…

There is a substantial international literature around the impact of different types of grouping by attainment on the academic and personal outcomes of students. This literature, however, is sparse in student voices, especially in relation to mixed-attainment practices. Research has indicated that students of different attainment levels might have…