An alternative approach is presented: to start from students' existing studying. In a structured group setting students are given an opportunity to draw on and share their personal experiences through working on an actual study task. (Author/LBH)

Analyzed small group, videotaped discussions of friendship in which graduate and undergraduate students participated. Evaluated the therapeutic and educational values of discussion groups on "closest friendship." Found the peak experience to coincide with the discussion of the possibility for true friendships between men and women. Discusses…

Discusses a theory of leadership effectiveness in small discussion/decision making groups developed to facilitate discussion and goal efficacy. Develops four leadership styles (coordinator, inventor, enthusiast, and director) focusing on two critical questions the leader must address. Discusses implications of the model for leadership training and…

The authors, one a female student and the other a male teacher, argue that women in a male-dominated society are often silenced, even in the classroom. They describe and analyze the process of silencing as it occurred in their graduate seminar designed to explore the relationship between language and power. (Author/CH)

Presents a classroom exercise which asks undergraduates to assign a social class ranking to nine family names which stereotypically represent ethnic groups. Students are also asked to rate the degree to which they believe social class can be inferred from ethnic family names. Presents results from several years of data collection in different…

By reviewing this analysis of the behavior of both groups and individuals in groups, human resources managers can learn to tell whether committees, task forces, and departments may be encouraging or inhibiting the work they set out to do. (Author)

An information-support group developed to meet the needs of moderately hearing-impaired college students featured role playing, simulation, group discussions, and social activities. (Author/CL)

Examined whether moral behavior and moral thought can be affected by discussion of Kohlberg-type moral dilemmas. Students (N=96) engaged in one of three discussion situations and a free-recall task. Results supported Kohlberg's suggestions that moral behavior as well as thought can sometimes be taught. (JAC)

Compared the effectiveness of cognitive restructuring (CR) and a structured group discussion (SGD) in preventing stress and improving self-concept in 209 high school freshmen. Results showed posttreatment attitudes were equal for both programs. The CR homework produced a significant decrease in students' perceived level of emotion. (JAC)

Reviews a study indicating that articulate deviates expressing themselves within the context of informal group discussions are capable of exerting considerable influence on the opinions of others. (MH)

There is a growing interest among organizations in identifying and nurturing Communities of Practice. Delineating what is and what is not a Community of Practice (CoP) is not a clear-cut task. One specific area of difficulty is distinguishing between a team and a CoP. Because there are strong similarities between the two, it is often helpful to…

Networked multimedia is described as a tool for collaborative learning, focusing on learning through discussion. It is proposed that multimedia may be used to structure and enhance communication, thereby promoting learning. The background and application of collaborative learning is outlined. Several dimensions of media which influence the…

This manual addresses whether schools and classroom spaces enhance or detract from the learning process and provides school assessment guidelines for communities anticipating the expansion of existing schools or the construction of new ones. It is a collection of survey and discussion tools that encourage stakeholders to discover and reflect upon…

Groupwork carried out via computer mediated communication (CMC) is now a fact of life in the the workplace. This study investigates the effects of group membership and task experience on asynchronous computer-mediated groupwork. Groups acquiring task experience as groups during weeks one and two performed better on the final task at week three…

This paper describes one teacher's experiences teaching English to Mexican university students at the Instituto Technologico y de Estudios Superiores de Mexico (ITESM), which is considered Mexico's top private university. The author taught two levels of English as a Second Language: English 2 and advanced English. The entire ITESM system used the…