 | ||||
| Group Work/Source:www.cte.uwaterloo.ca |
Eight out every ten students you meet do
not like group assignments. Many students loathe working in groups yet the
lecturers seem to like this method of assessment perhaps because it reduces
load of work especially in cases where the classes are large. Most students
claim that group tasks are difficult to accomplish owing to the uncooperative
nature of the group members. Scholars in Organizational Behaviour recommend
that a group should have five members and if it goes overboard, then a maximum
of seven members.
However, the groups have members of
varying personalities and character which dictates success or failure of a
particular group. Let’s walk through some of these personalities and characters
you may have encountered in a group.
The Absentee: Like the name suggests,
he/she never attends any of the group meetings. They tend to be arrogant and
have a care-free attitude, never bothers with the task at hand. They think
others were born to work for them. When the results are released they will be
the first to criticize the group’s performance.
The Braggart: They usually think that
they are genius and know more than other group members. He/she rudely
interrupts other members with statements like “No! That’s wrong! Which book are
you quoting from?” When giving examples he/she boasts about this and that. The
bragging gets worse in instances that the group is dominated by one of either
gender.
The Water Melon: These people have a
tendency of attending one meeting and skipping the next one. They usually come
late and leave early claiming that they have other ‘business’ to attend. When
present, they participate in the group deliberations and somehow they tend to
be humorous.
The Pumpkin: These people tend to just
sit during group discussions with blank stares at the moderator. When asked a
question or to contribute they are like “Hata sijui.Aki hiyo swali ni moto”.
When the task is delegated they usually hand in a quarter of a page copy pasted
from Wikipidia while the lecturer on the hand requires a minimum of thirty
pages. However, pumpkins are loyal and committed to the group. They attend all
the group meetings.
The Team player: He/she attends all
meetings and comes on time. If he/she thinks that he/she will be caught up
somewhere for whatever reason, he/she apologizes in advance. They participate
fully in the discussion and is concerned about the group’s performance but fear
responsibility.
The Moderator: He/she is commonly
referred to as the ‘chairperson’ mainly because he/she leads the group
discussion. He/she possesses the team player however takes responsibilities of
the group affairs. He/she sees to it that the work has been done and is
satisfactory.
The Lone Ranger: This category is quite
different from those above. They usually don’t have groups as a result resort
to do the group work single handedly. One thing that stands out in this
category is that they are anti-social and as such have few or no friends at
all.
As much as you love to hate it, group
work is important. It is a litmus test of your interpersonal skills which is
vital in organizations. Group work gives one an opportunity to develop our
reasoning ability, communication skills and even boosting our self-esteem. So
where do you fall?
