According to Galanes & Adams (2007), "Groups exist to meet important human needs".
How significant is this claim to you? Or perhaps, the question should be - what kind of human needs are we dealing with here?
Think about this list: inclusion, affection, sense of belonging, power, achievement, support, etc.
Some of us have undoubtedly lived through obstacles and challenges, mostly due to our own hard work and determination. We have also accomplished some goals all by ourselves, without having to depend on others for help and assistance.
Nevertheless, this individual journey can be exhausting and sometimes too demanding. If we could only share the work with two other friends and colleagues, and later celebrate the joy of our team work, won't it all be less stressful and more meaningful?
The concept of "groups" is so important that it has become pervasive in our society. Students gather and form "study groups" as early as in primary school. Educators divide students into "cooperative learning groups" in their classrooms using either the cooperative or collaborative learning approach.
Even assignments and graded projects at university level are mostly done in "small groups" , may be for two main reasons:1) more ideas can be tapped to produce better results 2)undergraduates will experience the success and tribulations of working with others to accomplish a final result. A glance at workplace literature also emphasizes on groups - "teamwork" and "group dynamics" are indeed the two essential concepts in organizations nowadays.
So, "groups" do serve all these practical and logical purposes - exams, classroom activities, projects, etc. It is indeed an indispensable structure in our lives.
What about you? What are the important human needs that you have personally enjoyed/ achieved by fitting yourselves nicely in groups? Take a moment to ponder.
How significant is this claim to you? Or perhaps, the question should be - what kind of human needs are we dealing with here?
Think about this list: inclusion, affection, sense of belonging, power, achievement, support, etc.
Some of us have undoubtedly lived through obstacles and challenges, mostly due to our own hard work and determination. We have also accomplished some goals all by ourselves, without having to depend on others for help and assistance.
Nevertheless, this individual journey can be exhausting and sometimes too demanding. If we could only share the work with two other friends and colleagues, and later celebrate the joy of our team work, won't it all be less stressful and more meaningful?
The concept of "groups" is so important that it has become pervasive in our society. Students gather and form "study groups" as early as in primary school. Educators divide students into "cooperative learning groups" in their classrooms using either the cooperative or collaborative learning approach.
Even assignments and graded projects at university level are mostly done in "small groups" , may be for two main reasons:1) more ideas can be tapped to produce better results 2)undergraduates will experience the success and tribulations of working with others to accomplish a final result. A glance at workplace literature also emphasizes on groups - "teamwork" and "group dynamics" are indeed the two essential concepts in organizations nowadays.
So, "groups" do serve all these practical and logical purposes - exams, classroom activities, projects, etc. It is indeed an indispensable structure in our lives.
What about you? What are the important human needs that you have personally enjoyed/ achieved by fitting yourselves nicely in groups? Take a moment to ponder.
23 comments:
yeah..
i feel u pn. Zue...
i prefer group work rather than individual work...
group work make harder became easier...
coz we can divide the work and discuss it with our groupmate...
we can get a lot of opinions and the best that count...
From group work also...
it teach me to mingle with others...
Working in a group is such a good way to achieve better results. But there are quite a lot of obstacles for group work.
I've been working in group numbers of time doing projects or assignments and I find that a great group work requires the full cooperation and seriousness from all group members. Also, all the group members must be willing to work together.
i also prefer group work rather than individual work..it's because we can discuss and share our ideas each other through the work group..
this can help n make our any work or assgnment became easier and get great result..so,work group give a lot of advantages n help ourselves to do our work or assngment became easier n faster...
Being a second year student right now means that I have a lot of projects and assignments to be done... And when it come in such an amount, it is also need to be done with such a quality...
Like one of my lecturer said, "Do the right project in the right way"... This is where the concept of group work or so-called brain collaboration come into... Since we gonna have more than one single brain working, it could be hard for the group to set the path of the project due to certain differences... But hey, that's a good thing since you will try to defend your idea and also will try to rationalized the others...
Unfortunately, most of the students takes the group-works as something for granted... For some, group-work means meeting, thinking and even sometimes arguing while it's more than that... It's where we can allow ourself to be heard, to listen and to understand ourselves...
If you are the chairman/project manager of the meeting/group-work, control the flow but do remind yourself that you have others to be listened... And try to have everyone to speak...
For those active speakers, criticize accordingly and moderately...
While for the passive-member or the listener, try to vioce out your opinion since you are the one who think the most upon certain discussion... It's you who analyzed all the argument solemnly...
Groupworks bring as much goodness as it does badness. Being in a group means being able to mingle and talk with certain people that are in that group of yours. Certainly, all this has to be followed by doing the task given as a group to you. But most people like to do the first part and let the second part be done by perhaps one or two particular person(group leaders). This cause nothing but conflict in that group.
but if we're able to work in a group(everyone involved), works get done faster and things become easier. Studies isn as hard as its meant to be and everything just become so much easier and less complicated. Having a group is important, but, we have to choose the right people in that group in order to make it a sucess.
True. Ming and ara raised the issue of lack of cooperation in groups - that we can expect free-riders and less committed memebers. According to the small group theory, there are systems we need to follow in order to accomplish better results in group work. 1. group rules 2. group norm 3. network or communcation pattern 4. group task roles 5. group maintenance roles. Being a second year undergraduate, morning coffee has experienced all these, I believe. I'm glad you're positive about the conflicting views in groups - it's healthy when group members present different views on a particular issue, then you'd have diversity. Conflicting ideas may be, but you gain maturity in settling for consensus as well as gaining practice argumentative skills. I doubt people learn as much from a group that always somehow have similar ideas all the time, or have the tendency to follow whatever the leader says. Speak up coz you not only express your opinions, but you contribute to group synergy and decision quality. cheers:)
'No man is an island'. I think everyone has already heard of that phrase.It basically means that no man can thrive when he is being isolated from other people. In other simpler words, we need other people, for the same reason that you've mentioned in your post, to have a sense of belonging, affection, power and support.
Some people may say that they work better on their own, that they can thrive easily without the help of others. This can be true, in some rare cases, but the truth is, most of us won't be able to. Think about it, when we're on our own, we'll have all these ideas we can think of, but try as we might, we could never get an idea that's
as good as it can be as when they come from many different sources or in a group. The explaination is simple; different people have different thoughts and different ideas. Some better than others, but when combined, they can be absolutely marvelous.
College is in more ways than one different from school. Back then, it wasn't necessary to mix with students from a different class if we didn't want to. Because we're going to be seeing the same faces year in and year out. So it didn't really matter. But in college, it's a routine to see different people for almost every semester. And a lot of group work is going to be involved which comprises of us working with people we've never even met. It doesn't get easier for some people, but for me, I am able to adapt better now to my surroundings and can get along well with new people pretty fast. It may seem like a hard work for some people, to be in groups whether it's with people they alreay know or not. But if they give it a chance, they will see all the benefits that came from being within a group. Besides the idea sharing thing I've mentioned, the workload will be considerably lighter since it's going to be shared equally (most of the times) among the group members. Plus, it's always a good thing to make new friends. The skills to interact with people becomes even more crucial when we're preparing for jobs in the future. Employers actually regard people with good interacting skills higher than those with just good grades. They want to look for someone who is able to work within a group rather than just on their own. when we're already in that working stage, it's going to be harder to get used to all the new people if you haven't already. That's why now is the perfect time to practice, practice and practice. So it's a good thing we have to work in all these groups to finish our assignment.
So guys, groups really are indispensable. There's no way you could do without them. After all, two heads are better than one right?
I was worried when Pn zue asked us to form a group of five during one of her class early this sem. This is because I found out that Im this kind of person who enjoyed working alone. By doing so i can concentrate more. Many negative thoughts wandering inside my head. Whether or not I can work with my group members. I told myself, to just give it a try and throw away all those negative thoughts that have in me. All of us(my group members) felt awkward at first. But after a while, we manage to adapt and complete task given smoothly, maybe because we are already comfortable with each other. Suprisingly, I enjoyed working in a group. It is indeed a very helpful way to enhance your interactive skills and also your way of thinking
some ppl may say tat they work better their own, that they can thrive easily without the help of others.It cant say wrong...But the truth is, most of us won't be able to do it.When we are on our own, we will jes have limited ideas we can generated.But if we are in group work,we could get more ideas that more detail and good.This is beacuse different ppl hv different explaination, different houghts and different ideas.When all these things are combined, they can be absolutely marvelous.In addition, group work can generate more elaboration or others vacabory tat we mayb not learn b4..tis can increase the ppl's ability in writing too...In the final say, groups really are indispensable. There is no way you could do without them and we really nid group work to perform more well...
The mere thought of "group work" makes me cringe. Nobody seems to ever badmouth doing work in groups, right? So let me be the "bad guy" who does badmouth it - with my reasons. Speaking from experience, people who are excited about group works are usually pretty lazy. They would expect the hardworking people in the group to do most of the tasks, or at least the rather difficult tasks. This is unfair as it "rewards" lazy people and "punishes" workhorses. I dont think these are isolated incidences as I ended up doing most of the work 90% of the time I am involved in group works. Complaining to the teacher to "kick" the troublemaker? Not very effective i'd say - the teacher will simply tell me to "bear with it" !(is this some form of patience exercise?)
group work, a simple matter to some people but some are not like this. what was said by Lim MJ and LeBron is correct. there are people who take the opportunity to facilitate their work by not participate to do the work that has been given. This causes some people are hard to do the work do not like group work. So, as students who can think with the mind in thought, do not do things that make other people are not happy with your attitude. Think the best way.
evrything we do in this world have a positive and negative side.Same as work in a group.i can see that working in a group is much more easier than individual work.So,i think that if there are a problem in a group.you should just find a way to solve it and i think it is not too hard to solve the problem as many of the problem start from a minor thing such as groupmate is lazy,dont want to involve in a discussion and so on.
Whatever it is.i am supporting Pn.Zue point of view.
important human needs? hmmm didnt really understand that. ill write what i understand about it.
group work is better than individual in many aspect such as fun , less work ,systematic ,creative and less stress. Group that is well manage is a brilliant idea. however an unwell-manage group will only lead to chatting , dating and noise. nothing good will produce by an unmanage group. in the end they will only regrets.
salam Pn.Zue
Groups or individual or in a pair?and its should be be a good result if we can manage our self to do it by our choice. Is it neccessary to be in a group all the time? not at all, is it neccessary to be individual? i dont think so. because, in our life, we need each other to stand still. if we cant do it in any ways. so we can be fall down, or we can have a bad results on it. having a groups need lot of teamwork but less in works instead of individual that needs to do by our own..thats all. :D cheers mike,
group work is actually an activity that should serve everybody with benefits. But, for me,it also have its own bad and good side. Let me start with the good side first. Group work can lead us to a better discussion. Sometimes, doing a project alone will makes us blur and limits our imigination, so by having a group work, the task given should be better than individual. For the bad side, some situation that we can always see is there must be one or two sleeping partners. Im agree with MJ in this issue because people like this can be labeled as lazy and unfuntional member. They should know their responsibility and not just to depends on other group members. To make this thing solve is for me,do the work group together and just take out the name that always put on so many reason to avoid the work.
Hi Pn. Zue...
i would strongly support ur opinion tat team work is better than individual achievement... this will help to form a bond between the members of the team which will be very helpful especially between undergraduate students.
i also believe that it will also help to form a qualitier idea. when u discuss of an idea in a group, it will be a greater way to inovate the idea to produce a stronger idea.
team work also can groom a person's communication skills...
Group work... It has its own advantages and disadvantages. As M.J. Lim have said, it's true that it is unfair 2 "rewards" lazy people and "punishes" workhorses. If this occurs, it is not a group.
When we form a group, we need to choose the correct members so that we may hav a very dynamic group and this will help each of the group member to achieve greater heights.
group...when a group outgrows individual performance and learns team confidence...excellence becomes a reality...working in a group is such a better way to achieve something...get improve our knowledge by share and express feedback,ideas and opinions...group give many advantage to do assignment,research,projek...it will easier and control tension and stress...also, control wasting time...finaly...if we individu,we are just one drop...but we together or in group,we are an ocean....
mosese
Groups has always have its advantages and disadvanatages. There may be 4 to 5 people in a group and even more. The greater the number the less load we have to do, because, a task will be shared amongst the members of the group. But the tricky thing is, although there are more people in the group(different people have different ideas) let say 6 people, out of those 6 only 4 to 5 people will submitt their share of work while 1 or 2 people will have zero commitment but at the end of the day your grades will be all the same.It really hurts while you do the work while others are getting the credits but look to the brighter side of it, at least you are doing your part as group and that you understand what is disscused.
Being part of a group is a superb experience because a person is able to work with others and learn how to handle diverse situations. In a group a person learns how to cooperate, think, and become a good listener. Everyone in the group has an assigned task, which makes the work get done more efficiently and accurately. Although tasks are assigned everyone helps each other and gives their opinion in the group .I enjoyed working with group because each member put in their opinion and we were all able to communicate clearly. We all worked together on the group project. No one person worked more then that!
Group work.its so important to solve a problem or task.especially in university life.we had to face lots of task, assignment and many more.according to this situation, group work is very helpful.group work have many advantages such as problem and task can be solved easily,we can get many ideas as the solution of the problem and better understanding and acceptance of the final decision can be made.
beside, group work also have disadvantages for example time is needed to built a team, there must be some team members do not participate as much as others and a risk conflicts and argument may arise .
but it is normal. in this life nothing is perfect. if there is advantages, and there will be the disadvantages.
“The greater the loyalty of a group toward the group, the greater is the motivation among the members to achieve the goals of the group, and the greater the probability that the group will achieve its goals.”
-Ady
I prefer group work than individual work because in group work we can discuss and share many of our ideas each other through the work done in the group.This can help and make our group work or assignment became easier and get good result.So group work give a lot of advantages and help ourselves to do our work or assignment became easier and faster.We can also learn many ideas and best opinions from many people which sometimes help also in our studies and life.in conclusion,what we need in group work is the co-operation between the group members to finish the work on time.
worked in a group such a good way actually. plus, when now we are in 'U' life. from this kind of work, we can get a new friends. we can share and change a lot of idea with others members. group in work are required a full cooperation and we must take the responsiblity. from this, we also can gain our confident level to communicate with other people.
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