Document Type
Other
Rights
Available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 4.0 International Licence
Disciplines
*pedagogy
Abstract
Group assessment is a valuable teaching and learning method (Springer et al., 1999). This has been comprehensively demonstrated in the teaching and learning literature both in general (Johnson et al., 1991) and in specific contexts. This assessment practice promotes questioning, discussion and debate and encourages students to become active team players (DIT, 2013). However, when using this form of assessment, it is important to recognise that it is "individuals who graduate and gain qualifications" (Gibbs, 2009, p.4). The problem of freeloading has been identified and one of the suggested methods of reducing this is to incorporate individual assessment into the marking mechanism (Gibbs, 2009). From our review of the literature, we identified six possible methods of assessing the contribution of individuals within groups. However, it is evident from our research that there are benefits and challenges associated with each method. Particular methods are more applicable to specific subject areas, student levels, and class size and instructor resources. Based on these findings, we have produced an artefact to assist instructors in selecting and applying the method deemed most appropriate for their teaching context.
Recommended Citation
Bowe, L., Delaney, M., Fitzgerald, B., MacCann, P. & Ryan, C. (2016) Methods for deriving individual marks from group work. Dublin: Technological University Dublin.
Practitioner Research Project Report
Included in
Higher Education and Teaching Commons, Other Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons
Publication Details
Practitioner Research Project undertaken in part completion of the DIT's Postgraduate Diploma in Third Level Learning and Teaching (DT906). For more details please see http://www.dit.ie/lttc/