Imbalanced work between members in the groups, potentially resulting in some students doing too much work, and others not doing enough work. Students not doing anything resourceful don’t gain anything from the experience, and students who did too much wouldn’t appreciate group works moving forward.

Cons of Group Work

The effectiveness range of group work is impressively diverse. Studies have shown that the benefits are consistent irrespective of age (pre-school to college) and/or curriculum.

The Age Versatility of Group Work 

Currently, there’s strong scientific support that suggests that it’s beneficial for students to learn and work in groups. Collaborative work promotes academic improvement and collaborative abilities. Working interactively with other students promotes students to learn how to share ideas, clarify difference, problem-solve, and construct new ideas. 

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A collaborative setting in which people work together to achieve a common goal. 

Group Work

Chiriac, E. H. (2014, June 5). Group work as an incentive for learning – students' experiences of group work. Frontiers. Retrieved September 7, 2022, from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00558/full 

Group Work as an Incentive for Learning

Although studies have found that group work is overall beneficial, it’s still not clear which aspects of group work is actually what’s facilitating the learning growth. A lot of group work research in the past hasn’t actually considered the viewpoint of the students, and don’t weigh the cons of group work as much as they should’ve.  

What Still Needs to be Studied about Group Work

Support for Group Work

When group work functions as an objective, it means that the purpose of the group is to develop a student’s social and collaborative skills instead of their academic skills. This could focus on social training, and interpersonal skills, and isn’t meant to really prioritize academic or goal achievement. 

Using Group Work as an Objective

When group work functions as a means, it’s used as a base for academic achievement. In this scenario, the group works together to attain a common academic acquisition threshold. 

Using Group Work as a Means

Cooperative learning is group work that doesn’t actually involve interaction with other students. They may just be sitting near each other, like in grouped seating arrangements in classrooms. Collaborative Learning always includes interaction, collaboration, and using the group’s abilities to achieve a goal.  

Cooperative Learning v. Collaborative Learning

Learning the skills and traits necessary to effectively be able to work in a group. 

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