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Issue #1: Students Don’t See the Value of Independent Projects
Tips
- Emphasize the real-world skills that students gain. This can be particularly valuable for students who aren’t necessarily interested in the subject matter but can see the benefits they gain in other areas, such as problem solving and managing a team.
- Explain how each component of the independent project emulates a real practice in the discipline. This communicates to your students that you are putting them through this experience to help them develop their competencies, not to waste their time.
- Treat every pitfall as a lesson, not as an opportunity to point out deficiencies. If something goes wrong, help the students figure out a way to move forward. Then, ask the students what they learned from the experience (e.g., how to better communicate, the value of a contingency plan, time management) and how they might strategize differently if confronted with a similar situation.
Issue #2: Designing and Conducting Independent Projects is Overwhelming
Tips
- Break down the project into manageable goals. Create a guide for students that details out the specific steps that lead to the end product, which includes due dates for smaller components of the project. This will help students feel competent as they achieve each small task and to better manage their time.
- Provide iterative feedback. If the only evaluation students receive on their work is their final project grade, they don’t have the opportunity to improve and learn along the way. Checking in with students as they reach each small goal allows both students and instructor to keep track of progress and to make adjustments if a group has gotten off-course.
- Take time in class to praise students for their progress. Students may have trouble perceiving their accomplishments, so bringing them up will help to increase student confidence moving forward with the project.
- Help groups work through challenges in a structured manner. Ask groups to bring up challenges they have encountered lately, and run a brainstorming session with the entire class to overcome these challenges. Often, other groups will have encountered similar challenges, so working through them together helps students feel more competent and build a sense of community among classmates.
Issue #3: Group Members do not Contribute Equally
Tips
- Have students create a team contract. Provide students with a general template for a group contract with space to detail procedures for written communication among teammates, goals for the project, and consequences for group members who don’t pull their weight. All students should contribute to the creation of the contract and sign it. If an issue arises at any point during the project, the group has a clear path forward to correct the issue.
- Build in opportunities for every member to contribute. The threat of being held individually accountable is often enough motivation for students to pull their weight. Take time in class to consult with each group individually or run brainstorming sessions with the entire class, asking individual students to share their experience or discuss project results.
Issue #4: Group Members Have Disparate Goals
Tips
- Form groups based on mutual interests. Ask students to sit in different sections of the classroom based on potential project topics, then organize the students into groups based on their “interest zone.” An added bonus to this approach is that student groups will automatically have something in common, which can help them form social bonds and increase the enjoyment of working together.
- Make time at the start of the project for students to discuss goals. Talking about how the project might relate to their goals for the course, their undergraduate education, and/or their career helps students understand the motivations of their teammates. When group members understand each other’s motivations, they can adjust their expectations and support the achievement of a variety of goals.
While your students may not enjoy the long hours, issues with teammates, and frustrations that accompany the independent group project, they may come to appreciate the lessons learned from their experiences. An example of working through a road block on their project could become a scenario they describe in a job interview. Dealing with an uncooperative group member could inform their approach to team management in their career. Engaging in inquiry could become the foundation for a student’s decision to pursue graduate school. Keep these outcomes in mind, and make every effort to put a positive spin on student progress.