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You are probably familiar with the benefits of group work  summarized here by the Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation at Carnegie Mellon University.

For language learners, the benefits of group work grow exponentially as groups become cohesive and cooperative, but also when expectations are clear and routines well-established. This presentation will take you step-by-step through the processes that have lead to consistently high reviews of groupwork in my remote courses.

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Advanced planning required

Barriers of technology

Student resistance

Homogeneous classes

What challenges to establishing successful groups have YOU faced? Answer in the comments below.

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The autonomous learner "is an individual who understands and takes responsibility for their own learning, is able to reflect upon the process they go through and is aware of actions, strategies and techniques they can use to enhance their learning" (Holec, 1979). Learn the basics of encouraging learner autonomy in this interesting blogpost by National Geographic Learning.

Teachers who contribute to the development of autonomous learners...

1. provide peer support rather than reliance on the teacher

2. encourage investigation and discovery, e.g. dictionary use

3. give learners choices about activities and outcomes

4. use project-based learning

5. allow space for considering WHAT and HOW to learn

6. help learners stay organized and encourage the use of tracking materials, time management and prioritizing tasks or making goals

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Critical to, but often lacking in the online environment, social presence may be a new term for some. Learn the basics and what is necessary to create this essential part in a community of inquiry.

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With advanced planning and clear expectations, your students will enjoy productive group meetings!

Scroll through these slides to see my process and adapt it for your course or develop new ideas that work for you!

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Using Groups to Build Learner Autonomy and Social Presence

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Planning Group Meetings How to guide your students to "Remember to plan ahead." by Craighton Miller is licensed under CC BY 2.0 Build social presence Encourage learner autonomy Facilitate communication through guided practice

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1. Planning a Meeting

2. Group Guidelines

3. Learning Activities

4. Response Forms

5. Final Evaluation Form

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My students consistently rank group meetings as one of the most challenging but also the most effective learning activities in the course.

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I'd be happy to chat with you about making group meetings productive learning events that students look forward to.

Contact me at nleiton@pcc.edu