Essay On Group Work Observation
During the interview on September 12th, the student discussed times and dates in which she would volunteer and discussed activities she would perform. It was expected that the student would help paint rocks for a luncheon to thank the sponsors who helped the Hurricane Matthew survivors that is coming up next month. The student was told how to dress when she comes in for her hours and chose to come in two Monday's from 12p.m. to 3p.m. as well as Tuesday and Thursday from 1p.m. to 4p.m.
Duties Performed
When the student came in on Monday the 18th she was given an assignment to design a place card and table tent for the Heart of Matthew (HoM) event hosted by the CDRC which is coming up next month. She spent about 2 hours working on a draft of the design with what little information was provided to her by the director of Designing Station and briefly spoke with Mrs. Ivonne Anton about what she was looking for in the design. With this information in mind the student went home and worked on some design ideas in her spare time and printed a few samples off to bring in the next day....show more content...
Anton's ideas in mind and created eight different place card designs and four different table tent designs even though all information had not been supplied to her. On the last full day of volunteering the student helped to unload a donation of school supplies, furniture and books and assisted with the sorting and counting everything. The student went home tired and exhausted, and spent her last hour working on her designs for the HoM event. She was disappointed that she did not get to help paint rocks like she was told she would be
Group Work
Throughout your entire life you have to collaborate with people to get things done. As you get older and have to get a job, you will have to work with others to get things done, no matter if it is flipping burgers or a job that is considered to "more successful". There are many benefits to both situations, but the one that would benefit you the most in life would be the one where you have to work with others because it will help you succeed.
In contrast to what group work helps with it does, however, have a major issues that many people struggle with. Reliability is one of the main issues that everyone has an issue with. Many school group projects have ended not very well because the people in the group gave out a fair amount of work to every person and one person decided to let the rest of the people do all of the work but in some circumstances the teacher often gives the same grade to everyone. So when everyone decides to do their part, but one person does not, then they all get punished for it. Another issue that many...show more content...
With everyone doing their part in it by doing their research, then informing the rest of their group everyone learns the material very well. A teacher used to always say that you know that you have the learned the material well when you can teach it to someone else. Through group work you can accomplish this by learning the material yourself and then teaching it to the rest of your group so that you and your group will understand it better. Another way that through group work you learn the material better is because you go more in depth about things and learn random facts that are more likely to stay in your mind then just the basic facts. Due to the fact that these are random facts relating to the topic it helps you remember the basics as
Argument Against Group Work
We've all been in that situation where you're assigned to do group work with a person that's difficult to work with, and you're stuck trying your best to complete the work. Many teachers assign group work as a way of learning well with others and expect good cooperation and completed work on time, but an uncooperative member can have an inferior effect on the entire group. In my opinion, teachers should not give group work, for it can have a detrimental effect on everybody. Most can agree that group work causes many disagreements among group members as well as not getting along, everybody get the same grade regardless of the effort put in, and most people would work much better individually. When people work in groups, most are prone to...show more content...
This is true because you get to use your ideas and do what you want to do. You are responsible for your work, when it gets completed, and what decisions you make for it. Another way is that you do not have to worry about arguments and disagreements. Arguing with group members takes lots of time, and it is difficult to complete the assigned work. If you took that weight off your shoulders, much more progress would be made. Although in a group you can receive many great suggestions and ideas, group work causes many more disagreements between everyone's ideas. Much more progress would be made if people were to work individually rather than in
Critical Analysis of Group Work Essay example
After completing the group task of preparing a presentation on, transferring individual facilitation skills into a group work setting I will critically reflect upon my own participation. I will evaluate my self–awareness while working in the group, as well as those around me. The way that I personally dealt with any issues that arose within the group and how that affected the group dynamics. I will also briefly discuss the roles in which each member of the group took and how role allocation affected, the group dynamics and the working relationships. Finally I will evaluate my work having discussed it with my fellow group members.
In order to evaluate my role within the group it is important to identify what makes a group. A group must...show more content...
Similar to Tuckman's five stages of group development is Corey and Corey, they claim that the first stage; Pregroup is "setting expectations, establishing group rules and procedures, role preparation and skills building" (Corey, Corey, Corey 2010 p123). The group did well in this stage, as the group was given a very clear aim, we discussed each members skill sets and while preparing a group contract with our aims objectives and rules. A group contract is a very useful facilitation tool as it sets out very clear guidelines for the group and defines what is acceptable and unacceptable behaviour for the group members (Tuckman 1965). The group members were able to gain clarity from the group contract, allowing them to identify the norms and boundaries of the group. For example our group decided that if a member were for any reason not be able to attend a meeting they would have to let the team know in advance, if this did happen the rest of the team would relay the information via email to the missing group member.
The next time the group met they were in the storming stage (Tuckman 1965). This stage is where any conflict happens, the group member explore their roles within the group. Within this stage there can often be a struggle for power, status and control. Even though conflict
There are many tasks, skills, and actions involved in the middle phase of group work. The leader must assist the group in making progress on individual and group goals, attend to group dynamics, assist members with connecting with resources, use the best practical techniques, implement the appropriate group approaches, complete record–keeping, and access and use supervision. The leader will assist the members in making progress by reinforcing connections, offering problematic ideas and activities, assess progress, identifying difficulties and obstacles, attending to special needs of an individual, engaging members in problem solving, summarizing group sessions, planning for the next steps, and re–contracting with members as needed. The...show more content...
Often the parents have to be encouraged to take the role of the parent and guided to interact and respond to their children appropriately. I model this behavior throughout each visitation while decreasing the amount of modeling I do as the parents start to implement the modeled behavior. I complete record keeping during and after each visitation to provide the family case manager a detailed report of attendance, arrival and departure times, a narrative of interactions, strengths, issues, then provide a recommendation of services to assist the family in meeting all the needs of the family. The desired outcome is to increase parent involvement with the children, establish limits and routine within the family, and provide the family with guidance to increase communication. The reports that I complete allow the family case manager and the courts to see the progress or lack of progress the family accomplishes during each visit. The Father's Engagement Group is an educational group that is intended to assist fathers in becoming more involved in the lives of their children, increasing parenting skills, and becoming a positive role model in the lives of their children. One of the first skills that are used is attending to any special needs that the members have. This is accomplished by the leader completing individual intakes and making observations during the group session. One special need that I was able to attend to with one particular parent
Questions On Group Work Skills Essay
Question 3: Group work skills: Reviewing group work skills allowed the writer to understand the reason why these leadership skills are key in supporting members and creating cohesion. The writer plans to use these skills in the current field placement. Some skills, such as requesting information, and partializing can also be used in individual sessions and when working with families. The hope is to continue practicing the skills to master them. The writer will continue seeking consultation and feedback from the field instructor and group co–workers. Finally, the writer will observe group workers to continue obtaining additional group skills to use in social work practice. The following are vital leadership skills that all group workers should practice:
1–Involving Group Members: Group members can be naturally timid or afraid of participation. Motivating members to participate in group allows them to gain from mutual aid; aiding them in fully benefiting from the group experience and also assists in group cohesion. Group members can be motivated to contribute by asking them a specific question. For example, if a member previously disclosed they joined a grief and loss group, the group leader can inquire: "Sandra, last week you shared that you benefited from the grief and loss group? Can you tell us about your experience?" 2– Requesting information: In order to clearly understand the problem of a group member, the group leader should seek clarification if
Reflection on Social Work Group Work Processes
i1. Introduction
Group work is an integral part of life, and in particular, an essential component of social work practice. Group work provides a myriad of benefits that individual work cannot provide, such as the synergy among members that group work provides over case work (Corey & Corey, 2006), and it is precisely why group work is applied in the social work setting.
Various theories affect how group work is practiced, affecting both group dynamics and the different stages of the group (Hepworth, 2013). In my paper, I will be sharing my experiences as a member of a group, focusing on the various stages, interaction patterns observed and my personal reflections on the entire process.
2. Group transition
Initial stage:...show more content...
Termination stage
With any group, there has to come a point where groups have to end. In our group, this stage was reached towards the conclusion of our group proposal.
Dealing with feelings of separation and any unfinished issues is key in this stage (Corey & Corey, 2006). On one hand, members felt happy that the whole ordeal was over, as it was taxing to come up with a group work proposal that deals directly with youths who have esteem issues. On the other hand, although unspoken, I could sense that the group felt a tinge of sadness at the termination of the group as the process, albeit tedious, was an enjoyable one. However, the very fact that we still had success in the project with our proposal was a result of active steps undertaken (Corey & Corey, 2006), and this allowed us to take pride in our work, softening the blow of separation.
3. Group Culture and Leadership patterns
Communication and Interaction Patterns
With all of us being equipped with knowledge coming into the group, it was inevitable our communication pattern was that of a group–centered open communication pattern, with ideas being shared freely and discussed openly (Toseland & Rivas, 1984). Conflicting ideas were aired out in the open with no withholding of feelings and concerns, which made the group work process easier, key characteristics of open communication among members.
In addition, it was worthy to note the ease of communication was
Groupwork: Social Work
Groupwork can be defined as a method of social work that is utilised in order to help individuals to enhance their social functioning through purposeful group experiences and to help cope with their personal group or community problems (Konopka, 1972). The role of groupwork places emphasis on sharing thoughts, ideas, problems and activities, allowing social action groups for instance, to "empower members to engage in collective action and planned change efforts to modify particular aspects of their social or physical environment" (Toseland & Rivas, 2014, p. 38; Pyles, 2009; Staples, 2004). Therefore, reflecting on the processes of groupwork is an essential mechanism for all professionals in order to develop better communication skills, conflict resolution and enhance future performance. This essay will reflect upon the task group processes that were conducted this semester, while evaluating my own role within the group and what was learnt working within a small group....show more content...
It was clear from that point forward there were large personalities in the group, which caused friction between the group members. By the third group meeting on Moodle, one of the group members decided to leave as they felt that no conflicts should be occurring during the planning stage. The remaining four group members were confused by the departure, as many group projects will often experience conflicts, as it is part of the process (Liu & Tsai, 2008). On reflection, during the beginning stages of the group's decision–making process our group had similar ideas and opinions and within the first online group chat; a target group was agreed
With reference to academic work on groups and teams provide a review of 500 words which outlines the advantages and disadvantages of working in a group
The aim of this essay is to show how group work can be very useful with many benefits; however, it does have downfalls which can prove individual work to be more satisfying. The dictionary definition of a group is a number of persons belonging or classed together, they come about in a psychological sense because people realize they are in the same boat (Brown 1988: 28), whereas the definition of work is a task to be undertaken. This means working in a group allows many individuals to tackle a task to the best of their ability, however, is working in a group actually the best option?...show more content...
These varied ideas can provide a high standard of work due to the different perspectives used. Within the group there may be members of different cultures and backgrounds allowing a range of opinions and facts to be bought forward on each topic of discussion. Conversely, the group might concentrate on issues outside the remit of the training and forget it's actually mission (SME Risk management toolkit 2002). Sometimes, during a group meeting discussions can be diverted to social interactions and the task in hand could be dismissed. If control is not taken then the completion of work could be delayed potentially causing the members to forget previous ideas and even wasting time due to the lack of motivation created to do the work.
We have explored the different aspects and impact of working in groups and can argue that it is more beneficial than it is disadvantageous. Groups are extremely important in the lives of all individuals (Johnson and Johnson 1975 p1–2) and if organised and lead correctly, group working can prove to be very useful towards the completion of a task. It means more ideas, more input, and more perspectives.
References and recommended reading:
Gary Hadler (2005) Solving Problems using a group – advantages and disadvantages. Available: http://www.tuition.com.hk/groups.htm. Last accessed
Group Work
We've all been there where you were assigned different members to work with that do not cooperate or work hard enough. People around us believe that group projects are fun and can be exciting to work with others, but this is not the case. I am strongly against group work, from the different opinions, to the time management, and the slackers who do not do any of the work but still get credit. The different personalities and opinions of the group members creates many complications during the process of getting the work finished. Firstly, there are the different viewpoints in the group that make it hard to cooperate with one another. In groups, there are different personalities, making it hard to fit everyone's ideas into the project. The...show more content...
"Slackers" are the people in the group who lack the effort to do anything in the group. These people will just run around the room, acting like animals, and will not try to get any work done, thinking that you will do it for them. These individuals will mess with your plans in anyway possible, whether it be the construction of the project, or the pieces of the project you assign to each member. These people will give you lousy excuses for not finishing their part of the project, and make the rest of the group agitated. They will also ruin your grade on this project. Unless you want to stay up all night to do their work to salvage you and your teammates' grades, you will not be getting a good grade if you are missing things that the "slacker" decided they did not need to do. Even if you have people who are frustrating, there are the people who will work with you and want a good grade as badly as you do. These people will work with you to try to finish the project and cooperate with you. But even if you have these especially exceptional people, there are still the people who will fight with you with everything and will not work at all. Group work is the worst part of school, with the people who do not cooperate and work, the time management, and the different opinions. I believe that you should tell your teachers that you do not like nor understand the meaning of group work, so that they may reconsider this teaching method. All in all, group work is horrible and not a great system to work with the
Essay On Group Work
Toseland and Rivas (2012) describes group work as a goal directed process, where planned and orderly worker activities are carried out in the context of professional practice with people. These authors also describe a dual focus of group work, both on the individual tasks and on the group tasks. In my experience, group work is collaborating with others to create something meaningful. It is necessary in group work, in my opinion, to utilize your strengths in a purposeful way to best complete the task at hand. Thus far in our group work project, it has been invaluable to witness these processes unfold first hand; it has also been just as easy to see the confusion and difficulties that accompany such endeavours both on an individual level and on a group level. For our group work project, we are assigned to complete both a task group and a treatment group. Our task group is responsible for the development of a plan for a self care treatment group. Then, we are to facilitate the self care group in conjunction with the development of a treatment group where the premise for our self care group unfolds. It was easy to see, at the initial 'forming' stage of our process, that this project would require us to work closely and creatively with our group members and would open up the opportunity for growth in knowledge and in conflict resolution. In our initial group meetings, we focussed on gathering information in order to contribute ideas for the composition of our self care
Positive Group Work Essay
Positive Group Work Outcomes Have you ever been working alone and needed help? Our group agrees that working in small pairs or groups with other classmates is helpful because your knowledge grows, you get the diversity of others in your work, and if you are stuck you have a group of peers ready to assist you. Groups not only help you and your peers, but help your teachers as well. Small groups are extremely helpful, and we definitely recommend their use in schools. Members in your group are there to help you if you're confused, and are happy to do so. One time Mason didńt know how to spell something, and his peers was there for him, Another time Mason was reading a book and he needed assistance, so his peer helped him read. There
Reflective Essay On Group Work
Without a plan, nothing will be accomplished. My group was responsible for creating a poster and we developed a plan that led to a successful product. This assignment was a great way for me to gain new knowledge and experience a different way of group work. I am happy that my group did well, and I was pleased with the outcome of the poster after all of the hard work that we put in. I always feel happy and motivated after achieving any type of success. I struggled during the process but I always reminded myself to keep pushing and that the end result will be worth all of the effort. My group was organized, creative, and got the job done. I look forward to working with people that have the same mindset as myself in the future.
There were three members in our group and each one had a task. I was the one that led the group and started the project. I was also the one that divided the tasks upon all of us that were in the group. During this experience, I learned a lot about group work. I faced a lot of problems during the creation of the poster, and I had to sacrifice my own time in order for the poster to be successful. I felt like I carried most of the weight during the process and I didn't mind doing that because I wanted the poster to be finished in a beautiful way. I was satisfied with how our group worked together, and how each member had an effective role. We were always organized from the beginning, and we had deadlines set in order for us to achieve certain goals. We started our project early and we also finished on time. I give most of the credit to my buddy that helped me out and taught me how to create a poster that looked beautiful. I was lost most of the time, and my buddy was the one that led me to the right path.
Although the end of the project was a success, I felt like there was a place for improvement. I truly believe that we could have done a better job during our presentation. I was not satisfied with how our group did, and I was personally disappointed of how I presented my part of the poster. After my speech, I realized that I left out things that were important in my presentation. I also felt like I didn't look at the audience and that really bothered me. Overall, my group did a great job
The Stages Of Group Work Essay
The beginning stage of group work is often difficult because of members seeking direction about how to proceed, but are ambivalent about following suggestions. The group worker's primary goals are to help members feel comfortable in the group, work together in a cooperative and productive manner, and to feel that their contribution to the group is acknowledged. In treatment groups, it is important for the worker to lead a discussion of confidentiality during the opening portion of the group meeting. This will be the first time that many of the members may have been asked to keep the proceedings of a group meeting confidential. Toseland and Rivas (2012) implies that "it is important for workers to emphasize the need for confidentiality and the harmful and destructive effects that can results when breaches occur" (Toseland & Rivas, 2012, p.206).
Trust among group members is essential for cohesion and ensures smooth functioning throughout the group work process. Toseland and Rivas (2012) say that "members cannot be expected to disclose intimate concerns or develop a sense of trust unless they can be assured that discussions within the group will not be shared outside of meetings" (Toseland & Rivas, p.206). By reassuring the group members that their discussions will be kept confidential, it also helps alleviate the ambivalence of participation. For example, in a group of soldiers whose purpose is reintegration post–combat deployment who are meeting for the first time, discussing
Personal Reflection On Group Work
Personal Reflection
"Group work is a form of voluntary association of members benefiting from cooperative learning that enhances the total output of the activity than when done individually".
Working in a group can be very difficult at times. Different people with different views may not always agree which one another. Throughout the various task I played the communicator. I made sure everyone was on track on what we wanted to do. I also made sure people was okay and happy in the role they was playing in the group. My group worked together in collecting ideas from one another and making it into one. My feelings about the group process was a little mix at first but, at the end I felt like we actually brought it together. Beginning of the group member were all over the place and had no direction, when we were able to take a breather in just think ideas started to flow. I felt like that took the communicator to make it happen. By reinsuring the other group members that everything will go smoothly if we just don't overthink everything. The things I will have done differently in the group was to use my time wisely. I believe because we were on a time frame, I tended to rush things just to say okay where done. Also, more support and trust at a point of time I was kind of second guessing another idea. I feel that you have to have trust in your group member to make it effective.
Group Dynamics
"Social integration can be seen as a dynamic and structured process in which all
Essay Analysis of Group Work
Analysis of Group Work
In the APS module, we have been allocated into different groups, and my group number is 48, our tutor is Barbara Allan. The contact numbers of the members were given and we were asked to finish a project on a team basis by using the information we learnt in this module.
2. Working process and group development ========================================
Initially I was really excited about this group work. As a foreigner, this was a good opportunity to practice my communication skills and group working skills. Consequently, I tried to contact our members by sending text messages and arranged the first informal meeting by the following week. Bass and Ryterband...show more content...
Then I understood it was extremely difficult to get my task finished without any clear target. Therefore, I chose "9/11"event as my topic and I found it was easier for me to do the research again. Secondly, I had also read newspapers and try to find some more information relevant.
3. Difficulties and weaknesses ==============================
During the process, we also had many problems and difficulties. For example it was difficult to gather all the group members, the whole team lacked the ability to sit down and plan together efficiently. Especially, it was very difficult to set up the meeting time, because some people in the group did not always show up in the regular meetings. Even some of our members I just met just once. Therefore, we needed to rearrange our meetings again and again. It can be identified as Belbin's description (Martin, J, 2002, P.237): people do not have enough morale. This inspires me that in real business team, e.g., hi–tech research and development team, the most important thing is to bring people together. This is exactly what a project manager do. Everyone can program, but only a qulified manager
Importance Of Group Work
As employees become more competitive, recently graduated students not only have the qualifications, but also have good teamwork skills. Working in a group is very common in high education. Also, not only in university, that skill will very useful in the work place. Group work can make the work to be higher efficiency and develop another skill. In this essay will discuss the benefits of group work and how important is it. Secondly, it will move on to look at the obstacles and challenges in group work. Finally, it will argue that the factors that affect the success of groupwork and what skill can develop in group work.
Group working is an essential skill in university because it is beneficial to understand the work and complete it better. The main point is working in a group always can get more information than working individual. When students working individual, they are always cannot get more ideals or difficult to develop the ideal, the reason of that could be some people may be not enough knowledge about the topic. This cause is very obvious in engineering students because they always get a project that is need to think on the difference way to get the solutions. Burke (2011 :88) also states in his Journal that working in group can get more information because the group member who from difference countries and culture backgrounds also they have difference experience of the topic, therefore the students are available to get more information than a single individual. So,
My Personal Experience With Working With A Group
Working in groups is important for our communication in life. Things that we experience can be the way for our improvement in communication with other, weather they were from a different culture, gender, and many factors. In my paper I will analyze my personal experience with working with a group from many different perspectives. Thru a period, I have learned so many different things. Weather it was my groups communication, development, Membership, Diversity, and leadership. I'm going to cover every aspect of these giving topics, and explain how my group and I developed and gone thru all of them First to begin with, Group communication. The first time I met my group it was a bet awkward for me as well for them. We were kind of quit and just introduced our selfs to each other. With a little bet of time, we established to get more information about each other that helped our communication and got us thru the awkwardness. At the end of our first meeting as a group, we exchanged numbers and emails. One of the pros thru the process that my group members were friendly after we got to know a bit about everyone and that made it easier for as us a group to improve communication. They seemed like they want to work as a team. I was afraid that my lack of experience regarding group communication would be one of my biggest cons and that it would affect my groups as well. However, I surpassed my fear and focus on making good expressions. Secondly, my group development. At the
The Importance of Group Work in Education Essay
The Importance of Group Work in Education
When I was in high school, and one of my teachers would ask us to form groups in order to do something, I would usually roll my eyes. Ironically enough, some of the best work that I put forth and learned from was done in a group work setting. By working with my peers towards a common end, I got things done much quicker and thorough than I ever did on my own.
I chose to research group work for this essay, because in my limited experience as a teacher, youth worker, and student, group work proves to be a most effective teaching method; when it is done successfully. To begin, I came up with four questions to ask myself in researching this project:
Why is implementing group work such a...show more content...
But for students to become authors and creators and speakers in the classroom suggests new roles for them and for other teachersî (Kutz 53).
Students need to talk.
Research shows that ìteacher talkî takes up 70–90% of class time. John S. Mayher figured out the statistics even if every students was able to talk in class; within a 45 minute period, if each member of a 30 pupil class talked for one and a half minutes a period, that would be seven and a half minutes a week. That hardly seems enough time to fairly contribute oneís own ideas to a class (Mayher 129). By developing their oral language abilities in the classroom, students will develop a ìpotential for overall knowledge and application of and in learning in all areasî (Mayher 248).
The most effective way of developing oral language abilities, and getting enough time to put them in to practice is by the use of group work. ìComing to know is an active process in which the learner must be engaged in acts of discovery and inquiry, and, as Vygotsky has shown, this process always takes place within a particular social/cultural context, with language internalized from and shaped by that context. Most real world learning takes place in interaction with others, but most classrooms isolate learners from that kind of interaction. The group in the classroom mirrors the way most people learn outside the classroomî (Kutz 258).
As Kutz
Strengths And Weaknesses Of Working In Groups
While working in our groups, I have noticed that we try to incorporate our class concepts during our meetings in order to make our meetings function smoothly. Also while working together, we have learned each other's strengths and weaknesses, which we use when someone is better at a certain aspect. For example, one member is more creative so she created the background for our presentation and helped with the ideas for our activities. Working in groups can be challenging, but as a group we do our best to make sure we complete our tasks and stay focused. Communication is extremely important when working in groups because in order to finish our assignments, we need to talk to each other and listen to everyone's input. Communication is also important when groups are new because each member wants the opportunity to get to know each other since they will be working together (Beebe & Masterson, 1986, p. 3). When our group had our first meeting, we were curious about one another and wanted to share facts about ourselves. By sharing facts about how we work in groups, we were able to see how we will...show more content...
241). Our decision–making process when choosing our final presentation topic was each group member was responsible to pick two topics from our list and research the pros and cons of each topic. In the end, we ended up with ten different topics to research. Once we researched and found the pros and cons, we met up and shared our findings. When it was time to come down to our final decision, each team member spoke about what topic would be the best and it came between two topics. Our group made its final decision by seeing what topic would have more information and activities for our final presentation. When everyone saw that one topic was better than the other, we decided it would be a good topic for