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Assessing Team Projects

In recent years, student group and team work has become more mainstream in higher education. Learning in this context typically involves grouping students together to work on specific assignments. For this to be an effective learning experience, clear assessment guidelines and criteria need to be given and applied so that students are assured that the grade they receive will be fair and valid to reflect their contribution. Group and team work will benefit students in the long run because it provides students with the opportunity to:

  • develop their interpersonal skills, leadership skills and group/team 'membership’ skills
  • build their experiential knowledge of how groups or teams can function well for later in their careers

 

Best practice in designing, organizing and assessing group/team work

Make purposes, expectations, learning outcomes and grading criteria clear

It is extremely important to communicate explicitly with students at the beginning of the course about the purpose of having group/team work, your expectations of them, what the intended learning outcomes are and how they will be assessed and graded. Such explicit communication will help students to see the educational benefits of this learning experience and engage more productively in group work with their peers.


Group size

The group size should not be too large or too small. If the group size is too large, it is impossible to engage every student in the group. On the other hand, if the group size is too small, it causes a very heavy workload for students. A good rule of thumb is 3-5 members for most group or team work in a course context


Teaching staff involvement

Before students start their group/team work, teachers should help them to establish roles and responsibilities for each group member to ensure that all students are clear about what they are expected to contribute to the group. Detailed guidelines should be provided explaining the group/team work process, such as planning, allocation of roles, communication among the members, how assessments will be conducted and grades are awarded. This is especially vital for year one freshmen who may not be familiar with group work at a university level.


Include separate grading items based on individual contribution

The most common problem encountered by most students and teaching staff is “free-riding”. There is no easy way to eliminate this problem but several measures can be taken:

  • Add contribution marks
    Award a mark for the product of the group, and ask each group member to peer-assess and give an additional mark for other members’ contribution. Make sure this is not just done at the end for high-stakes assessment but also formatively about half-way through, so the group can take the temperature for perceptions of each others' performance and contribution, and corrections to behavior can be made early. This helps to ensure that the group/team performs as productively and synergistically as possible, and there are grading 'no surprises' at the end, with respect to this component. It can also help the assessor to identify any potential free-riders early on.
     
  • Include individual and group assessments
    Award an equal mark to each member for the group’s product, then add individual assessments for each member of the group. This helps to ensure both individual and group accountability.


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