BME Success Project: Inclusive group
work
Caroline Wilson, c.wilson4@herts.ac.uk
Janette Bradley, j.bradley@herts.ac.uk
Helen Barefoot, h.barefoot@herts.ac.uk @HelenBarefoot
Moving outside the comfort zone
o Business School Level 5
Marketing modules 20-30
students per tutorial;
o Large international presence;
multi-cultural backgrounds;
o Diversity of ethnicity within
British nationals;
o Students tend to sit in
friendship groups based around
common ground and
experiences, especially
nationality.
Multicultural Group Work
 It encourages co-operation among
students;
 It encourages active learning.
Done well
 It respects diverse talents and ways of
learning;
 Encourages international discourse;
 Breaks down cultural barriers;
 Discourages the teacher from being
drawn into only addressing ‘home’
students;
 Builds interpersonal and communications
skills amongst students.
Multicultural Group work
“The classroom is the main location where students can find
‘common ground’ … they share a subject and a learning
environment.
As a location it presents opportunities for international and
domestic students to make contact and interact in ways that
can enhance learning, and academics can organise their
teaching and assessment tasks to support interaction.”
(Arkoudis, S. et al., The Australian Learning and Teaching
Council, 2010)
Inclusive environments
I manage the
learning environment
to enable all students
to participate fully.
I use group activities
to facilitate students’
understanding of
how working with
people of diverse
backgrounds
enriches their own
learning.
Provides
environments
for effective
learning for
all
I structure my
teaching activities to
enable all students to
share their values and
beliefs within a
culture of mutual
respect and dignity for
all.
Multicultural Group work
The Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) devised the
Interaction for Learning Framework
Dimension 1
Planning interaction
Dimension 2
Creating
environments for
interaction
Dimension 6
Fostering
Communities of
Learners
Dimension 5
Developing reflexive
process
Dimension 4
Engaging with
subject knowledge
Dimension 3
Supporting
interaction
(Arkoudis , S. et al,. The Australian Learning and Teaching Council, 2010)
Multicultural Groups –
Some observations
• It is very easy to just let
students form friendship groups
• Friendship groups tend to be
based around common ground,
especially nationality
• Friendships can make learning
easier, especially for
international students who can
use their own language
• However, they do not
encourage diversity of learning
or inclusivity
Facilitating Group Work
o Students often enter a tutorial
room which is set up in lines and
arrange themselves in friendship
groups of like people
Tutor’s desk
o And if the room is set up
for group work students
will usually sit with their
friends
Tutor’s desk
Inclusive group work
4
3
4
3
5
2
1
1
4
1
5
2
2
2
3
5
3
1
2
1
3
5
4
4
5
5
4
3
1
2
Tutor’s desk
•Set first task in pairs e.g. checking understanding of previous
seminars
•Set next task in 3s and give people roles in the group
Arranging multi-cultural groups
- tips
• Explain to the students why you are managing the groups and
share the benefits they will gain from working with and
learning from other people of different cultures
• Make sure the tasks are structured
• The tutor should be constantly walking around the groups to
spot any individuals who may not be engaging and support
them to get involved in the task.
• This technique can work well when alternated with weeks of
allowing work in friendship groups
• Name badges are really useful when mixing up the groups to
help you get to know the students and to help the students
get to know each other.
Observations and Outcomes
 High levels of interactivity: the most
vibrant of classes taught;
 Pace of learning increased: students
more productive outside their
friendship groups;
 Expectations raised - impact on
attitude and performance?
 Very positive relationship between
students and tutor;
 Students began to relate to each
other differently and take notice of
previously ‘overlooked’ individuals;
 Average individual coursework
result 55% Cohort average 49%.
“ The structure of the
tutorial is good because
we are allocated to
different groups each
week, and it allows us to
mix in with different
people with different
backgrounds and ideas.”
Inclusive Group Work helps
develop our Graduate Attributes
Employability
Social
responsibility
Respect for others
Useful resources
•
University of Hertfordshire Curriculum Design Toolkit Inclusive Culture project work
•
Guidance on teaching in racially diverse classrooms on Harvard’s website (The Derek Bok
Centre for Teaching and Learning): TEACHING IN RACIALLY DIVERSE COLLEGE
CLASSROOMS
•
Guidance on many aspects associated with inclusive teaching from Sheffield University's
Centre for Excellence in Inclusive Teaching (including case studies plus hints and tips)
http://www.shef.ac.uk/lets/projects/inclusivelandt
•
The Open University's guidance on Inclusive teaching
http://www.open.ac.uk/inclusiveteaching/index.php
•
The Higher Education Academy's weblinks to Inclusive Teaching
http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/resources/detail/subjects/psychology/Teaching_practice_i
ssues_Accessibility_and_Inclusive_Practice
Useful references
•
Aguirre, A Jr and Martinez, R (2002) Leadership Practice and Diversity in Higher Education:
Transitional and Transformational Frameworks. The Journal of Leadership Studies 8(3): 5362
•
Arkoudis, S, et al, (2010), Finding Common Ground: enhancing interaction between
domestic and international students, Australian Learning and Teaching Council
•
Baez, B (2000) Diversity and it’s Contradictions. Academe 86: 43-47
•
Bourke, B. (2010) Experiences of black students in multiple cultural spaces at a
predominantly white institution, in Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, vol.3, no.2,
pp.126-136
•
Ellis, S.J. (2009) Diversity and inclusivity at university: a survey of the experiences of
lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) students in the UK, in Higher Education, vol.57,
no.6, pp.723-739
•
Holloway, S. (2001) The experiences of higher education from the perspective of disabled
students, in Disability and Society, vol.16, no.4, pp.597-615
•
May, H (2010) Towards an Inclusive Culture: Engaging Students in Institutional
Enhancement. Presentation accessed via www.heacademy.ac.uk Dec 2010
•
May, H and Bridger, K (2010) Developing and embedding inclusive policy and practice in
higher education. York: Higher Education Academy.