Group projects- we can’t live with them, our teachers won’t let us live without them. Everyone has a method that works best for them, and here are some options to make your group project experience more efficient and stress-free.
Start early
It’s much simpler to manage your time when you’re doing an assignment on your own, but in a group project, timing isn’t always convenient. It can be tough to coordinate everyone’s schedules, and way too easy to just put off the project until the due date is right around the corner. Make sure to be on top of your project once it’s assigned. You never know when something will come up for one of your group members, and if you don’t have time to work around it, your entire project can be at stake. Starting early, though tedious, is your safest bet. And hey, you may just finish early too!
Divide and conquer
One of the worst problems in group projects is when you and your partners are working hard, and one person is just sitting off to the side on their phone. To avoid this, you can assign each group member a part of the project to complete, to ensure everyone has something to do and no one will use the “oh, I thought you were doing that” excuse.
Be supportive and compromise!
No one wants to hear “that’s dumb” when pitching an idea for the project. It’s super important to remember never to discredit a group member’s opinion- if it doesn’t work for the assignment, let them down gently. When working with an opinionated group, it’s common for everyone to think they know best. And with that comes an inability to listen to others in the group, resulting in a blowup. It’s important to compromise and use the best parts of everyone’s ideas to create one coherent assignment, even if you think you think you’re “right.”
Just say no
This will be impossible if your teacher assigns groups, but if you get to choose your own partner or partners, make sure to choose who will work best with you. It’s easy to feel pressured into saying yes just because someone asked you, but in the end, your grade is on the line. It’s not worth the extra stress, panic, and risk to your GPA just to avoid hurting anyone’s feelings.
What are your tips for working with a group?