I've always been a reluctant team player, I'll happily work in a team but prefer to take responsibility for my own work, and certainly hate it when I'm judged on the work of others - its the control freak in me and I only make slight apology for it.
So I always knew that any group assessed elements to my course would be hard to deal with, especially since I tend to set myself early deadlines, and I often push myself and aim for high marks. Working on a group assignment, with a group mark was going to be a challenge, but I was up for it.
Not to put too finer point on it, the whole experience has been a complete nightmare and not one I wish to repeat in a hurry.
For one of our modules we were put into groups of five masters students (all from different courses but in the same department), and given two tasks around the theme of either digital divide or online community. We had to make a three minute film, and write a 1600 word reflective piece (to include 500 word critique of a twin group's film).
The group I was put in contained two Chinese boys, an Irani girl and an Indian girl. The two girls have been great, their English is very good (especially the Indian) and they've really been involved. It's a shame that the same can't be said for the boys.
We started working together by meeting to discuss plans, except one of the boys was 45 minutes late, then as he hadn't been at the lecture or even read the lecture notes, wanted us to tell him what had happened and what he had to do.
I set up a Facebook group for us to communicate, and we arranged another meeting. In the end I arranged most of the meetings, I arranged the filmed interviews, supplied the equipment, did the interviewing, wrote transcript and the subtitles - and believe me I did step back a few times but since nothing got done unless I arranged it..... the rest of the group did the voice over and edited the final film (because I refused). It was okay but a bit stressful as the boy who agreed to do the editing would not respond to emails, Facebook messages or text.
I handed in with a couple of hours to spare, when we presented the film to the group the boys didn't even turn up. I knew that there would be trouble ahead, we had to write an essay!
When it came to writing the essay we arranged to meet onto put it together, but the evening before I realised that it was unlikely that anyone would have actually done any reading. So I emailed the group and suggested that each of us took one of the papers on the reading list (as a minimum).
One of the boys didn't reply, the other did but I had to explain to him how to find the paper! In the end I found all the papers and emailed them to each of them - at least they'd have no excuse.
At the meeting (with one boy 30 mins late and we had to phone him twice!), one had read his paper but not understood a word of it, and the other had not read a thing. I was really angry, the three of us girls had done some reading.
I suggested that since no one had found anything useful in the papers they had read, we all picked one of the questions and found some relevant reading, did it and wrote 300 words, then we would get together to collate and watch the twin group film - we were running out of time, so arrange to meet two days later.
Of course the usual suspect didn't turn up! Us girls had found some reading, done it and written our share (although I still had to do the collation and tidy up the English), The boy who turned up had read the same paper again (the one that we'd already established wasn't relevant to his question!) and then had typed out large chunks of text mixed with his own ideas - it was impossible to make head or tail of and was basically unusable.
We called the absentee, he wanted to talk to me. He explained that he hadn't understood the question or the paper, or where to get reading........that he hadn't done anything and that he wasn't coming to the meeting. He asked if we could meet next week and he'd try to do the reading.
As a group we decided not to accept this and to go ahead without him (by that time we'd written about 800 words anyway). I explained that even if he'd just turned up and helped with the 500 words about the other film that would have been better.
We then had a lecture which was aimed at looking at how to write the group essay - myself and the absentee boy turned up, but he fell asleep and I actually had to wake him up!
Then I decided that I needed to report all the goings on to the department, I arranged to speak with my personal tutor (who happens to be the head of department), and asked the whole group to have a meeting with Andrew (the module coordinator). The thing was that I think that the Chinese boy who had done nothing realised that he was in deep water, we all got a very apologetic email and a promise that he'd do something in time for the final meeting.
The essay is done and submitted, we've all contributed, but I would not suggest that it was an enjoyable experience, or that I learnt much. If I take away anything from the exercise it is that group work is extremely stressful, that international students often do not have the skills required, and that it is not fair to put four non-English speakers in a group with a native English speaker. I have nothing against the students themselves, they really did try their best, what I have a problem with is the university admissions policy - if students can't understand spoken English, or read the papers expected they really shouldn't be on the course - or at least if they are other people's marks shouldn't rely on their abilities (or lack of them).
I'm exhausted, and I still have an individual essay to write!
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