Subtitles
Associated Teachers TV programme
KS2 Group Work: Collaborative Activities
0001 10:00:03:09 10:00:07:04
(narrator) Natalie Worsfold teaches
at GoodwynSchool in North London.
0002 10:00:07:04 10:00:11:01
She's preparing a cross-curricular
PSHE/geography lesson
0003 10:00:11:01 10:00:13:15
for her year 6 class
that involves group work
0004 10:00:13:15 10:00:16:06
and uses resources
supplied by Sport Relief,
0005 10:00:16:06 10:00:18:20
Comic Relief's biennial
fundraising campaign.
0006 10:00:18:20 10:00:21:14
The students will focus
on the story of Solange,
0007 10:00:21:14 10:00:24:02
a ten-year-old girl
who's unable to go to school
0008 10:00:24:02 10:00:27:14
as she lives in the slums
of Recife in Brazil.
0009 10:00:27:14 10:00:31:19
Tony Russell, a group-work expert
from the Institute of Education
0010 10:00:31:19 10:00:35:08
will be observing the lesson
and then discussing it with Natalie.
0011 10:00:35:08 10:00:37:14
How can group work
be brought successfully
0012 10:00:37:14 10:00:41:00
into typical classroom activity,
and just how effective is it
0013 10:00:41:00 10:00:43:24
to have children
working together as a group?
0014 10:00:50:23 10:00:52:19
After 36 years in education
0015 10:00:52:19 10:00:54:23
as primary-class teacher,
deputy head,
0016 10:00:54:23 10:00:57:01
teacher trainer and consultant,
0017 10:00:57:01 10:01:00:17
Tony worked on a research project
set up by the Institute of Education
0018 10:01:00:17 10:01:01:23
called SPRinG.
0019 10:01:01:23 10:01:06:20
SPRinG looked into the Social
Pedagogic Research into Group-work
0020 10:01:06:20 10:01:12:12
because it was felt
that the major pedagogical position
0021 10:01:12:12 10:01:13:17
of schools in Britain
0022 10:01:13:17 10:01:16:10
is the teacher-pupil relationship,
0023 10:01:16:10 10:01:19:01
as if all the learning
and all the teaching
0024 10:01:19:01 10:01:22:13
is centred on that relationship
between the teacher and the pupils.
0025 10:01:22:13 10:01:25:04
The social pedagogic view
of learning
0026 10:01:25:04 10:01:28:19
is that it's a social process
to learn
0027 10:01:28:19 10:01:33:06
and the other pupils in the class
can teach as well as the teacher.
0028 10:01:33:06 10:01:35:09
But the research was to prove that,
0029 10:01:35:09 10:01:37:17
rather than just have
this intuitive idea.
0030 10:01:37:17 10:01:42:11
This research was aimed at getting
the children both to sit together
0031 10:01:42:11 10:01:44:03
and to work together
0032 10:01:44:03 10:01:47:08
on collaborative tasks,
not individual tasks.
0033 10:01:47:08 10:01:51:02
The researchers
collaborated with the teachers
0034 10:01:51:02 10:01:55:00
and it was through what the teachers
were telling the researchers
0035 10:01:55:00 10:01:56:21
that the activities were developed.
0036 10:01:56:21 10:01:59:14
(narrator) Natalie has used
group work in other schools
0037 10:01:59:14 10:02:02:01
and was keen to introduce
the approach to Goodwyn.
0038 10:02:02:01 10:02:04:09
(Natalie) I've used group work
right through.
0039 10:02:04:09 10:02:07:14
Group work encourages teamwork
and cooperation,
0040 10:02:07:14 10:02:11:05
which are things I think they need
to go, later on, into the world.
0041 10:02:11:05 10:02:14:13
So I think it's helpful
to start it at this age.
0042 10:02:14:13 10:02:19:03
I'm hoping to see how the children
in each group cooperate together,
0043 10:02:19:03 10:02:23:11
whether they stay on task,
whether anybody is excluded,
0044 10:02:23:11 10:02:25:09
and also the role of the teacher -
0045 10:02:25:09 10:02:27:20
what is she doing
when the groups are operating,
0046 10:02:27:20 10:02:32:00
because that's
an important feature of group work.
0047 10:02:33:11 10:02:35:18
(bell rings)
0048 10:02:37:05 10:02:41:01
To start off our lesson,
I'd like you to use your brains,
0049 10:02:41:01 10:02:43:10
and, in pairs,
I'll give you a couple of minutes
0050 10:02:43:10 10:02:48:08
to have a think about anything
you know about the country Brazil.
0051 10:02:48:08 10:02:50:22
- OK?
- (girl) Is it South America?
0052 10:02:50:22 10:02:55:08
Don't forget, Aliya and Olivia,
you're working together.
0053 10:02:55:08 10:02:59:17
- Peru is next to Brazil.
- There are rainforests.
0054 10:02:59:17 10:03:01:18
Zack, what have you and Will
come up with?
0055 10:03:01:18 10:03:04:09
It's a hot country
and there are rainforests.
0056 10:03:04:09 10:03:06:20
(Natalie) OK, good.
Rhianna and Vikram?
0057 10:03:06:20 10:03:10:23
Many people have to beg
for food and money.
0058 10:03:10:23 10:03:13:03
(Natalie) Good.
Charlotte and Sophie?
0059 10:03:13:03 10:03:16:22
It's near Peru
and it's in South America.
0060 10:03:16:22 10:03:21:00
(Natalie) Put your hand up
if you agree it's in South America.
0061 10:03:23:03 10:03:26:10
Right. What we're going to do now
is I'm going to give you some time
0062 10:03:26:10 10:03:30:11
to actually research
some more facts about Brazil, OK?
0063 10:03:30:11 10:03:34:11
And see if you can find out some
more, different things about Brazil.
0064 10:03:34:11 10:03:37:08
To do that, I'm going
to ask you to work in teams.
0065 10:03:37:08 10:03:40:03
OK, so, Lucy, you're going to be
working on the computer,
0066 10:03:40:03 10:03:42:08
and since Kate helped you
pick that colour,
0067 10:03:42:08 10:03:45:03
then perhaps Kate
can work with you for today.
0068 10:03:45:03 10:03:47:12
Rishi, you'll be using
the information sheet
0069 10:03:47:12 10:03:52:08
and I'm going to ask Jonathan
and Emily to work with you on that.
0070 10:03:52:08 10:03:55:11
So you're going
to be looking at the pictures.
0071 10:03:55:11 10:03:57:06
Yellow. Good.
0072 10:03:57:06 10:04:00:00
So you're going to be using
atlases and a globe
0073 10:04:00:00 10:04:01:15
to research all about Brazil.
0074 10:04:01:15 10:04:03:18
So you can first of all ascertain
0075 10:04:03:18 10:04:06:07
that Brazil actually is
in South America. Go.
0076 10:04:10:09 10:04:13:15
Olivia, can you take this
to your group, please?
0077 10:04:13:15 10:04:16:02
They're your pictures.
You've got a book as well.
0078 10:04:16:02 10:04:18:23
Here it is.
0079 10:04:22:16 10:04:24:23
Does anybody else on your table
know what it's of?
0080 10:04:24:23 10:04:29:09
- (girl) Is it a character?
- (girl #2) Is it a goalkeeper?
0081 10:04:29:09 10:04:31:22
(Natalie) OK, good.
Keep going with that.
0082 10:04:33:06 10:04:37:16
Today was very much
a PSHE/geography-based lesson.
0083 10:04:37:16 10:04:42:16
So they were looking at identifying,
first of all, facts about Brazil
0084 10:04:42:16 10:04:44:07
and where it was in the world,
0085 10:04:44:07 10:04:47:23
but then focusing in
on children like Solange.
0086 10:04:47:23 10:04:49:14
Identifying similarities
0087 10:04:49:14 10:04:52:04
between themselves
and children around the world
0088 10:04:52:04 10:04:53:06
and the differences,
0089 10:04:53:06 10:04:57:14
and recognising, actually, they're
quite privileged in a lot of ways.
0090 10:04:57:14 10:05:01:01
In this type of group work,
are there drawbacks or difficulties?
0091 10:05:01:01 10:05:05:07
Sure. Sometimes a child can be a bit
more domineering than the others,
0092 10:05:05:07 10:05:07:05
and they try to take over.
0093 10:05:07:05 10:05:10:06
But what I find really good
is that some of the other children
0094 10:05:10:06 10:05:11:10
don't let them do that.
0095 10:05:11:10 10:05:13:20
So if there is a quieter child
in the group,
0096 10:05:13:20 10:05:17:11
you may have seen today that one of
the other children might have said:
0097 10:05:17:11 10:05:20:11
"Actually, I think so-and-so
should have their say now",
0098 10:05:20:11 10:05:22:09
and perhaps let them talk as well.
0099 10:05:22:09 10:05:25:22
So it's good for making the children
aware of other people's feelings
0100 10:05:25:22 10:05:27:17
and that they
have opinions too.
0101 10:05:27:17 10:05:30:11
You might have a child
that gets slightly distracted
0102 10:05:30:11 10:05:31:21
by being in group work,
0103 10:05:31:21 10:05:34:03
but so long
as you keep the lesson pacey
0104 10:05:34:03 10:05:36:18
and make sure you've given them
set times for things,
0105 10:05:36:18 10:05:38:13
it normally keeps them on task.
0106 10:05:38:13 10:05:40:20
You need to make sure
that all the tasks
0107 10:05:40:20 10:05:43:13
are equally as exciting,
0108 10:05:43:13 10:05:46:15
because if you're doing different
tasks for different groups
0109 10:05:46:15 10:05:49:14
then sometimes the children
can get a bit distracted
0110 10:05:49:14 10:05:53:17
because they're looking at others
thinking, "I wish I was doing that."
0111 10:05:53:17 10:05:55:20
So sometimes a carousel,
0112 10:05:55:20 10:05:59:05
where they rotate and get a chance
to do all of the activities
0113 10:05:59:05 10:06:01:14
is a way to avoid that.
0114 10:06:01:14 10:06:03:20
(narrator) For Tony,
successful group work
0115 10:06:03:20 10:06:06:12
is all about the nature
of these activities.
0116 10:06:06:12 10:06:11:05
The tasks that are well suited
are those that require negotiation,
0117 10:06:11:05 10:06:15:02
sharing of ideas and opinions
not just information.
0118 10:06:15:02 10:06:19:13
That's not the fully blown
type of collaborative group work
0119 10:06:19:13 10:06:22:03
that SPRinG was trying to develop.
0120 10:06:22:03 10:06:24:12
It's more a case
of debating, discussing,
0121 10:06:24:12 10:06:26:18
convincing
the other members of the group
0122 10:06:26:18 10:06:28:23
your point of view
is worth listening to,
0123 10:06:28:23 10:06:33:19
the use of evidence, the habit
of listening to one another
0124 10:06:33:19 10:06:38:05
so that you are actually engaging
with what other people are saying,
0125 10:06:38:05 10:06:41:08
you're not just ploughing on
with your own ideas regardless.
0126 10:06:41:08 10:06:44:14
(narrator) Sport Relief designed
Solange's mystery challenge
0127 10:06:44:14 10:06:47:07
to encourage group discussion
and debate.
0128 10:06:47:07 10:06:50:10
We created Solange's
mystery challenge
0129 10:06:50:10 10:06:52:23
because we wanted to make sure
0130 10:06:52:23 10:06:56:13
that students
could work together as a team
0131 10:06:56:13 10:07:00:00
to discuss the issues
surrounding Solange's life,
0132 10:07:00:00 10:07:02:03
and come up with their own opinions
0133 10:07:02:03 10:07:05:03
around what the answers could be
to the challenge,
0134 10:07:05:03 10:07:10:04
so making sure there's
no real right or wrong answer.
0135 10:07:15:21 10:07:17:22
This girl, her name is Solange,
0136 10:07:17:22 10:07:20:00
and she says she's ten years old -
0137 10:07:20:00 10:07:22:18
so the same age as most of you.
0138 10:07:22:18 10:07:25:04
She loves doing
quite a few things that you like.
0139 10:07:25:04 10:07:29:11
She loves football. Who loves
football? So she loves football.
0140 10:07:29:11 10:07:33:19
She lives with her mum, her sisters,
and she's got five brothers.
0141 10:07:33:19 10:07:35:24
Now, already,
that's quite a large family.
0142 10:07:35:24 10:07:39:09
We're going to have a little think
about Solange today
0143 10:07:39:09 10:07:42:02
because Solange
doesn't actually go to school.
0144 10:07:42:02 10:07:46:04
I want you to think
about the challenges that she faces
0145 10:07:46:04 10:07:49:03
that stop her
from actually going to school, OK?
0146 10:07:49:03 10:07:52:14
And in a minute, in your groups,
you're going to look at some clues.
0147 10:07:52:14 10:07:55:08
These are all clues
about Solange and her family.
0148 10:07:55:08 10:07:58:22
Now, some of them are relevant
to your mystery,
0149 10:07:58:22 10:08:00:24
to your question
that you need to solve,
0150 10:08:00:24 10:08:02:16
but some of them aren't.
0151 10:08:02:16 10:08:06:14
So you need to work out
which ones are actually useful
0152 10:08:06:14 10:08:08:18
to try to solve this problem.
0153 10:08:08:18 10:08:11:09
Don't worry about what the table
next to you is doing.
0154 10:08:11:09 10:08:16:12
Focus on what you think, looking
at your evidence, your clues.
0155 10:08:16:12 10:08:19:09
So, this one, Rhianna?
0156 10:08:19:09 10:08:21:18
Stop taking all the Blu Tack.
0157 10:08:24:11 10:08:29:21
I think we should put the argument
to get everything else in.
0158 10:08:29:21 10:08:34:04
- These are all embarrassed.
- But I don't think they're for her.
0159 10:08:34:04 10:08:38:04
- Shall we write our names?
- Can I write mine?
0160 10:08:38:04 10:08:41:00
(narrator) At the end,
each group reveals the reason
0161 10:08:41:00 10:08:45:02
they feel explains best
why Solange does not go to school.
0162 10:08:45:02 10:08:49:05
She might be embarrassed because
her family lives in a rubbish dump
0163 10:08:49:05 10:08:51:00
and it smells and everything.
0164 10:08:51:00 10:08:53:14
She might be ashamed of it.
0165 10:08:53:14 10:08:57:11
There's lots of reasons why she
might not be able to go to school.
0166 10:08:57:11 10:09:01:05
Which group thinks now that
the biggest challenge she faces
0167 10:09:01:05 10:09:04:00
is actually
Solange's family are too poor?
0168 10:09:04:00 10:09:06:00
Who still thinks that one?
0169 10:09:08:09 10:09:11:10
The two dangers that exist
in this kind of activity
0170 10:09:11:10 10:09:12:21
were both seen today.
0171 10:09:12:21 10:09:17:01
One group had the sheet
with all the pictures attached
0172 10:09:17:01 10:09:20:24
whilst another was still passing
them around and discussing them.
0173 10:09:20:24 10:09:24:06
You do have particular children
that often rush their work
0174 10:09:24:06 10:09:27:06
and they get to the end
before they've really finished,
0175 10:09:27:06 10:09:29:18
before they've thought
carefully about the task.
0176 10:09:29:18 10:09:33:15
If they have a child on their table
that would normally take their time,
0177 10:09:33:15 10:09:35:17
it actually slows them down
0178 10:09:35:17 10:09:38:21
but at the same time
speeds the other child up.
0179 10:09:38:21 10:09:40:20
(Tony) So the peer interaction
0180 10:09:40:20 10:09:44:12
is actually supporting
all the types of children -
0181 10:09:44:12 10:09:47:22
the rushers and the plodders,
as you might call them.
0182 10:09:47:22 10:09:54:08
Schools and teachers differ
in their views about mixed ability,
0183 10:09:54:08 10:09:58:05
and setting and streaming
is very strong in some schools.
0184 10:09:58:05 10:10:01:20
But that is actually counter
to the SPRinG approach,
0185 10:10:01:20 10:10:06:01
which is that all pupils
should learn to respect,
0186 10:10:06:01 10:10:08:00
listen to, collaborate and so on.
0187 10:10:08:00 10:10:12:16
If you're separating children out
in that way as a routine,
0188 10:10:12:16 10:10:16:21
that undermines a benefit of the
collaborative group-work approach.
0189 10:10:16:21 10:10:21:17
I'd like to ask your opinion about
three issues that people focus on
0190 10:10:21:17 10:10:23:11
when they think
about group work.
0191 10:10:23:11 10:10:26:14
First of all,
group work and pupil behaviour.
0192 10:10:26:14 10:10:29:12
You can have a child in the group
distracting the others,
0193 10:10:29:12 10:10:33:00
but, generally, if the children are
interested in what they're doing,
0194 10:10:33:00 10:10:35:14
they'll bring that child
back into it.
0195 10:10:35:14 10:10:40:11
(Tony) Potentially, group work can
improve the behaviour of pupils,
0196 10:10:40:11 10:10:43:16
and one of the findings was it
was an approach that was suitable
0197 10:10:43:16 10:10:47:11
in classes of all types.
0198 10:10:47:11 10:10:51:09
Do you think that, actually,
group work does engage everybody,
0199 10:10:51:09 10:10:52:24
or is there an issue there?
0200 10:10:52:24 10:10:55:23
Again, I think that will depend
on you knowing the children
0201 10:10:55:23 10:10:57:18
and the size of the groups.
0202 10:10:57:18 10:11:01:16
I did use a group of six there,
but that would be quite rare for me
0203 10:11:01:16 10:11:04:09
and, certainly, I wouldn't
use any more than eight
0204 10:11:04:09 10:11:07:22
because you will then have
some children not being involved.
0205 10:11:07:22 10:11:11:08
But if you're using small group
work, that can be very effective,
0206 10:11:11:08 10:11:14:06
and it's very hard for a child
not to be part of the group.
0207 10:11:14:06 10:11:18:21
Group work and pupil attainment.
What's your opinion about that?
0208 10:11:18:21 10:11:21:20
I think as long as you input
properly in the first place
0209 10:11:21:20 10:11:23:17
and gear them
in the right direction,
0210 10:11:23:17 10:11:27:09
this whole idea of questioning
I think is really key,
0211 10:11:27:09 10:11:30:09
and I do believe the children
should learn to question
0212 10:11:30:09 10:11:32:07
instead of just absorbing knowledge.
0213 10:11:32:07 10:11:37:22
This one goes first.
Do you want to stick that one on?
0214 10:11:37:22 10:11:43:06
How would you describe your role
when the groups are operating?
0215 10:11:43:06 10:11:46:12
I think you definitely need
to monitor them.
0216 10:11:46:12 10:11:49:07
You can't sit back and say,
"They're in their groups,
0217 10:11:49:07 10:11:53:05
they'll come to the solution
at the end and everything is fine."
0218 10:11:53:05 10:11:55:17
You need to go round
and make sure they're on task.
0219 10:11:55:17 10:11:58:15
You have to decide
which one out of those four
0220 10:11:58:15 10:12:01:09
you think is the reason
she doesn't go to school.
0221 10:12:01:09 10:12:04:05
If there's more than one
I don't mind if you put down both
0222 10:12:04:05 10:12:05:23
and provide evidence for both.
0223 10:12:05:23 10:12:09:04
Teachers have to learn to stand back
0224 10:12:09:04 10:12:13:14
and let the children struggle with a
whole variety of ideas and opinions
0225 10:12:13:14 10:12:16:06
and work their way through
to a resolution.
0226 10:12:16:06 10:12:18:16
It's this light touch.
0227 10:12:18:16 10:12:25:00
Monitoring, standing, as the project
says, "the guide on the side".
0228 10:12:25:00 10:12:27:20
Do you ever get the pupils
to reflect
0229 10:12:27:20 10:12:31:07
on their own skills at group work?
0230 10:12:31:07 10:12:35:00
I do get the children to reflect
on their own learning skills,
0231 10:12:35:00 10:12:37:12
although thinking about
how they work as groups
0232 10:12:37:12 10:12:39:14
is not something
that comes up that often.
0233 10:12:39:14 10:12:41:22
That is something
I could do more of.
0234 10:12:41:22 10:12:45:01
(narrator) At the end of the lesson,
the video is played
0235 10:12:45:01 10:12:48:22
to show the class
the reality of Solange's situation.
0236 10:12:58:21 10:13:02:08
OK. Now, there was quite a lot
in that video.
0237 10:13:02:08 10:13:05:17
What I'd like you to do
is have a think
0238 10:13:05:17 10:13:08:03
about what challenges you face.
0239 10:13:08:03 10:13:11:17
I'd then like you to think about
the challenges Solange has faced
0240 10:13:11:17 10:13:13:18
through her life so far,
0241 10:13:13:18 10:13:19:02
and think about how, perhaps,
we could help her.
0242 10:13:19:02 10:13:22:23
I'll give you a couple of minutes
to have a discussion on your table
0243 10:13:22:23 10:13:26:07
about ways you think
that you could support her
0244 10:13:26:07 10:13:28:24
and children like Solange.
0245 10:13:28:24 10:13:31:03
Give them a certain amount
of money a month
0246 10:13:31:03 10:13:36:01
so that they can actually live on...
They can actually get proper food.
0247 10:13:48:24 10:13:51:24
Visiontext Subtitles:
Katherine Appleby
0248 10:13:51:24 10:13:53:24