Higher education institutions need to prepare faculty for teaching collaboration in the classroom. Career service advisors state that a common question asked by prospective employers looking at hiring graduating students is how well can the applicant work on a team. Shortcomings in developing collaborative learning continue to occur in the classroom due to students and instructors not experiencing success with the use of team projects. Effective teams come from students' energy being used to solve problems, make decisions, and apply knowledge to real-world settings. A majority of employers (56%) express satisfaction with the job colleges and universities are doing to prepare graduates for success in the workplace, but more than two in five indicate there is room for improvement (Hart Research Associates, 2013). The desired outcome is having more graduates with a solid background in team building and group dynamic skills. The positive results in teams and their member achieving balance between individual autonomy and collective action. Instructors were interviewed about issues they have in using teams in their classes. Based on the results recommendations were made for using teams more effectively.

The book is divided into five parts representing five key issues discussed at the workshop, with the call for contributions to this book framed around the following topic areas: 1. Organisation - team size and composition, supporting with sessions such as lectures and tutorials, sourcing projects, ways in which tutors monitor progress and provide guidance. 2. Management – strategies and tools for teams to use for project management, and ways in which students manage their project progress. 3. Assessment - issues of individual participation, how to assess learning, skills and personal development. Assessment of process and/or product, and fairness in group assessing. 4. Development of skills - using team projects to provide opportunities, getting students to recognise them, and reflection on learning and self development. 5. Differences from the workplace – preparing students for global team working.

This book examines what collaboration means in practice, and the factors that enable effective team collaboration for learning and teaching in higher education. It explains how academics can work more collaboratively, and how universities can organise and govern themselves by means of collaboration. The book brings together current research and commentaries on collaboration in higher education to provide important guidance derived from a synthesis and evaluation of the existing empirical research and commentaries in the field. The book will benefit all readers who are interested in making their own teams and higher education organisations more collaborative. It will help them plan collaborative innovations in their organisations, identify priorities for professional capacity building, and design collaborative organisational structures.

A guide to thirty-five creative assignments for pairs and groups Collaborative Learning Techniques is the bestseller that college and university faculty around the world have used to help them make the most of small group learning. A mountain of evidence shows that students who learn in small groups together exhibit higher academic achievement, motivation, and satisfaction than those who don't. Collaborative learning puts into practice the major conclusion from learning theory: that students must be actively engaged in building their own minds. In this book, the authors synthesize the relevant research and theory to support thirty-five collaborative learning activities for use in both traditional and online classrooms. This second edition reflects the changed world of higher education. New technologies have opened up endless possibilities for college teaching, but it's not always easy to use these technologies effectively. Updated to address the challenges of today's new teaching environments, including online, "flipped," and large lectures, Collaborative Learning Techniques is a wonderful reference for educators who want to make the most of any course environment. This revised and expanded edition includes: Additional techniques, with an all-new chapter on using games to provide exciting, current, technologically-sophisticated curricula A section on effective online implementation for each of the thirty-five techniques Significantly expanded pedagogical rationale and updates on the latest research showing how and why collaborative learning works Examples for implementing collaborative learning techniques in a variety of learning environments, including large lecture classes and "flipped" classes Expanded guidance on how to solve common problems associated with group work The authors guide instructors through all aspects of group work, providing a solid grounding in what to do, how to do it, and why it is important for student learning. The detailed procedures in Collaborative Learning Techniques will help teachers make sure group activities go smoothly, no matter the size or delivery method of their classes. With practical advice on how to form student groups, assign roles, build team spirit, address unexpected problems, and evaluate and grade student participation, this new edition of the international classic makes incorporating effective group work easy.

This book provides needed guidance and advice for how colleges and universities can reorganize to foster more collaborative work. In a time of declining resources, financial challenges, changing demographics, and staff overturn, institutions are looking for ways to maximize their resources and still be effective. This book is based on a study of campuses that have been successful in recreating their environments to support collaborative work.

Members of today’s online educational settings are often isolated which can prohibit the sharing of ideas and best practices among individuals working and learning as a collective group. Promoting collaboration across various disciplines and departments fosters professional development activities, as well as creates strong connections to the entire online community. Building Online Communities in Higher Education Institutions: Creating Collaborative Experience cultivates knowledge on topics pertaining to the improvement of communication and collaboration in online learning communities. Advancing the current scope of research in this field, this book is designed for use by faculty, students, researchers, practitioners, and college administrators interested in strengthening communication and collaboration in virtual settings.

This book addresses computer-supported collaborative learning (also known as CSCL) particularly within a tertiary education environment. It includes articles on theory and practice in this area including topics such as: how can groups with shared goals work collaboratively using the new technologies? What problems can be expected, and what are the benefits? In what ways does online group work differ from face-to-face group work? And what implications are there for both educators and students seeking to work in this area?

Advocates a far-reaching change in the relations between college and university professors and their students, between the learned and the learning.

This book describes team-based learning (TBL), an unusually powerful and versatile teaching strategy that enables teachers to take small group learning to a whole new level of effectiveness. It is the only pedagogical use of small groups that is based on a recognition of the critical difference between "groups" and "teams", and intentionally employs specific procedures to transform newly-formed groups into high performance learning teams.This book is a complete guide to implementing TBL in a way that will promote the deep learning all teachers strive for. This is a teaching strategy that promotes critical thinking, collaboration, mastery of discipline knowledge, and the ability to apply it.Part I covers the basics, beginning with an analysis of the relative merits and limitations of small groups and teams. It then sets out the processes, with much practical advice, for transforming small groups into cohesive teams, for creating effective assignments and thinking through the implications of team-based learning.In Part II teachers from disciplines as varied as accounting, biology, business, ecology, chemistry, health education and law describe their use of team-based learning. They also demonstrate how this teaching strategy can be applied equally effectively in environments such as large classes, mixed traditional and on-line classes, and with highly diverse student populations.Part III offers a synopsis of the major lessons to be learned from the experiences of the teachers who have used TBL, as described in Part II. For teachers contemplating the use of TBL, this section provides answers to key questions, e.g., whether to use team-based learning, what it takes to make it work effectively, and what benefits one can expect from it–for the teacher as well as for the learners.The appendices answer frequently asked questions, include useful forms and exercises, and offer advice on peer evaluations and grading. A related Web site that allows readers to “continue the conversation,” view video material, access indexed descriptions of applications in various disciplines and post questions further enriches the book. The editors’ claim that team-based instruction can transform the quality of student learning is fully supported by the empirical evidence and examples they present. An important book for all teachers in higher education.