How can contributions to a group be assessed?

This is an area where students often feel badly treated with many variations on the theme of “I did all the work and [so and so] did nothing and got the same grade as me” appearing in evaluations of group work.

Once again, the University of Melbourne has a very concise guide to the options available (scroll down to part 4 of the linked section) and it makes essential reading.

Some form of self or peer assessment which contributes to the final mark may help to counter perceived unfairness in a group mark. An example of the implementation of group assessment sheets can be found in Heathfield, M. 1999. These sheets require students to self-assess their contributions to the groups using five indicators:

• Regular attendance at group meetings
• Contribution of ideas for the task
• Researching, analysing and preparing material for the task
• Contribution to cooperative group processes
• Supporting and encouraging group members
• Practical contribution to the end product

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