Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!qucis!dalamb
From: dalamb@qucis.queensu.CA (David Lamb)
Newsgroups: comp.edu
Subject: Re: Group projects
Message-ID: <804@qusunitg.queensu.CA>
Date: 18 Jul 90 16:03:33 GMT
References: <18454@rpp386.cactus.org> <1522@abvax.UUCP> <1990Jul17.120036.8944@pdn.paradyne.com>
Organization: Queen's University, Kingston
Lines: 30

In article <1990Jul17.120036.8944@pdn.paradyne.com> reggie@dinsdale.paradyne.com (George W. Leach) writes:
>      BTW:  I had been burnt on a number of group projects in the past
>due to one member either just not showing up or not pulling his/her
>weight.  The group would receive a grade as a group, so the group was
>responsible.  Having to deal with the situation can be very much like
>real life.

I've run a group project course 7 times; three or four times someone wasn't
pulling their weight.  I handled this by
1. having about 1/2 of the work be "individual responsibility" 
   (a couple of short essays, plus some parts of group deliverables that
    could be clearly identified.  For example, I asked that specs for
    modules be written by individuals)
2. Having about 10% of the grade be "group participation", which I judged by
   observation of group meetings, by "general impression", by reading
   the required weekly logs, and by "personnel reviews" from the other team
   members.
3. For really obvious screwups, where someone completely dropped out of
   producing a joint deliverable, I graded them with very low participation
   (0 in one case), plus graded the individiual as a separate "team" that
   failed to hand in the particular deliverable they missed.
I've never failed anyone yet, though;  my worst cases still contributed
something worth a passing grade, but failed to pull their weight at some
particular point.

David Alex Lamb			ARPA Internet:	David.Lamb@cs.cmu.edu
Department of Computing				dalamb@qucis.queensu.ca
    and Information Science	uucp:   	...!utzoo!utcsri!qucis!dalamb
Queen's University		phone:		(613) 545-6067
Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6