Group Work Teaches Freshmen to Communicate

Group assignments have been used in university education for decades. However, their effectiveness in teaching communication skills to a class of freshmen from diverse educational cultures was a point of concern. This paper studies the effect of a group project on the learning habits and outcomes of freshmen students. Group assignments should be devised to promote collaborative learning and should not make the work easier. Especially with young students the instructor has to actively monitor groups’ progress and ensure that work is divided equally to maximize learning for every group member.