Download Group work activities

Group work activities
1. Apprentice task
Each group is required to develop a pitch for a new charity, which will be presented at the residential
experience 20th and 21st October 2010. The pitch will be judged by a panel at the residential (similar
to the Dragon’s Den model of pitching – a short presentation, followed by questions and answers,
although we will not be expecting you to present a business case and economic plan). A prize will be
awarded to the group with the most coherent and persuasive pitch. This will require you to
demonstrate evidence of group work and group participation, searching skills, communication and
creativity.
The following skills and issues for reflection will be developed in this task:








Team work
Communication and presentation skills
Problem solving and decision making
Roles and responsibilities
Creativity and Innovation
Negotiation skills
Understanding strengths and weaknesses
Research searching skills
This should include the following:
 What is the rationale for your choice? Why have you chosen to set up this charity?
 (You will need to research the market to see what already exists to demonstrate that there
is a need for this new charitable organisation, as well as thinking about need)
 What would you call the charity?
 Who would benefit from this organisation?
 What would you like the charity to achieve?
After completing the task, use Gibbs’ reflective cycle to reflect on your learning about your group
working skills. You should use the skills list above to guide your reflection (you may also want to
reflect on your presentational skills). Remember to reflect on your strengths as well as your areas for
development and remember to complete the reflective cycle including an action plan for further
development. Your tutor will provide feedback on your reflection by…….
2. Newspaper task
Each group will design and produce its own newspaper.
Collectively, the group will need to decide:
1. The title of the newspaper.
2. The format
3. Content
Each group member must contribute a 500-750 word written article for the newspaper. These can
include:







Policy reviews
Report of current news items
Reflections on learning
Film reviews (relevant to social work)
Book Reviews (relevant to social work)
Documentary reviews (relevant to social work)
Other items may be included at your discretion (e.g. crosswords, cartoons, recipes etc.), but
remember that this is an academic exercise, and material needs to be suitable for public
display, to avoid offence to any person or group.
There should be a variety of different types of article within the newspaper so you will need to
discuss what you are proposing to do with each other prior to writing the individual articles. Each
article should have at least 3 academic references, accurately cited.
The group will peer review the articles before publication, to advise about the clarity of the
information, grammar, spelling and syntax, accuracy of referencing and credibility of evidence. All
discussions and reviews should be conducted through the discussion board on the XStream site and
minutes of meetings and action points should be posted on the discussion board. You will need to
post articles on the discussion board in good time for them to be reviewed. Your tutor will
periodically log into the discussion board, to offer advice, monitor progress and answer any queries.
Newspapers should be completed by 22nd November 2010.
Completed newspapers will be showcased at Faculty events.
After completing the task, use Gibbs’ reflective cycle to reflect on your learning about your group
working (including peer review) and academic skills (writing, referencing) (You may want to write 2
reflections here to separate the writing and group working elements of the task. You may also want
to reflect on how learning from the previous group work task has informed your working in this task.
Remember to reflect on your strengths as well as your areas for development and remember to
complete the reflective cycle including an action plan for further development. Your tutor will
provide feedback on your reflection by…….
3. Group presentation
Each group will prepare a poster, which showcases a community profile. You should identify an area
of Leeds and produce a poster that demonstrates the characteristics of that area.
The following information should be included:


The age, social class and ethnic composition of the area (this can be found in the 2001
Census)
The services available – e.g. schools, health services, social care services, voluntary
agencies, faith organisations.
The poster should be eye-catching and clear.
You may choose to meet informally in person, but you should also exchange ideas on the discussion
board and the minutes and action plans from any meetings should be posted on the discussion
board. Your tutor will periodically log onto the discussion board to offer advice, monitor progress
and answer any queries.
The posters should be presented on 15th December 2010
After completing the task, use Gibbs’ reflective cycle to reflect on your learning about your group
working skills, data collection and presentational skills. Remember to reflect on your strengths as
well as your areas for development and remember to complete the reflective cycle including an
action plan for further development. Your PPP tutor will provide feedback on your reflection by…….