Cliqs
I get students that band together and become useless when devided. I would appreciate any ideas to fix this problem.
thank you.
Are you saying that if they don't get to work with their friends, they don't work at all? If you assign them to separate groups, they will just not participate?
Hi Larisa,
Wow, if this is the case, the instructor needs to assign groups and give zeroes if directives are not followed.
Patricia Scales
I was actually asking Roger for clarification on his concern with cliques. ;)
Hi Larisa,
Students form cliques just like employees form cliques on the job. It is really no way around not forming cliques.
Patricia Scales
Hey Roger I get this a lot. I teach mostly young women and they form cliqs quit a bit. What I have found is that utilizing a seating chart every course, changing who they sit next to for certain periods of time helps to alleviate the cliqs, or broadens the friendships that they develop. Thus, when group work is required, they tend to work well with their newly found friends as well as the old ones. I have changed seating charts every two to three weeks as well, constantly changing who they sit next to in order to prevent the cliqs and thus the other problems that can arise as well and found it to be effective. What I am finding and having difficulty with is young students that have a bad history with other students in my class from events that occurred in high school trying to get them past those old problems. Any thoughts on that?
In my classes I have a code of conduct as part of preparing them for the workforce. No foul language no racial or religious slurs etc. A exercise I found that works very well is verbally firing them and then asking them to explain the consequences of this action. For example cant pay rent,cant take girlfriend out cant pay for Christmas ,things that they have first hand knowledge of reminds them why they are in school and that petty differences when not handled correctly can adversely affect their lives. Once they see the affects they may have on their own lives they eventually star to fire each other which in turn helps me. It works since I started it the other instructors have started adapting it in their classes as well.
Hi Jason,
From time to time at my institution, we will have high school drama to carry over into college. We pull the students in to let them know that this is their first and final warning, any other issues will result into suspsension. The conversation is documented and placed in the students file. They normally get it and cease the nonsense.
Patricia Scales
Hi Roger,
I like it! I can see how this can be a big eye opener for the type of students we deal with.
Patricia Scales
I see cliques in almost every class I teach. I've begun to form groups for group projects completely at random. Over time, they've come to accept the fact that we can't always work with our friends.
I agree multiple group projects when the groups are different each time helps break up the cliques. It might take at least 2 projects for the old groups to weaken and new groups to form. Workplace cliques don't last as long as school cliques. Encouraging new partnerships is a great teaching tool.
My school moves students along in cohorts so that by the time I get them, the cliques are well established and I'm the interloper. I have run into the same problem with the stronger students in the group actually doing the work for the weaker students. We have a very clear policy on this (all students involved receive a zero) but apparently some of the other instructors either don't notice or don't enforce, so it's a rude awakening in my class. I think breaking up the cliques, at least for production, is the only way to get past this problem.
I have the same issue. Most of my students have been together for eight months by the time I get them. My current class is particularly challenging, as I have 18 women and one male. I have assigned them random groups and have had it backfire; catty remarks carried over from class to the online world.
Breaking the students into pairs each day and partners change each day or each couple of days. Though this does not help right away, after a couple of rotations, they will begin to get to know and rely on the other members of the class.
