I hate group projects!!! Update page 4

[Hannathy]

And at 15, he should be able to go to the teacher and say: this is my portion, the other 2 CHOSE not to do it. and if they teacher can't respect that then maybe the teacher needs to start doing their job and see if they can "make" those students do their work.

well I hope he enjoys his low grade! because what you just said will not fly and they will all get the same grade.

 

[shortbun]

Since a horrible experience in 7th grade, my son has personally done the projects he's been assigned in a group. If someone else contributes, great; if not, he earns the A for the whole group. He's much more peaceful about it now. He has not had one single teacher smart enough to catch on. Doesn't speak well for the teaching profession as my son is not the only kid doing this. If the teachers are trying to teach some moral lesson about co-operation and working together-someone should be teaching them to supervise. Seriously.

 

[NVDisMom]

I think group projects that are not directly monitored by the teacher should be banned. Love the Google Docs idea! DD13, 8th grade, is in an accelerated program and her three core teachers love to assign group projects. They assign the groups and don't pay attention to who is actually doing the work at all. DD has gotten stuck with the same people twice in a row now and, predictably, she is getting stuck with the whole thing again. This time its a month long global issues unit on civil rights. Research, power point presentation, script for skit, costumes,poster, community service project, etc. She is doing it all. The teachers assured the parents earlier in the year that they are aware of inequalities on group work and the kids are graded appropriately, but we have no proof of that. Quite honestly, if you know there is a problem start putting the kids together that always do the work and the kids together that never do the work. See how it turns out then! The work load share on a project like this all by yourself isn't fair, even if you get full credit for it. The poor kid has been working her tail off to get it done. I totally believe in life not being fair, but in this instance it only teaches the motivated kids to never rely on anyone and the unmotivated that they can skate by.

 

[hereyago]

well I hope he enjoys his low grade! because what you just said will not fly and they will all get the same grade.

if my kid only did her part because the other 2 wouldn't, if she did get a bad grade, it would be ok because she would have her principles. And 1 bad grade wouldn't be devastating to her or myself.

You would rather your kid just cave and enable the other 2 students?

You would be surprised at teachers if they have worth would say or do. If a teacher can't "make " a student do something then my kid isn't going to be able to either.

but these 'group projects' should all be done in school around the teacher.

 

[Northstar]

I really REALLY hate group projects for this very reason. Not every kid is conscientious about their work, and there is a slacker in every group. Either the good workers get penalized, or the slacker gets a grade they don't deserve.

Please don't tell me that this is "life". I know stuff happens, but things like this really annoy the crap out of me.

Sorry, but this is life.

I hate group projects too. But I'm hating them at my place of employment.

Group projects with all the group politics and drama and slackers and control freaks are a fact of life.

But you are free to have it annoy the crap out of you. It sure annoys me.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

My DS 15 came home today with a "group" project that was assigned in class. The project is a three paragraph essay for History on Richard Nixon.

My DS is a decent student, pulling a B in the class all three quarters, and is the type of kid who isn't particularly "popular" (hate that word) but is friends with everyone.

The students in the class chose their own groups. My DS got "stuck with" two kids who are pretty much failing the class because they don't do their work. He said that everyone paired up before he could get with someone else.

Well, the two other kids fooled around and didn't get anything done, so my DS feels that it is his responsibility to write the essay and hand it in. He told the kids he'd do it. He told me that he didn't trust them to do their part and he'd rather just do it himself, even if it gives them an undeserving grade. He's more worried about his own grade than theirs.

I don't know how he should handle this with the teacher. Should he tell him that he did the work because they didn't help?

I really REALLY hate group projects for this very reason. Not every kid is conscientious about their work, and there is a slacker in every group. Either the good workers get penalized, or the slacker gets a grade they don't deserve.

Please don't tell me that this is "life". I know stuff happens, but things like this really annoy the crap out of me.

He should do the work and move on with life. Sucks he got paired with the slackers.

My 14yodd always "does the work" and the other students benefits. Teacher knows it but what can you do.

She has done several projects this semester already. Be thanful it is only 1 project is all I can say.

 

[si-am]

Since a horrible experience in 7th grade, my son has personally done the projects he's been assigned in a group. If someone else contributes, great; if not, he earns the A for the whole group. He's much more peaceful about it now. He has not had one single teacher smart enough to catch on. Doesn't speak well for the teaching profession as my son is not the only kid doing this. If the teachers are trying to teach some moral lesson about co-operation and working together-someone should be teaching them to supervise. Seriously.

I actually hated being in groups with kids who were kind of controlling and insisted on doing everything their way. In a way that's more annoying than kids who slack off.

 

[Hannathy]

Since a horrible experience in 7th grade, my son has personally done the projects he's been assigned in a group. If someone else contributes, great; if not, he earns the A for the whole group. He's much more peaceful about it now. He has not had one single teacher smart enough to catch on. Doesn't speak well for the teaching profession as my son is not the only kid doing this. If the teachers are trying to teach some moral lesson about co-operation and working together-someone should be teaching them to supervise. Seriously.

Yeah my DD has been in this spot many times. She is actually in the same spot now in college in Chem. she has worthless lab partners, one who doesn't come half the time and one who just slaps things together as long as it is done. My DD is pre-med and needs the A so she just ends up rewritting all the labs before they get turned in and more or less doing the whole thing only using their values. even if they have done a part she has to go over it and check (and usually fix something cause they are thrilled with a B) before turning it in. And they are usually late getting the things to her.

 

[onelilspark]

I've always faced the same issue during school when we did group projects (yes, including college.) There are two choices, your son does it well and gets a good grade or he can just do his "part" and risk the entire group being penalized. Life's not fair (I know you don't want to hear it, but well...it's true.)

At work, I've been assigned to groups and couldn't get other members to focus, so guess who did it? Yeah...me. I was never crazy about it, but guess what? In the "real world" no one really cares who did the work, just that it got done correctly. And as a PP mentioned, the teacher (or boss) knows who really did the work anyway

 

[LilyWDW]

Tell your kid to get used to it... they love group work in college too (undergrad and grad)! Now, luckily, once you get to the college level most professors allow you to "grade" your group members. This is one of my favorite parts of it, even though I seem to have peeved someone off this semester.

Then again, this person did 0 work on the project and didn't even show up to the group meeting HE insisted on having.

 

[scrapquitler]

My DS 15 came home today with a "group" project that was assigned in class. The project is a three paragraph essay for History on Richard Nixon.

My DS is a decent student, pulling a B in the class all three quarters, and is the type of kid who isn't particularly "popular" (hate that word) but is friends with everyone.

The students in the class chose their own groups. My DS got "stuck with" two kids who are pretty much failing the class because they don't do their work. He said that everyone paired up before he could get with someone else.

Well, the two other kids fooled around and didn't get anything done, so my DS feels that it is his responsibility to write the essay and hand it in. He told the kids he'd do it. He told me that he didn't trust them to do their part and he'd rather just do it himself, even if it gives them an undeserving grade. He's more worried about his own grade than theirs.

I don't know how he should handle this with the teacher. Should he tell him that he did the work because they didn't help?

I really REALLY hate group projects for this very reason. Not every kid is conscientious about their work, and there is a slacker in every group. Either the good workers get penalized, or the slacker gets a grade they don't deserve.

Please don't tell me that this is "life". I know stuff happens, but things like this really annoy the crap out of me.

I could have written this same exact post My DD14 has been homeschooled up until this year, and now she is a freshman and it seems like they have group projects galore. Every time she gets a project, she pretty much tells the kids to let her do it all, she doesn't want her grade to suffer because they are slacking off. Now I don't know if they really are or not, but she's always complaining that nobody pays attention or participates during class and that nobody has done the homework, so maybe? I keep telling her to talk to the teachers, but she won't. So we just get annoyed about it here in my house.

 

[Minnie]

That definitely stinks - only 2 options as this will happen all the way through grad school and heck in many careers all the way through his career too.....

- do the work for the group

- score low on the assignment

Graduated up with a 4.0 MBA - bet u can tell which route I chose

 

[marcyinPA]

seriously I would be more worried that a 15 yr old is assigned a 3 paragraph paper as a group project and given an entire class and evening to do it! What in the world do you call that? my 6th grader writes 3 paragraph papers as homework without class work time. I would be worried he isn't being prepared for college.


Past that I hate group projects but the teachers all love them and 1 or 2 almost always do most of the work. In this case for this tiny amount of work I wouldn't do anything about it. but it has happened on every project my children have ever been assigned.

And I would NEVER go talk to a 15 yr olds teacher for them until they had talked to them and only if it was a major problem.

He had a lengthy term paper due two weeks ago, so he is getting way more assignments than just this crappy little three paragraph essay...not too concerned there. He is learning a lot, and it's "sticking", which is good. This is not an honors class, by the way. It's just a regular, academic class.

And I agree...I would NEVER talk to his teacher about it either...that's why I want my SON to talk to him!

 

[si-am]

I could have written this same exact post My DD14 has been homeschooled up until this year, and now she is a freshman and it seems like they have group projects galore. Every time she gets a project, she pretty much tells the kids to let her do it all, she doesn't want her grade to suffer because they are slacking off. Now I don't know if they really are or not, but she's always complaining that nobody pays attention or participates during class and that nobody has done the homework, so maybe? I keep telling her to talk to the teachers, but she won't. So we just get annoyed about it here in my house.

See, I just don't get this attitude. Is she giving the other kids a chance?

If someone told my kid that during groupwork, *I'D* be talking to the principal about rotten partners.

 

[LilyWDW]

See, I just don't get this attitude. Is she giving the other kids a chance?

If someone told my kid that during groupwork, *I'D* be talking to the principal about rotten partners.

I was wondering the same thing. Is she even giving them a shot at doing something? If not, then she's not really doing the project correctly either.

 

[scrapquitler]

See, I just don't get this attitude. Is she giving the other kids a chance?

If someone told my kid that during groupwork, *I'D* be talking to the principal about rotten partners.

Yep. When the project is due like two weeks after it is assigned, other kids don't do the parts they were supposed to do and the project is due the next day, THEN she says she's going to finish it and do it herself.

With one project for HIstory class, her 'partners' divided the work up amongst the group The day before the project was due, one partner brought in a piece of poster board. Another suggested a title for the poster. Neither had done the research portions they had agreed to do. At that point, my DD panicked and since she had done all the research (which nobody else had done any) THEN she said, Give me the poster board and I'll write it up. They all got A's. Those other students are not getting anything like A's in the class according to what my daughter says.

It's not like she's starting the project and taking over from the get-go. As far as I can tell (and admittedly, I'm not in school all day, so I don't know for sure, but she does have all A's so far, and I know SHE isn't slacking off), she's trying very hard to work within the parameters of a group project, but when you have a bunch of people who don't do ANYTHING, what else is there to do? She's not willing to make her own grade suffer because other kids aren't interested in doing the work. She's picking up and covering herself. Unfortunately, not everyone does their part.

 

[si-am]

Yep. When the project is due like two weeks after it is assigned, other kids don't do the parts they were supposed to do and the project is due the next day, THEN she says she's going to finish it and do it herself.

With one project for HIstory class, her 'partners' divided the work up amongst the group The day before the project was due, one partner brought in a piece of poster board. Another suggested a title for the poster. Neither had done the research portions they had agreed to do. At that point, my DD panicked and since she had done all the research (which nobody else had done any) THEN she said, Give me the poster board and I'll write it up. They all got A's. Those other students are not getting anything like A's in the class according to what my daughter says.

It's not like she's starting the project and taking over from the get-go. As far as I can tell (and admittedly, I'm not in school all day, so I don't know for sure, but she does have all A's so far, and I know SHE isn't slacking off), she's trying very hard to work within the parameters of a group project, but when you have a bunch of people who don't do ANYTHING, what else is there to do? She's not willing to make her own grade suffer because other kids aren't interested in doing the work. She's picking up and covering herself. Unfortunately, not everyone does their part.

Well that's not exactly what your first post said.

 

[LilyWDW]

It's not like she's starting the project and taking over from the get-go. As far as I can tell (and admittedly, I'm not in school all day, so I don't know for sure, but she does have all A's so far, and I know SHE isn't slacking off), she's trying very hard to work within the parameters of a group project, but when you have a bunch of people who don't do ANYTHING, what else is there to do? She's not willing to make her own grade suffer because other kids aren't interested in doing the work. She's picking up and covering herself. Unfortunately, not everyone does their part.

Ah, good.

Every time she gets a project, she pretty much tells the kids to let her do it all, she doesn't want her grade to suffer because they are slacking off.

I honestly read this as she gets the project and just tells them THEN to let her do it. I'm glad you cleared that up because I was like "WHAT!!??"

Now I admit, when it comes to research, I always do it all... even if someone else was supposed to do it. Once the research is done, most of the rest of the project (presentation, paper, ect) is easy. So I do cover my own butt by having the information I found on hand JUST in case. Then again, I am a bit of a control freak and nothing frustrates me more then people who wait until the last second to do anything.

 

[gator75]

This very thing happened to my son last year in 7th grade. The child he was paired up with by teacher was in in school suspension, so my ds said that he had to go into the suspension room with these kids ,and do this project. As it turns out ds and the group received an a on the project and ds was the only one that did any work. hHe told the teacher that he didn't think it was right that he earned the A for the group, and did all the work and they still all received the same grade. Teacher didn't change her mind either so i know how your ds feels.

 

[Mermaid02]

In 7th grade my dd went to speak with the vice principal because when the kids grouped for a project (students choice) the teacher told dd's group they couldn't work together..... not because they were trouble makers but because they were TOO SMART. That's right, the smart kids couldn't work together. These kids all worked on the same level, all cared about their grades and all would have contributed equally. Instead the teacher broke them up and each one did pretty much an entire project for their new group.