Further Resources

Meeting places on your campus
Sources of further help

Meeting places on your campus

Each institution and each campus will provide different study facilities and you will have to do some research on your campus to find the best place for group work. Some cafe/eating places on campus have suitable ‘corners’ where a group can get some uninterrupted work time. Libraries sometimes have group meeting rooms with tables, chairs and a white board. Or you may be able to use an empty class room. Some campus student guilds/unions have rooms set aside for particular groups and you may be able to access them. If you are lucky, your tutor or course coordinator might have booked extra rooms for use by groups. Good luck finding the right place for your group to work.

Sources of further help

Probably your most important sources of help are other students and staff who can listen as you explore the workings of your group and who may be able to offer ideas and encouragement. Student Learning staff can also be consulted as some of them have specific expertise in this area. Of course, working directly with the others in your group may be the most effective and in the long term provide the best outcome.

Besides people, books are another obvious source of insight and of ways for approaching your group issues. Below is a list of a few of the resources available at Murdoch which you may find helpful.

Gibbs, Graham. 1994. Learning in teams: A student guide. Oxford: The Oxford Centre for Staff Development. ASU 658.402 GIB

Gibbs, Graham. 1994. Learning in teams: A student manual. Oxford: The Oxford Centre for Staff Development. ASU 658.402 GIB

Hunter, Dale et al. 1992. Zen of groups: A handbook for people meeting with a purpose. Hampshire: Gower Publishing. ASU R 302.3 HUN

Jaques, David 1991. Learning in groups.. 2nd edition. London: Kogan Page Limited. ASU 371.3 JAQ

Johnson, David W. and Frank P. Johnson. 1989. Joining together: Group theory and group skills. New Jersey: Prentice Hall Inc. SWL2 302.34 JOH; ASU 302.34 JOH

Kirby, Andy. 1992. Games for Trainers, Volume 1. Aldershot: Gower. ASU 658.3124 KIR Vol 1.

Kirby, Andy. 1992. Games for Trainers, Volume 12 Aldershot: Gower. ASU 658.3124 KIR Vol 2.

Lake, David and Marion Kemp. Working effectively in teams. Murdoch: Murdoch University. ASU

MacCallum, Judy and Jim Macbeth. 1996. Collaborative learning: Working together in small groups [videorecording]. Murdoch: Murdoch University. ASU; Murdoch Videorecordings Library (in Reserve)

Macbeth, Jim and Judy MacCallum. 1996. A users' guide to the video collaborative learning. [with the video] Murdoch: Murdoch University.

Collaborative learning can be a demanding process; sometimes it can also be very frustrating and appear to be getting know where fast, as the saying goes. But, it can also be very creative and invigorating. Learning in groups can help to assuage some of the ‘loneliness’ of individual study and also provide a mechanism for valuing and using a variety of different skills and ablities. Equally important, it provides a place where you can be genuinely cooperative instead of always having to be competitive. We hope this Guide helps your group reach its full potential.

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