Groups Keep Students Coming
Based on Michael Pritza's article "Getting into Groups" from Focus on Basics, Vol. 2, Issue A. pp.
20-22, March 1998.
Michael Pritza reports that his Gilmer County, Georgia adult education classroom had the typical
problems: diverse ages and abilities, low incomes, and a 34% dropout rate. When brainstorming
ways to increase retention Pritza began to wonder about the way instruction was delivered in his
classroom. His program "had been offering individualized, self-paced study with instructor assis
tance and self-directed computer-based programs." So his research question became: Will group
participation in structured classes and discussion groups increase student motivation and reten
tion? His answer was a resounding "Yes" with an increase of 50% in attendance hours.
To see if Pritza's formula can work for you and your students, try his methodology explained below.
It won't cost you anything and the payoff could be phenomenal!
- Ask your students to respond to a simple questionnaire about possible instructional ap
proaches (included on the next page).
- Interview students individually to determine in which subjects they feel they most need help
and at which point in the process they think help would be most beneficial.
- Begin informal classes by bringing together students who wish to work on related or the same
material. Work together with these students for approximately an hour. Make student input
and participation a major part of the "class" and focus on the concerns with the material that
the students raise. Allow students to lead the answers to questions when possible and allow
students to demonstrate how they solved a similar problem. If you wish, this can become a
regularly scheduled time during the week, allowing students to plan for and save up questions
to bring. For example, reading groups may meet on Mondays, math groups on Tuesdays,
grammar groups on Wednesdays, etc.
- Begin discussion groups. Allow the discussions to be about topics the students select. These
discussion groups may or may not need your direction. These groups can be serving a purpose
even if they are simply a place for students to discuss what is going on in their lives
outside of school. Encourage them to always confront the question, "How is education going
to improve the quality of my life?"
- Keep attendance records and charts, as well as records of group meetings. This should help
you see if group work is positively impacting the work of your students.