Social Skills for Successful Group Learning

A few habits of mind that students struggle to develop include the following:

1. Persisting: I think students are very used to instant gratification. With the technology they've grown up with, it's very easy to get the answer/results we want, and get them fast. However, when it comes to problem-solving and working with others, sometimes there are roadblocks with no easy solutions. I think students often want to just give up and move on, rather than keep trying to find new solutions. 
2. Thinking Interdependently: In the age of COVID, many students have gotten used to working alone. I'm trying to bring groupwork back into the classroom (hence why I am brushing up on my own skills by completing this badge!) and I think they are very rusty when it comes to working with others. They have their own ideas and struggle to hear those of their classmates and compromise/change their own opinion when necessary. I do see success with teamwork in some instances, but oftentimes students are sitting there, doing their own thing, even when "roles" are assigned. They just don't want to put forth the effort to actually communicate. They tend to look for the path of least resistance, and working with others requires effort. 

Elusive Habits of Mind for Students

Persisting - Today many students lack grit and persistence. Students want a quick completion of work and want things to come easily. I have one student in particular who gets out their math homework each day in resource room and says, "I don't know how to do this." When I ask them what specifically they don't know how to do, they respond, "All of it." Each time, I follow up with the same tertiary question, "Did you read the question?" to which the student curtly responds, "No".  Student often struggle with persistence because they have not been given the time and situations to struggle and try to think their way out. If something is difficult or uninteresting to students, they will oftentimes not feel that the need to persist is necessary because they find it unpleasant. This could possibly be, in part, attributed to the emphasis that has been placed on grades and standardized testing; We have lost our way, unable to see the value in trying situations and the process of learning. 

Managing Impulsivity - From my observation, Computer-based assessment has increased the opportunity and frequency of impulsivity. Several students I have worked with are "happy clickers", clicking through ,computer-based assessments just to be done with it. This may also be associated with the lack of persistence in students.

Responding with Wonderment and Awe - Plainly said, students don't get jazzed about learning. School is a place to come for food, socialization, and perhaps clubs and/or sports; Learning in classrooms is a waiting room to the students' actual desire to attend (beyond compulsory requirement). Students now spend so much time on social media, often through filters that depict an ideal and unrealistic beauty. Students have less contact with nature and the beauty of the natural world. Many students don't care about the founding of our nation because it's just a bunch of "dead white guys who owned slaves". With the instant gratification that social media provides, students oftentimes just live in the moment and only care about likes, comments, and followers. Without intrinsic values and passions beyond a small screen, it is indeed difficult to feel any wonder or awe, much less respond with it.

One Habit of Mind I believe students struggle with is Persisting.  I work with younger students, so I find this especially true.  I believe some of this is often because a student may struggle with certain tasks.  A student who is much better at math will be more persistent than one who struggles.  I also believe that students often work on tasks, but don't know why they do.  Teachers can tell students that a certain skill is important to learn, but students many times don't really know why.  An adult may complete a task for their job that may be difficult, but they understand why it's important that they complete it.  Students many times only understand that the task is required as a student.
A second area is Managing Impulsivity.  Some students just want to complete a task as fast as they can, regardless of their effort.  This can be especially true if the task is difficult.  I believe this goes back to understanding (or not) why the task is important.  This also applies to acting before thinking things through.  This often involves understanding empathy, knowing there are consequences for actions, and sometimes simply, not having self-control.  
A third Habit of Mind I believe students struggle to develop is Striving for Accuracy.  Students are often told to "check it over", "take your time", etc., yet often times fail to do so.  I believe this again has to do with not taking pride in their work.  I believe this is due to finding the work difficult, where checking over the work is also difficult.  I also believe that, again, many students don't know why they're doing the task.  For example, if it's writing a paragraph for the teacher, they may not put much effort in.  If they're told the pieces will be on display for an open house, then they may have more of a buy-in, thereby putting more effort in and having more attention to detail.

I think that three of the skills that my students struggle with the most are posing questions, taking responsible risks, and perseverance. I think that students' previous experiences in schools focus more on the acquisition rather than formation of knowledge. I wonder to what extend a culture of correctable formative assessments and standards based grading would help students gain an environment with low-stakes practice and flexible timelines that would allow them to take risks and try again when they don't find success without being punished for it. 

Some students have excellent social skills, but there are some students who have difficulty with it. Students need to understand the emotions and feelings of others, and building empathy will bring a stronger relationship with the group. Students also must be an active listener - some students are often too distracted from other groups and interactions. Some students simply do not pay attention to the speaker. Showing respect to one another will help the social skills - we can avoid being interrupted and disrupted during the group work. We can make sure we stay on task - there will be a time for stories after the groupwork is complete. Students need to learn conflict resolution; without conflict resolution, students are going to more than likely rely on other people to solve problems. 

Students often struggle with various social skills when working in groups. There are times where students don't use active listening skills because they are convinced that their opinion or thought is correct.  Students need to work on listening with understanding and empathy by giving the speaker their undivided attention when they are talking. They also need to work on being aware of how others are feeling and being in tune with their emotions. When we are activity listening, group members will feel respected and comfortable sharing ideas and voicing opinions. This leads to the next point of relationship management. Students often prefer to work with their friends and people they feel comfortable with rather than working with someone new. Students need to remain respectful if they are assigned to a group of people they don't normally work with. Students need to be aware and of their feelings and how they are expressing those feelings if they are working with someone they don't know or don't get along with. By keeping a positive attitude and thinking about how their negative words/actions could affect someone else, they could avoid these altercations and work towards working cooperatively in their new group.



Be aware of how you affect others. 

Effective communication, conflict resolution and managing impulsivity are three things students struggle with. This is also dependent on age. For example, a 6 year old student isn't able to resolve conflict and often tell an adult to solve the problems for them. They wait for the adult to hand out the consequences of certain conflicts. Along these lines, students have a hard time communicating their feelings in a respectful or controlled manner. When it comes to impulsivity, young students have a hard time because when they want something, want to share a story, etc. they go for it without thinking how interrupting others may be disrespectful or taking something could have negative consequences.