Transform for Tomorrow: Transform Group Work

Presented by: Amanda Frampton, Microsoft Learning Delivery Specialist

Now that we have all started our journey with Microsoft Teams and have discovered its potential as the ultimate Digital Classroom, we can start to explore how we can really start to change the way we support students when working collaboratively.

Microsoft Teams offers features that allow you to design a collaborative student workflow for your classes. The way in which you structure your channels in Teams can provide groups of students with exclusive private spaces to discuss, store and co-author Office Docs for group projects they have been assigned. See instructions on Creating Channels and Private Channels.

When working collaboratively in Office Docs within Teams, students can run a real time conversation within the documents and use the comments features to keep track of changes and make notes. Find out how to use Comments.

We all have those students who are dead silent during face to face group discussions – use Teams to facilitate powerful group discussions that will give every student a voice. Give the students the power of emojis to offer their support to their colleagues during discussions as well. See more on how you can set up an empowered classroom in Teams.

Even though we are back face to face with our students, Teams Meetings still have their place. Check in with your groups using meetings in group channels and record these so students can reference feedback and advice after the meetings completion.

Recently we asked our MIE Experts for their feedback on structuring their class Team channels and they all came back with examples on how they were using it for group work.

Michelle Dennis – Strathcona Baptist Girls Grammar School, Canterbury, Victoria

I use this structure for Year 8 Digital Futures because my students are working on a longer-term video editing project. Their challenge is to create a collaborative video from afar for our film festival project – https://www.co-videofestival.com. To help with this, I set up channels for each team. We meet together at the beginning of class, then they move into their own channels to collaborate.

In the Notebook for each of their channels, they draw the storyboard, which I approve and give feedback to.

They use the file component in their group channel to put their video files. Then they sync that folder to their computer to edit the videos in Adobe Premiere Rush.

When they need help, they tag me to join their channel.

I can tell that they’re working together in a video chat by the icon next to each channel. I can join any of their group meetings to check their progress, motivate and ask questions.

Another staff member at Strathcona Baptist Girls Grammar School structures her group channels differently. By using generic names, she can split the students into different groups each class.   At the end of every session, students need to reply to the Exit Slip Question. This allows students to share their understandings, keeps them on task, and gives her the opportunity to provide formative feedback.

Andrew Cornwell – St Bede’s Catholic College, Chisholm, NSW , chooses Private channels for group work in his class Teams.

Visit our Microsoft Educator Centre to learn more:

Crafting a collaborative learning environment with Class Teams

Transform Learning with Microsoft Teams