Group tasks in English 7–10
An overview of the resources and activities dedicated to group work provided in the English 7–10 sample programs.
The overview and examples provide support to English teachers as they cater to the needs of diverse learners and enact the English K–10 Syllabus (NESA 2022).
Collaborative group work creates a forum for teaching positive social behaviours such as teamwork, sharing and leadership. It may be important to consider how group work can be tailored for students’ specific communication needs.
Examples of group work tasks in the sample programs
The following examples from the English 7–10 resources demonstrate how group work can be used in a range of contexts. This may include group work formal assessment tasks, facilitating peer learning through discussions and facilitating collaborative feedback. Group tasks can also be a valuable way to build dramatic and creative skills in English.
Summary and benefits
Group work assessments support students to develop communication and social skills such as cooperation and empathy. Students develop skills in problem-solving and critical thinking as they engage with a diverse range of perspectives and ideas.
Examples can be found in:
- 'Digital stories' – 10.4, Phase 5, Core formative task 1 – proposal and plan (group work): students prepare for collaboration on their group work assessment task, then they collaborate to transform a written text into an interactive multimodal digital text
- 'Shining a new (stage) light' – 9.2, Phase 2, Core formative task 1 – co-constructed paragraph: students work with a partner or in small groups to co-construct an analytical paragraph, then they use the steps outlined in Phase 2, activity 4 – responding to a question to plan for and compose their answer
- 'Poetic purpose' – 9.3, Phase 6, activity 9 – structuring your ideas: in pairs, students plan, create and record an 8–10 minute podcast for their formal assessment task, exploring how a provided statement relates to the poetry they have studied in class.
Summary and benefits
Small group discussions help students to express their ideas confidently, think critically and engage with diverse perspectives before contributing to larger conversations in the classroom.
Examples can be found in:
- ‘Escape into the world of the novel’ – 7.3, Phase 2, activity 5 – think, puzzle: in small groups, students explore prompt questions and discuss their experiences with the form and function of novels
- ‘Exploring the speculative’ – 9.4, Phase 2, Core formative task 2 – reflecting on self-selected texts: students use group discussion to facilitate deeper reflection on texts
- ‘Representation of life experiences’ – 9.1, Phase 1, resource 1 – what matters to young people? students explore their own thoughts on issues that matter to young people and then work with a group to compare their answers and extend their understanding
- ‘Reshaping the world’ – 10.2, Phase 3, activity 1 – Wordsworth quotations: students are placed into groups of 4 to complete an evidence gathering activity and then everyone in the group is allocated a quote from William Wordsworth, which they discuss with their group and then jointly record what the quote can infer about the poet.
Summary and benefits
Peer feedback increases engagement and provides students with valuable insights into how to improve their work. This type of group feedback is most effective when students collaboratively establish specific feedback criteria beforehand.
Examples can be found in:
- ‘Speak the speech’ – 7.4, Core formative task 3 – feedback on speech delivery: students are provided with planning and structured feedback supports that enable them to provide constructive feedback to their peers on a class speaking task
- ‘Transport me to the real’ – 8.2, Phase 6, activity 4 – peer feedback: students write a letter to a character in their core text then share their writing with a peer for constructive feedback using editing strategies to support the writing process
- ‘Representation of life experiences’ – 9.1, Phase 3, sequence 4 – exploring 'Monsters and Mice': students experiment using anthropomorphism in their own compositions, then work in small groups to share and provide feedback on their writing.
Summary and benefits
A collaborative approach to teaching dramatic texts allows students to explore performance texts with their peers, building confidence in performance skills. This approach deepens students understanding of the text and how performance conventions shape meaning.
Examples can be found in:
- ‘From page to stage’ – 8.3, Phase 3, sequence 2 – the power of performance: students are guided to apply the performance conventions of drama to stimulate an interest in studying a play and are then supported to develop their drama skills through small group reading, performing a scene and using drama conventions
- ‘Shining a new (stage) light’ – 9.2, Phase 5, resource 3 – exploring dramatic possibilities: students are guided to recreate the opening scene from 'Tales from the Arabian Nights', working in small groups they create a tableau for an action, emotion or moment from the scene
- ‘Speak the speech’ – 7.4, Phase 4b, sequence 3 – story, theme and perspective in drama: students work in pairs to make predictions about a scene, then prepare a reader’s theatre performance focussing on the impact of reading style at the turning point of a scene.
Summary and benefits
The collaborative creation of texts allows students to explore the language features of texts in a low-stakes environment. Students can share their knowledge of text structures and language features to extend their shared understanding.
Examples can be found in:
- ‘From page to stage’ – 8.3, Phase 1, sequence 1 – what is a pitch: students are supported to collaborate in small groups to create, deliver and provide feedback on a short sales pitch for a given product
- ‘Seeing through a text’ – 7.2, Phase 6, activity 4 – features of an informative report jigsaw: students work collaboratively to develop an understanding of the features of a multimodal report
- ‘Representation of life experiences’ – 9.1, Phase 2, sequence 4 – exploring the textual concept of representation: students reflect on the representation of ‘home’ by collaborating to develop a Microsoft PowerPoint with visuals and words that represent their personal idea of ‘home’, sharing the reasons for their choices with the class
- ‘Exploring the speculative’ – 9.4, Phase 5, activity 4 – guided discussion: students review each group member’s ‘exquisite corpse’ imaginative composition. Students have specific role descriptions, such as the Leader, the Summariser, the Word Master, the Passage person and the Connector to facilitate a productive group discussion and analysis
- ‘Novel voices’ – 10.1, Phase 4, sequence 6 – the structural role of characters: students improve their individually written study guide responses by working collaboratively and sharing responses, then collaborate to create a study guide entry for a digital platform such as Microsoft Sway or Google Site.
Preparing students for a collaborative group task
The following resource provides a list of considerations and suggestions for preparing students for a collaborative group task.
Effectively grouping students
Where students do not have the prosocial or collaborative skills to self-select their groups:
- arrange the class in mixed ability grouping
- consider the individual personalities and existing dynamics of the class
- try to ensure each group has a ‘natural leader’ to guide collaboration and mediate any issues that may arise
- include a mixture of students with strengths in technology, organisation and leadership in each group
- allow students time to allocate group roles, consider grouping students with at least one ‘buddy’ to ensure students feel safe and respected within their group.
Facilitating groupwork that requires technology
Many group work activities in the sample teaching and learning programs and the sample formal assessment tasks require access to technology. To support the success of these activities:
- book computer labs, library computers or laptop banks well in advance
- ensure students have access to headphones, computer mice and microphones, as required
- ensure students have access to a quiet space to record voiceovers, as required
- ensure students have space to sit together, so they can discuss aspects of their group composition.
Managing respectful group interactions
Working as a group can be challenging. To support the success of students working collaboratively:
- ensure all groups establish group norms and equitably allocate group roles
- remind all students about the importance of inclusion and respect as the basis of effective collaboration
- encourage students to use strengths-based language, focusing on what group members can do
- encourage the assigned ‘discussion manager’ in each group to recognise and include all students using discussion prompts and reinforcers
- encourage the ‘discussion manager’ to draw all students into conversations through explicitly prompting group members by name.
Monitoring collaboration and fairness
To support students to work collaboratively and equitably as they complete group work assessment tasks:
- encourage students to discuss their areas of strength, areas of improvement and any specific learning needs as a group and adjust roles accordingly
- encourage students to raise issues or concerns around collaboration and fairness, using discussion prompts and reinforcers
- facilitate a discussion around group norms with students and guide them to adjust their norms and roles so that tasks are distributed more equitably between students.
Managing challenges
Working collaboratively can be challenging. To support students:
- actively monitor group interactions by checking in with groups and referring them back to their agreed group norms as required
- encourage students to use discussion prompts and discussion reinforcers to guide respectful and collaborative group discussion, especially when challenges arise
- use a structured collaboration protocol, such as a Tuning protocol (approach for feedback), to help manage collaboration in a positive and productive way.
Discussion prompts to facilitate group work
Sentence starters can be a valuable way to facilitate discussions and to support students to manage their interactions during group work.
- A group member is distracted or off-topic.
- ‘This is something we should talk about later. For now, let’s refocus on …’
- A group member is dominating the conversation.
- ‘I hear what you’re saying about [topic]. It makes me think that [related topic]'.
- You disagree with a creative choice or idea.
- ‘That’s an interesting idea. Have you considered [alternative idea]? What if we combined both ideas?'
- A group member is feeling criticised or unheard.
- ‘I see where you’re going with this, but what if we tried it this way for a comparison?’
Discussion prompts to reinforce positive contributions
Reinforcing positive interactions in group work can support students to acknowledge their peers’ contributions. Below are some suggested prompts to help reinforce these positive interactions:
- Students are focussed on the task.
- ‘Nice job staying on task. It will really help us complete our composition by the due date.’
- Students are actively listening.
- ‘Thanks for listening. It’s really nice to feel heard.’
- A student offers constructive feedback.
- ‘That’s really helpful feedback, thank you.’
- A student is open to feedback.
- ‘Thanks for taking my feedback on board. We are all learning from each other.’
- Students show a positive attitude.
- ‘Thanks for bringing such positive and constructive vibes today!’
- Students demonstrate patience.
- ‘Thanks for your patience – these things take time.’
- The group shows respectful turn-taking.
- ‘Great work, everyone. Our conversation is always so much better when everyone gets to have their say.’