An important aspect of the dental hygiene profession is the abilityA�to interact and work collaboratively with other professionals. As a result, it is very important that during the educational process, dental hygiene students develop the skills necessary for successful team work and collaboration. To meet this end, the curriculum at CADH has incorporated, at various levels in the program, group work for both in class activities and assignments. According to Weimer (2014), much research indicates that group work results in positive learning outcomes.
Although group work is considered to be beneficial, some students are not particularly drawn to this type of work or assignment because it takes away the a�?completea�� control that an individual has for his or her success. I have often heard students complain that others within the group have either not prepared the work required of them at all or have not completed it in a timely fashion, have not shown up for group meetings, and when meeting, have not contributed ideas. Perhaps even in this scenario, they have learned something- not all members of a team contribute the same! But those students that have put in more effort consider it unfair that all members receive the same grade when some have put in more effort than others. To address this issue, CADH has incorporated the use of anonymous peer assessment forms so that each member of the group evaluated all group membersa�� contribution for a portion of a graded assignment.
Teamplayers (and/or non-teamplayers)-A�listen-up! Group work whether in an educational environment or a work environment is an essential andA�sometimes acquired A�life skill. Best advice? A positive team spirit will only serve you well within and beyond our school walls!
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