Illustration by Marcos Calo; Debate photos courtesy of families

Should Teachers Assign Group Projects?

December 20, 2021

For our next project, we’re going to break into groups. Some students get excited when their teacher says those words. Others may feel like hiding under their desks.

Those in favor of group projects say working together teaches kids to consider other points of view. Supporters of group work also say that it shows kids how to make compromises to get the job done. Others say it’s important for kids to learn to solve problems as a team by dividing responsibilities.

But group projects can be stressful for kids who are more comfortable working alone. And many kids point out that these projects often aren’t really group efforts at all. Some students say it’s not fair for everyone in a group to get the same grade when the work often isn’t split up equally.

Here’s what two of our readers think.

Group projects can help you grow as a person. Working in groups is important because it can improve your ability to communicate and work well with others. Having those skills will help you succeed in the future.

Working on group projects has definitely helped me. It has taught me that everyone is different and doesn’t have the same opinions. Bringing together a lot of different, great ideas can help make the project so much better.

Working on group projects often leads to division instead of teamwork. It can cause arguments about how the project should be done. That can make it take longer to finish.

Sometimes, a few people end up doing all of the work while others do nothing. That happened to me and my friend last year. Another time, I was in a group and never got to share my ideas because everyone else spoke over me.