An Examination of the Factors Influencing Student Participation in Collaborative Approaches to Examination Preparation

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An Examination of the Factors Influencing Student
Participation in Collaborative Approaches to
Examination Preparation

• Paul Greenbank
• Edge Hill University

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Introduction

• Collaborative (peer) learning involves students
  learning with and from each other (Boud, 2001)
• Variety of contexts
• Examination Managerial Decision-making (MDM)

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This paper focuses on

• Factors influencing the level of student
  participation in collaborative learning
• How barriers to student engagement in the process
  might be overcome

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Research methodology

• Action research (from 2001)
• Participative action research
• Participant-observation

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Collaborative approaches to examination
preparation

• Earlier stages in the research identified the
  need to address
• Student values
• Group working skills
• Networks

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• Initiatives to address these issues are now
  firmly established on BSc. Business Management
  programme
• Evidence indicates they have been successful
• Nevertheless, a significant number of students
  still choose NOT to participate in the
  collaborative learning process

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Three key reasons for this

1. The opportunity and ability to collaborate varies
   between students
2. Negative experiences of group working militate
   against collaboration
3. A lack of time, approaches to study and
   satisficing behaviour act as potential barriers
   to collaboration

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1. Opportunity/ability to collaborate

• Students from other programmes feel disadvantaged
• Unfamiliar
• As one student said
• People have done this sort of thing before. You
  feel a little out of it, and I dont know, you
  feel that you are behind in some way.

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• Networks
• As an information systems student said
• Because Im not from the business degree I dont
  really have any friends to ask. I am too shy to
  ask other members of the class. I felt I would
  have learnt more from group work it just
  wasnt easy to get done. I felt left out.

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Response

• Additional (targeted) support
• Interventions have achieved mixed results

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2. Negative experiences of group work

• Students choose not to engage
• Typical student comments
• I prefer to work alone
• I simply prefer individual learning
• The decision to work alone appears to arise out
  of negative experiences of group working

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Problems included

• Socialising and its affect on performance
• I didnt feel group collaboration would be
  one-hundred per cent useful because it would turn
  into a social gathering. When working in groups
  nothing gets done.
• Distribution of benefits
• I know this sounds big headed but the others
  are going to get more from me and Im not
  prepared to just give them this, if you like
  knowledge, and these sort of insights that I
  might have.
• Free-riders

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3. Time, approaches to study and satisficing
behaviour

• Gap between intention and practice
• Pressure of time was the main reason provided by
  the students
• However
• Commuting time averages half-an-hour
• Most term-time work takes place in
  evenings/weekends
• Class time made available

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Real reasons for not collaborating

• Other priorities
• Serial approach to study
• Satisficing behaviour
• Response appealed to their instrumental values

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Conclusion

• When introducing collaborative approaches our
  experience suggests you need to
• Address the question of equity in access to
  collaborative learning
• Encourage rather than force students to
  collaborate for exams
• Work with existing values to improve
  participation in collaborative learning