Go team! The role of the study group in academic success

Abstract

In this paper, we look at the communities and groups where engineering students work and learn outside the classroom, ranging from study groups to design project teams to professional society communities. Among four diverse institutions, we evaluate which academic communities, groups, or teams students participate in and when asked, which they tend to speak about more than others. We also probe more deeply into how and why the most effective teams or groups work for students. In a mixed methods approach, our quantitative (survey) data first show which academic communities students participate in and how active they are in these communities. Our qualitative data (interviews and focus groups) then explain how the most influential communities work for students. Our results show that while students reported participating at various levels, ranging from minimally to very active, in a broad range of academic groups available through their home departments and colleges, most (53%) are active or very active in laboratory groups and a large number (42%) are active or very active in informal study groups. In follow up interviews and focus groups, students also chose to discuss their experiences in study groups (83%) or lab groups (82%) but also commented frequently on their participation in professional societies. Of these students, most (87%) found benefit in participating in these groups, and a majority of the students (72%) felt that they benefitted in ways related to operating within the group as an integral part of the team. Most students stressed the social learning provided by the group as compared to a single individual working alone.