Description and Objectives

Among the group processes that we will study are group formation, development, communication, conformity, conflict, and leadership.  We will not only read about these processes, however; we also will experience them firsthand as the class itself forms a small group.  By meeting and interacting regularly in a small group, you will have the opportunity to apply your knowledge and to develop skills in observing and analyzing small-group interaction.  Two key principles underlie this approach: learning is more effective when it is an active rather than a passive process; and the application of course material is the highest form of learning, as it deepens understanding, facilitates mastery, and enhances the personal significance and ultimate utility of knowledge.

Since interaction is the basis of group formation and development, the class format is group discussion.  During the first 11 weeks, the class will discuss daily reading assignments as it prepares for two examinations and learns material that can be used to analyze the class group.  After the second examination, the class will analyze itself as a group.  Throughout class meetings I will participate in group discussions and occasionally make general suggestions, but I will not lecture and, so far as possible, will not assert my role as authority.  Indeed, much of the time I will remain silent.  The intention is to let the group work out its own pattern of participation and to require you to take your own approach to the problems of the group.

The structure of this course deviates from most, if not all, other courses you have taken.  I realize that most of you have had little preparation for participation in a discussion group, and I anticipate that you will find it challenging to learn through discussion.  I have set aside days during the course for the group to discuss what makes a good (and bad) discussion (9/3), to establish a structure or plan for discussing reading assignments (9/8), and to evaluate its progress (9/22, 10/13, and 11/1).  In addition, I offer the following ground rules and guidelines to help you to get the most from this experience.

• Your aim as a group member should be to cooperate with others to achieve class goals. You are expected to participate in discussions and to contribute in your own way to the group.
• For group discussions to be effective, there must be a group norm that all group members attend class regularly and come prepared.
• While I cannot relinquish my responsibility to evaluate your performance, you do have the power to determine much of what goes on this class. You not only can establish the structure of daily discussions, but you also may propose and negotiate with me alternatives to or alternative forms of scheduled exams.
• A required log of observations and "Dear Group" letter (see below) direct you to reflect on your personal experience and the progress of the group.  Although these reflections are communicated formally to me, it is also important to share your impressions with one another, so that the group can address problems and adopt a structure that is mutually beneficial.

Readings Available in the Bookstore

Readings On Reserve

     Dunphy, Dexter C., "Planned Environments for Learning in the Social Sciences: Two Innovative Courses at Harvard," American Sociologist 2, 4 (November, 1967), 202-206.

     Fine, Gary Alan, "Small Groups and Preadolescent Culture," ch. 6 in With the Boys: Little League Baseball and Preadolescent Culture, Chicago: University of Chicago, 1987.

     Gioia, Dana, "Studying with Miss Bishop," The New Yorker, September 15, 1986, 90-101.

     Meister, Joel S., "The Amherst and Hampshire Experiences: A Sociologist Looks at Two Schools," Change 14, 2 (March, 1982), 26-34.

     Rabow, Jerome et al., "The Learning Through Discussion Process Plan" and "Group Members' Roles and Skills," ch's 2 and 4 in William Fawcett Hill's Learning Through Discussion, 3rd ed., Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1994.

     Ridgeway, Cecilia L. "An Introduction to Small Groups" and "Primary Groups," ch's. 1 and 10 in The Dynamics of Small Groups, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1983.

     Sartre, Jean-Paul.  No Exit.  In No Exit and Three Other Plays, New York: Vintage International, 1989.

Course Requirements

While the group is discussing assigned reading, you are required to keep a log of observations.  You must make observations for each of the first five class meetings and for one class meeting per week thereafter, according to the log assignment schedule.  Each log entry should contain a description of the class meeting as well as personal observations and reactions.  These reflections will serve several purposes: they give you a record of important group events to which you can refer when you analyze the group in class and in your term paper; they encourage you to think about the group's progress and the things that may be inhibiting the group's effectiveness; and they encourage you to think about your role in the group and the ways in which you may contribute more effectively.  The best time to write these ideas down is as soon after each class meeting as possible, preferably no later than the evening of the day the class meets.  Logs should be typed and kept in a file folder or report cover.  The log of observations will be collected three times: September 13, October 8, and November 12.

As preparation for the "Open" class meetings, set aside to allow the group to take stock of its progress, you are required to write a "Dear Group" letter.  These letters are meant to be informal in nature and should reflect your thoughts on how effectively the group is accomplishing its goals.  In general, such reflections will consist of both reactions and analyses.  It is appropriate to reveal what you have found interesting or boring and helpful or a hindrance to your learning; but you also should think about how well the readings, discussions, and especially the basic plan for daily discussions are contributing to the group's success.  The letters should be two typed pages, and you should prepare two copies--one for the instructor and the other to be shared with the rest of the group.

The essay-length paper assignment is to analyze some aspect of the group or your behavior in the group.  You should draw upon the readings, class discussions, and evidence from your log of observations to support your analysis, and you may, if you wish, use feedback and other "data" collected from the group.  A suggested limit on this assignment is 1,500 to 2,000 words, or approximately 6 to 8 typewritten pages.  The paper is due on Wednesday, December 8.

Notes on the Reading Assignments

     (1) During the second and third class meetings you are asked to read three articles which, on the surface, appear to be completely unrelated.  In general, I would like you to think about what these articles say about teaching and learning.  Think about the relevance of the articles to this class, Holy Cross, and your own educational experiences.

The first article, by Dexter Dunphy, describes two unique courses offered at Harvard in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. One of the courses, Social Relations 120, has been the subject of numerous articles and books about group dynamics and interpersonal relations. The structure of our class, especially the roles of student and instructor (see Dunphy, p. 206), is similar in many ways to the courses Dunphy describes.

The second article, by Dana Gioia, describes a course that the author took at Harvard University with the late poet Elizabeth Bishop. Miss Bishop's approach to teaching was rather unusual and certainly different from anything you are likely to have encountered at Holy Cross.  The author describes Miss Bishop as his favorite teacher.  Yet, the other students in the class seem to have had little appreciation for her teaching style.

The third article, by Joel Meister, describes one professor's experiences while teaching at two liberal arts colleges--Amherst and Hampshire--located about three miles from one another.  While close in distance, these two schools are far apart in terms of curricula, student-faculty relations, and general approaches to teaching and learning.

     (2) To get the most out of class discussions, the group needs to establish some sort of structure or plan for discussing the readings.  The two chapters from the Jerome Rabow et al. book are designed to help you arrive at a tentative plan, which you should feel free to modify as we go along.  Chapter 2 describes a model, called a Group Cognitive Map, that "provides an orderly sequence" for the group to "follow in order to learn through discussion."  I don't necessarily expect you to adopt the Group Cognitive Map.  Indeed, I believe that it is generally too rigid--that it dampens and stifles discussion.  However, you may want to adapt various steps in the Group Cognitive Map.  So, read it for ideas that will help you to arrive at a structure that you think will facilitate effective discussions in this class.  The other assigned chapter in the Rabow et al. book discusses the roles, skills, and behaviors that facilitate as well as impede effective small-group discussion.

     (3) Besides the class group, we will apply concepts and principles to various other small groups.  Donelson Forsyth provides several examples of real-life groups, which he introduces in the first chapter and then returns to in later chapters. To spark your thinking about groups and to provide other examples to which you can apply your knowledge, we will read one short novel and a short play.  Glendon Swarthout's Bless the Beasts and Children is a young adult classic about a group of six adolescent boys attending a summer camp in Arizona.  Jean-Paul Sartre's play No Exit focuses on three characters who are condemned to eternity in Hell, although Hell in this case turns out to be an unholy triad of relationships.  As you read these works of fiction, think about the insights that each provides about the real world of interpersonal relationships and small groups.
 

Schedule of Assigned Reading