How to help students deal with conflict in group work

Rachael Roberts
children sat at a desk working together

Is avoiding conflict always a good thing?

Why is it that some groups work smoothly together, whereas for others it always seems to end in arguments? It may seem logical to avoid group work with classes where it often leads to disagreement, but is there such a thing as ‘healthy disagreement’?

Perhaps the groups that appear to be working well together are actually just letting one or two people do everything? This would certainly avoid conflict, but they might also be avoiding learning very much.

Sometimes conflict is a necessary step that teachers (of all subjects, not just language teachers) have to acknowledge as an important part of a learner's development.

Conflict in group work
Play
Privacy and cookies

By watching, you agree app can share your viewership data for marketing and analytics for one year, revocable by deleting your cookies.

The psychologist famously argued that conflict within groups is entirely normal, and can even be desirable. the typical stages of groups learning to work together effectively as Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing:

Forming

When the group is forming, most members will be polite. They will be looking to you or to a more confident group member to take the lead. Many of the group members may actually be quite disengaged.

Storming

Storming happens as they start to feel more confident and comfortable within the group, and willing to take a more active role. People may be trying to sort out what the unspoken rules are, or what roles everyone is taking. Or they may be more willing to point out potential problems.

Norming

Norming is when things start to sort themselves out and people are working together better. It’s very common for teams to keep going back and forth between storming and norming for quite a while.

Performing

Finally, performing is when the team successfully achieves the goal.

Essentially, Tuckman was saying that, without at least some conflict or storming, groups are unlikely to be able to perform successfully. It is necessary to go through this stage and out the other side.

Being able to deal effectively with conflict is a very valuable skill, both at school and in life. So how can we help students to develop this skill?

Learning how to manage conflict

Listening is the most important skill we can teach our language students. Unfortunately, many of us are not as good at listening as we might think. A lot of the time, we are busy thinking about what we are going to say next, or even thinking about something else altogether.

Students can practice active listening by having to reflect back on what their partner has said. For example: ‘So you’re saying that…’ or by asking relevant questions.

If feelings are running high, we can teach them to still let the other person finish. They should then check they have understood, rather than jumping in too quickly with their own side of the story.

We can also encourage empathy by asking students to put themselves into the other student’s position. They should try and explain how they think they are feeling, or why they have such a different opinion.

Finally, we can get students into problem-solving mode, rather than staying with personal feelings. We can do this by asking them to suggest ways of coming to an agreement.

As long as it is managed well and doesn’t get out of hand, conflict and disagreement can ultimately lead to better outcomes than overly polite agreement, because more is at stake.

So, make sure to help students develop the confidence to deal with conflict in group work and disagree with each other, but also the interpersonal skills to do so in a productive and empathic way.

More blogs from app

  • Woman wearing headphones outside, smiling and looking hopeful

    6 easy ways to learn English

    By Steffanie Zazulak

    When you’re learning English, it’s important to keep your motivation up. As with any task, there may be times when it feels a bit more difficult, so switch up your methods and don’t be afraid to make mistakes – you’ll reach the level you want to be at.

    We’ve already provided some unique ways to teach English that you may now have experienced with your teacher. Here, we suggest some easy ways to learn English that you can try any time – at home, at work or on the move. Why not try them today? Surround yourself with English and you’ll see improvements in your language confidence and skills, while having fun at the same time…

    1. English words with friends

    Scrabble is a classic board game in which players use random lettered tiles to create words in a crossword fashion. It’s a fantastic way to strengthen your English vocabulary, and there’s also a Scrabble Junior version for beginners. Playing Scrabble challenges you to really think in English as you try to come up with different words using your set of letters.

    If you’re taking an English class, buy the board game and invite your classmates to play with you. You can also play Scrabble online through websites like Facebook, where it is called Words With Friends.

    2. Add some music

    Not only will your favorite song wake up your mind and put you in a positive mood to learn English, but the lyrics can help you expand your skills. acquire grammar and vocabulary and improve spelling.

    Songs almost always contain a lot of useful vocabulary, phrases and expressions. And since the intended audience is fluent English speakers, the latest tunes include up-to-date language and colloquialisms. The language used in songs is casual and usable, if you pick the right music. Music also has an uncanny ability to stick in our heads, which can help you remember your new English words.

  • a hand holding a remote control

    8 easy tricks for improving your English skills

    By Steffanie Zazulak

    As you work to improve your English skills, it’s always helpful to have some tricks and tips to help you stay motivated. With that in mind, we’ve collated these eight simple tips from fellow English language learners, to help you on your quest…

    1. Set yourself small goals

    Learning English is a long process, and it may take years to progress from one level to the next. That’s why it’s important to set yourself achievable goals. At app, we work with thousands of English teachers worldwide to define what it means to ‘be at a level’ in English.

    2. Create a study schedule

    Ensure this schedule works around your daily responsibilities and make sure to keep it simple! Try breaking up your English language learning over the course of an entire day, which may make it feel more manageable.

    3. Practice a little bit every day

    Even if it’s listening to an English podcast during your commute or practicing your favorite words while having breakfast, every little bit of practice helps!

    4. Discover what type of learner you are

    Auditory, visual, or tactile. Use this as a basis for how you spend time studying. For instance, a visual learner may benefit from flashcards (see point 7), while an auditory learner may benefit from watching a television program in English.

    5. Turn on music in English

    Rhythms and rhymes have been found to stimulate the brain and improve learning. Our research found that music can be an invaluable tool when learning English, as it helps with pronunciation, word boundaries and vocabulary.

    6. Watch movies with English dialogue

    Movies are a great source of native conversation and vocabulary. Plus, the visual nature of film allows you to experience nonverbal context too — such as facial expressions and hand gestures — accompanying and contextualizing the film’s dialogue. Above all, watching a movie is a fun and motivational way to develop English language skills.

    7. Learn new vocabulary with flashcards

    While this may be the oldest studying trick in the book, students around the world use flashcards because they work!

    8. Track your progress

    To gain a sense of accomplishment, it’s important to know where you’ve started. We’ve just introduced a new way to measure progress in English. Have a look at it to quickly discover what your areas of strength and weakness are.

    Finally, it’s important to remember that not every learning trick will work for you. So, if you find that chatting with fluent English speakers helps you progress faster but you’re not always able to converse with them face-to-face, spend more of your time communicating online with your English-speaking friends and contacts.

  • A overhead shot of a person sat on a chair with a laptop to their left is icons of envelopes

    6 things to consider when writing English emails

    By Steffanie Zazulak

    Every day, an astonishing number of emails are sent and received worldwide. While a considerable amount of these are informal messages between friends, the majority are for business purposes. Whether you’re emailing someone you work with, applying for a new job or making new connections, here are some general rules to follow when writing English emails…

    1. Know your tone

    Always consider who you are writing to and adapt your language accordingly. Emails are less formal than letters, so it’s fine to start your email with “Hi” or “Good morning” – but it may be better to write “Dear…” if you are emailing someone for the first time or if they are senior to you. Similarly, ending emails with “Best/kind regards” rather than “Yours sincerely/faithfully” works well, with the latter being more appropriate for a formal email. Whatever the relationship, though, don’t feel tempted to use laid-back, colloquial expressions like “Hey, you guys”, “Yo!”, or “Hi folks”.

    2. It’s all about the titles

    It’s increasingly common to use first names in international business communications, so don’t be afraid to do so. Another title to consider is your email subject header: a short, clear text is important as busy people often decide whether to even open an email depending on the subject header. Examples of a good subject header include “Meeting date changed”, “Quick question about your presentation”, or “Suggestions for the proposal”.

    3. Use a professional email address

    If you work for a company you’ll be using your company email address. But if you’re using a personal email account because you’re self-employed or looking for a new job, you should be careful when choosing that address.

    You should always have an email address that includes your name so that the recipient knows exactly who is sending the email. Email addresses that you created while you were in school or college (IloveJohn@… or “Beerlover@…) are not appropriate for the workplace!

    4. Limit the small talk

    Small talk can help to build relationships but it doesn’t need to be overly personal. A simple “I hope you are well” or “How are things?” will usually suffice. Also, be cautious with humor as it can easily get lost in translation without the correct tone or facial expressions that accompany face-to-face meetings. It’s safer to leave out humor from emails unless you know the recipient well.

    5. Keep it simple

    Emails are intended to be written, read and understood quickly, so only include the important details – and avoid saturating your message with unnecessary information.

    6. Proofread every message

    Always check your emails before pressing Send. Read and re-read your email a few times, preferably aloud, to ensure there are no spelling or grammatical mistakes. And never just rely on the auto spell-check; spell-checking software doesn't always understand the context of your writing and can throw you off with incorrect suggestions.

    Happy emailing.