Well-designed group projects create structured opportunities for students to practice real-world teamwork while engaging deeply with course content. Use the three models below to design or refine your own group project, based on your course goals and constraints.
An unfolding case study
Students work in teams to analyze a scenario that evolves over time, updating their thinking as new information is introduced.
Example
In a semester-long project, groups are tasked with formulating a diagnosis and treatment plan for a fictional patient. The instructor reveals physical, psychological, and behavioral information about the patient in stages through an unfolding case study. Groups communicate with one another asynchronously through a group discussion board and synchronously through a chat tool as they discuss the case. They synthesize their discussion and log their evolving diagnosis and treatment plan on a discussion board. The instructor checks this board regularly to monitor team progress and provide feedback. At the end of the project, students present their final diagnosis and treatment to the class via PowerPoint, and their classmates submit questions for the presenting group to answer.
- What it does well: This model builds iterative thinking, keeps teams engaged during the term, and makes student reasoning visible to you through ongoing discussion and updates.
- Best fit for courses that: Focus on problem-solving, analysis, or situations where answers evolve with new information.
- What to consider: Plan your staged information releases carefully, require visible checkpoints (e.g., discussion logs), and provide timely feedback to keep teams on track.
A research challenge
Students collaborate to research and deliver a professional strategy for a real or simulated client.
Example
Students work in groups to create a social media marketing strategy for a nonprofit. Groups are responsible for researching the company and its current marketing efforts, scheduling interviews with company leaders to gather information and developing a professional-quality marketing plan, drawing on the concepts they’ve learned from the course. Students communicate with one another via group discussion boards and a chat tool and with company representatives via Zoom or phone. They log the contributions of each teammate on a designated discussion board, which the instructor monitors. The instructor provides feedback on the team discussion board and through scheduled biweekly meetings via web conferencing. Groups deliver their presentation to their clients via a web conferencing tool or another digital tool compatible with the client’s system.
- What it does well: It increases motivation through real-world relevance, builds communication skills, and integrates multiple competencies into one authentic task.
- Best fit for courses that: Emphasize applied learning, professional skills, and real-world outcomes.
- What to consider: Keep the scope manageable, build in structured check-ins, and track individual contributions to reinforce accountability
The client-based project
Student teams create a product over time, moving through milestones from early team-building to final delivery.
Example
Students work in teams on a semester-long project to build an app for an outside client. The instructor forms teams randomly in the first week of the semester. During this week, student groups must compete in a scavenger hunt in which they must find and document various kinds of apps indicated in a typology that the instructor provides. The scavenger hunt gives groups the chance to bond through friendly competition with other teams while also learning material relevant to the course. Then, with a foundation of team cohesion laid, teams begin to meet with their outside clients to clarify the needs and required functionality for the app they are building. The instructor meets with each team biweekly to provide feedback. The instructor also collects interim deliverables to ensure that teams stay on pace. At the end of the semester, students present their apps to their clients for feedback.
- What it does well: This approach strengthens team cohesion, develops project management skills, and supports learning through iteration and feedback.
- Best fit for courses that: Involve design, creation, or multi-stage development.
- What to consider: Start with team-building, use milestone-based deliverables, and establish clear roles and team expectations with students early
