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Team Formation
The students in OOSE are expected to self-organize into small teams of 5 to 7 students.
Caution
The magic numbers "5 to 7" are strictly enforced[1]
Teams are formed by students! The teaching staff will help you form teams, but we don't assign you to teams. We understand that this disadvantages students who do not have a strong social network on campus. However, this is one of the challenges you shall rise to face. Don't worry that you might fall behind and not find other students to work with! If you act early and actively participate in team formation discussions, you will find/form a team.
Call yourself a team, not a group!
A group consists of people who coordinate their efforts. A team, however, has a common purpose and a shared responsibility for success.
The composition of your team can affect project outcomes. While there is ample research that suggests teamwork can lead to collaborative learning through the exchange of knowledge sharing expertise, increasing motivation, etc., a troubled team may struggle to accomplish the most basic tasks. Common student complaints about teamwork include unequal workloads due to freeloaders or do-everything control takers and members who work independently rather collaboratively.
General advice for team formation:
- Aim to create a coherent team based on interests, ambitions, and availability.
- Aim to create a diverse team concerning technical strengths and skills.[2]
Caution
You must get the instructor's approval to formalize your team.
As soon as you formed a team, do the following:
- Find a name for your team!
- Survey team members' availability and document this (including anticipated milestones such as midterm exams, major due dates, etc.)
- Get to know each other's technical skills and work habits (e.g., some work a bit every day whereas others schedule less frequent but longer sessions dedicated to each project).
- Write a team agreement[3] (we will give you a template).
TIP
Please do not assign team roles, in particular, do not designate a "team leader."
We will tell you more about team roles in future lessons when we learn about Agile software development practices!