Challenges of collaborative learning and its assessment

Q: How do teachers and students perceive the effectiveness of these assessment methods in real classroom settings?

Teachers often find group assessments simplify marking and encourage teamwork, but they recognise the challenge of fairly assessing individual contributions. Students may appreciate working with peers but can feel frustrated if their individual efforts are not recognised.

Q: What are the specific challenges in implementing the GLAID framework in diverse educational settings?

Challenges include ensuring all educators are trained to apply the framework, adapting its components to fit various subjects and student groups, and securing the necessary resources. What works well in one context may not be as effective in another, so direct student feedback helps identify and overcome these barriers.

Q: How do these assessment strategies impact the long-term development of students' soft skills and academic performance?

By engaging in collaborative learning assessed through methods that value both individual accountability and group dynamics, students develop communication, teamwork and problem-solving skills. These are highly valued by employers and support long-term employability alongside subject-specific knowledge.

By Marisa Graser

Published Sep 06, 2021 · Updated Feb 20, 2026

Collaborative learning can build the teamwork and communication skills students need after graduation. But when the work is shared, assessment can quickly feel unfair, and it can undermine the collaboration you are trying to create. Meijer et al. (2020) argue that this tension is one of the main challenges for teachers and students. They describe three common approaches: group assessments, personalised assessments, and a combination of peer and group assessment.

Group assessments

In group assessments, every student in the group receives the same grade. This simplicity can foster teamwork and positive interdependence because students feel that working together benefits their learning. However, individual contributions can become indistinguishable within the overall mark. The final grade also depends heavily on the performance of fellow students; a student placed in a high-achieving group might get a better grade than a student with the same abilities in a low-achieving group. Some students may also rely on others to do the work, rather than contributing themselves.

Personalised assessments

Personalised assessment can mitigate some of the negative effects of group assessments. It can strengthen individual accountability and improve validity. Nevertheless, marks can still be influenced by the group environment, such as the behaviour of fellow group members. Students might also come to see genuine collaboration as less important if it does not clearly contribute to their grade.

Combination of group and peer assessment

Lastly, intra-group peer assessment, where each student assesses fellow group members, can be combined with a group score from the teacher. Peer assessment can stimulate participation and a group score can promote positive interdependence. However, this form of assessment often focuses on the quality of the collaboration rather than the outcome and may still struggle to acknowledge individual abilities.

In summary, Meijer et al. argue that all of these approaches face challenges regarding individual accountability and positive interdependence. When that balance is missed, assessment can contradict the original objectives of collaborative learning, such as knowledge exchange and social support.

Ideas on how to design the assessment of collaborative learning successfully

Meijer et al. highlight two practical levers: reinforce individual accountability and positive interdependence in the assessment itself, and use a framework like GLAID as a checklist when designing group work.

Adherence to individual accountability and positive interdependence

To avoid the pitfalls of assessing collaborative learning, Meijer et al. present two approaches.

Firstly, they suggest reinforcing both individual accountability and positive interdependence through thoughtful assessment design. One option is to assess collaborative learning in a formative rather than a summative frame, for example by having students prepare and present content (Kagan 1995) or work in tutorial groups (Opdecam et al. 2014), under supervision and with feedback from the teacher. Another option is to help students practise collaborative skills before the group activity, for example through lectures and interactive training such as role plays (Rebollar et al. 2010).

Alignment of eight core components for collaborative design – the GLAID framework

Secondly, Meijer et al. suggest using the GLAID framework as a guide for teachers when designing assessment. This framework consists of eight components:

Interaction
Learning objectives and outcomes
Assessment
Task characteristics
Structuring
Guidance
Group constellation
Facilities (De Hei et al. 2016)

Using this framework can help teachers align all eight components when designing a collaborative learning activity. For example, when teamwork is the main learning outcome (2), a group assessment (3) can be appropriate if the group constellation (7) is taken into account, for instance by ensuring students in the group have similar abilities.

Impact of good assessment design

By designing and aligning a collaborative learning activity thoughtfully, two goals can be achieved. The intended objectives and outcomes, such as improving motivation and communication skills, can be reached. The assessment can also measure the learning objectives without promoting misaligned student behaviour.

Successful implementation of these principles can be seen, for example, when a combination of group and peer assessment is used in a formative setting (Sridharan et al. 2019). Meijer et al. suggest this can enable individualised feedback from peers and teachers while promoting collaboration, with less pressure from a high-stakes final mark in the background.

When collaborative learning is supported with prior lectures and interactive training, students can become more proficient in collaboration and communication, which can improve the results of later group assessment (Rebollar et al. 2010).

Aligning a group exercise with the GLAID framework can also influence group dynamics positively, which has been shown to increase students’ perceptions of a "fair" assessment (Ohaja et al. 2013).

Overall, raising awareness among both teachers and students of the interplay of factors that influence the design, execution and assessment of group activities is key to successfully implementing a collaborative learning approach.

FAQ

Q: How do teachers and students perceive the effectiveness of these assessment methods in real classroom settings?

A: Teachers and students often have varied perceptions about the effectiveness of different assessment methods in collaborative learning. Some teachers find group assessments can simplify marking and encourage teamwork, but they also recognise the challenge of fairly assessing individual contributions. Students may appreciate the opportunity to work with peers, but can feel frustrated if their individual efforts are not recognised. Student voice is important here; listening to and acting on student feedback can help educators refine assessment methods so they work better in real classroom settings.

Q: What are the specific challenges in implementing the GLAID framework in diverse educational settings?

A: Implementing the GLAID framework in diverse educational settings presents several challenges. These include ensuring educators are trained to apply the framework, adapting the components to fit different subjects and student groups, and securing the necessary resources and facilities. Diversity in educational environments means what works well in one context may not be as effective in another. Engaging student voice can help identify where adjustments are needed, keeping the framework sensitive to local needs while maximising its effectiveness.

Q: How do these assessment strategies impact the long-term development of students' soft skills and academic performance?

A: The impact of these assessment strategies on the long-term development of students' soft skills and academic performance can be significant. When collaborative learning is assessed in ways that value both individual accountability and group dynamics, students can develop critical soft skills such as communication, teamwork and problem-solving. These skills are highly valued in the workplace and can enhance employability. Incorporating student voice into the development and refinement of assessment strategies can also increase motivation and engagement over time.

References

[Source Paper] Hajo Meijer, Rink Hoekstra, Jasperina Brouwer & Jan-Willem Strijbos (2020) Unfolding collaborative learning assessment literacy: a reflection on current assessment methods in higher education, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 45:8, 1222-1240.
DOI: 10.1080/02602938.2020.1729696

[1] De Hei, M., J. W. Strijbos, E. Sjoer, and W. Admiraal. 2016. "Thematic Review of Approaches to Design Group Learning Activities in Higher Education: The Development of a Comprehensive Framework." Educational Research Review 18: 33–45.
DOI: 10.1016/j.edurev.2016.01.001

[2] Kagan, S. 1995. "Group Grades Miss the Mark." Educational Leadership 52 (8): 68–71.

[3] Ohaja, M., M. Dunlea, and K. Muldoon. 2013. "Group Marking and Peer Assessment during a Group Poster Presentation: The Experiences and Views of Midwifery Students." Nurse Education in Practice 13 (5): 466–470.
DOI: 10.1016/j.nepr.2012.11.005

[4] Opdecam, E., P.Everaert, HVan Keer, and F. Buysschaert. 2014. "Preferences for Team Learning and Lecture-Based Learning among First-Year Undergraduate Accounting Students." Research in Higher Education 55 (4): 400–432.
DOI: 10.1007/s11162-013-9315-6

[5] Rebollar, R., I. Lidón, J. L. Cano, F. Gimeno, and P. Qvist. 2010. "A Tool for Preventing Teamwork Failure: The TFP Questionnaire." International Journal of Engineering Education 26 (4): 784–799.

[6] Sridharan, B., J. Tai, and D. Boud. 2019. "Does the Use of Summative Peer Assessment in Collaborative Group Work Inhibit Good Judgement?" Higher Education 77 (5): 853–870.
DOI: 10.1007/s10734-018-0305-7

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