Four DT teachers at Queens Park Community School in north London, adopt a range of group work strategies. In this programme, they watch a video of their group work sessions and discuss its implications. They agree on the exercise's usefulness and express surprise at how readily their pupils took to working in groups. They debate some interesting challenges, including the role of the teacher, when to intervene and when to leave pupils alone and how best to organise the groups. A common observation is that group work suits particular children well, especially those who are often not engaged in more traditional activities. All four reflect on the interplay between more and less able pupils, and how their expectations as teachers were sometimes dramatically challenged. KS3 Strategy consultant Gareth Stevens, from Harrow LEA, shares their observations, and encourages them to use see group work techniques as having a relevance in all sorts of lessons.

Video Series: KS3/4 Design and Technology
Release Date 2005