Types of Groups

Oh gosh. After weeks and weeks and weeks of assignments, presentations, quizes, exams, what else..??!? research papers and projects, finally i have the time to sit down and actually continue to blog for human communication. Why is foundation such a busy program?!??! I wonder why would I ever take this course...

Well. Back to the topic. Today I am going to talk about the types of groups. There are 4 types of groups: Learning groups, growth groups, problem-solving groups and lastly, social groups.

First of all, why do we form groups? What is the purpose of grouping? Well, groups are formed to accomplish tasks and objectives given by others. The objective may be to complete some kind of task or it may be to promote the interpersonal relationships between the group members. Many groups, however, fulfill both of these functions.

Basically, three examples which are the informal, formal and base groups are described as follow.

Informal group ---> have a short lifetime ranging from a few minutes to the class period
---> are generally created quickly or ad hoc
---> have little structure or format
---> have new group members with each new class day
---> are especially useful during lectures
---> may provide a quick check on student comprehension

Forman group ---> last several days to several weeks
---> require more planning as to the size and composition of the group
---> have greater structure
---> have a specific purpose
---> have the same group members throughout its existence

Base group ---> last the entire semester (or even several semesters)
---> meet regularly
--->require planning as to the size and composition of the group
---> personalize the task at hand by providing encouragement between members
---> have a specific purpose
---> have a constant membership

Michelle Tan