Group-Controlled Instruction

Group-Controlled Instruction

In Indian classrooms today there is lot of emphasis these days on cognitive development due to the instructional procedures adopted in the schools. This is mainly because we depend heavily on teacher controlled instruction methods such as lecture, demonstration, etc. Due to this, the development of certain skills in students’ remains ignored. Therefore, it is essential that group-controlled instruction be organised in schools.

When instruction is organised in such a manner that students carry out the instructional activities together in a group it is called GCI. It is based on the fact that every member of the group actively participates in the instructional activity. Learning takes place due to interaction among the group members and learning by doing work in the group with the support of each other. Thus, learning in this mode of instruction is controlled by the interactive climate generated by the group working as a team with mutual support.

Importance of Group-Controlled Instruction Both the teacher-controlled instruction and the learner-controlled instruction are effective modes of instruction mainly for cognitive and skill development of individuals. In these mode of instruction the individuals develop a feeling of competing with one another, defeating one another. It spoils the innocent fun of children and of young students. It also does not educate students on how to lead a harmonious life in the society. Therefore. it is important to supplement these two modes of instruction with group-controlled instruction. Group controlled instruction provides deeper understanding of knowledge through participation in group work including discussion. It develops the power of expression. Critical thinking, tolerance, belongingness, trust, team spirit, habit of helping each other, etc. Thus, GCI can help prepare knowledgeable and skilled human beings who could support a society with democratic values leading to harmonious life, prosperity and happiness.

Group-controlled instruction provides students a deeper understanding of the content. In addition to this, it develops the ability to present, power to express, ability to initiate and examine others' views, tolerance, cooperation. Belongingness and team spirit. Instead of individual competition, the students learn to work in a group through group-controlled instruction. The mode of instruction where learning is dependent on group interaction or mutual support of group members is called group-controlled instruction. GCI is classified broadly in two categories: group interactive sessions, and group activities involving team work. Main elements of interactive sessions are the chairperson, the speaker, the participants and the recorder. For organising interactive sessions effectively, pre-session activities should be completed systematically. These are: assigning separate weightage to interactive sessions, allocating topics, deciding dates of presentation, making seating arrangement, orienting the students, circulating write-ups and demonstrating. While conducting the sessions, main roles of the chairperson are as initiator, as motivator, as facilitator, as elaborator, as moderator and as controller of the session. In group-controlled instruction small group discussions are conducted by students themselves. Group activities involving team work are mainly of three types: cooperative learning which is mainly peer learning or group learning, group investigations, and group projects. Learning, in all these situations, takes place with the mutual support of group members and together they achieve the set goals. Performance in group controlled instruction is mainly based on observations of the group work, reports or the other products of the group. These constitute the criteria for evaluation.