TUCKMAN - STAGES OF GROUP DEVELOPMENT

Tuckman (1965) in describing the stages of group development identified four distinct stages of group development. He suggested that groups needed to move through and experience all four stages in order to maximise the potential for a successful group experience. In 1977 Tuckman and Jensen added a fifth stage. Forming where students form themselves into groups Storming where students debate and decide group issues such as leadership, direction, method etc. Norming where students establish the ground rules for operating as a group Performing where groups become cohesive and effective Adjourning where the group work ends and students reflect upon the process

The crucial stage for students is in the forming stage. Robbins et al. (2000) split the forming stage into two linked, but distinct stages. They identified the first of these as Prestage 1 and the second as Stage 1 Forming (see Figure X). Pre-stage 1 is the period prior to people joining groups and forming formal groups. It is in this Pre-stage that the team building exercises and discussions play an important part in developing effective groups. Figure X: Stages in group development

STAGE I FORMING

Student/group dynamics At the first meeting group members are polite Generally little planning Minimal leadership or agreed leader or group roles Vague goals may have been set Members are cautious and guarded Decision making is minimal Conflicts tend to be avoided as people find their feet

What you can do Have students formalise their group roles and rules Have students introduce themselves to each other and discuss the strengths and preferences that they can bring to the group Have the students decide on what form of leadership the group should have You may ask for the group to nominate a group coordinator/leader Discuss the need to keep minutes, personal and/or group journals and appoint tasks Assist students to determine realistic and achievable goals and sub goals STAGE II STORMING Is sometimes the immature stage of the Encourage the group to work through groups development and deal with differences of opinion or Members may still be a little unsure ideas and arrive at their own solutions to about what actions the group should their own problems. Be creative! take, when, why and how Flag potential organisational, Members may at times be confused management and conflict issues especially if leadership issues arise or Support the group leader or coordinator the group is focussing too heavily on in their role (give some guidelines) group issues rather than the task Facilitate a group meeting where Students are beginning to understand individuals have chance to articulate each other their ideas and concerns (helps to Growing comfort with each others identify differences of opinion) styles, attitudes and expertise Remind the group of brainstorming The group may not always act like a and effective group work principles group but they are beginning to find Ask students to keep a group work their own way journal in which they record their own There can be some conflict in this stage insights or experiences of the process STAGE III NORMING Ask how rather than why as a result Monitor, motivate and support the they may tend to focus on the current groups through the total process process rather than challenging the way Make comparisons to successful teams things are done (eg sporting teams who can manage their Group members reconcile competing performance peaks and troughs) loyalties and responsibilities Reinforce the need for short term goals Ground rules are established; work is that are linked to their longer term goal, done on roles in the group and and as for all SMART (Specific, individuality of group members Measurable, Attractive or Attainable, Competitive relationships begin to Realistic and Time framed) goals they become more cooperative must be achievable and set to a time line

 A growing sense of group cohesion, competence and common spirit/goals Increased productivity and sharing of opinions, ideas and skills The group is able to constructively self evaluate and reflect Begin to work through their problems STAGE IV PERFORMING Group members have discovered and Encourage reporting back to you on how accepted each others strengths and they are managing goals and tasks weaknesses Support total group involvement by Increased insight and a better engaging with individual group members understanding of each other rather than a single group spokesperson Satisfaction with groups progress during feedback sessions Roles are understood Good group spirit and confidence Be aware that groups may slide back Increased ability to prevent and work into a storming phase. Remind students through problems as they arise that it not a linear process and they may Primary focus is on the task and high cycle through the above three more than level performance once. If this is the case ask the group to Interpersonal and group issues are dealt again self-manage the storming process with by open communication, collegial a work back through their issues support and trust There is group synergy (people are working in harmony - polling their strengths to maximise group output) STAGE V ADJOURNING The success of the use group work will depend on whether students have understood the benefits of having worked collaboratively in a group. Therefore the process for adjourning groups is very important. This can be achieved through quality debriefing by the teacher to all groups in class or via a facilitated group feedback session to the entire class. In this case each group is required to report back to the class a summary of their group work processes and project. This could also be supported by written reports. In both cases students can be asked to individually briefly outline what benefits or insights they gained from group work (orally or on paper). This could be captured through the use of a learning journal. Techniques, ideas and options for facilitating reflection and evaluation of group work are addressed in detail in Section Five: Reflection and Evaluation of this Guide)

Tuckmans Model of Group Development

Forming: in which the group is just coming together. It is often characterized by shyness, uncertainty and diffidence among the members, although extravert members may rapidly assume some kind of leadership. Maintenance concerns predominate Storming: in which, having been established, there is a period of jockeying for position, authority and influence among the members. In classes, this is the period of "testing-out" the teacher. Disagreements appear or are manufactured and roles are eventually allocated. The initial leaders may not survive this period: it is the most uncomfortable phase of the group's lifea sort of group adolescence. Norming: having sorted out its internal structure, there is then the issue of what the group stands for. What kind of behavior and contribution is acceptable and what isn't? Members explore behind the power processes of storming and begin to form some idea of the group's identity: the "group in the mind". This is rarely done explicitly, of course, and it can readily slip back into Storming, Performing: after all that, the group can begin to get some work done, on the basis of a relatively stable structure. Adjourning: This is about completion and disengagement, both from the tasks and the group members. Individuals will be proud of having achieved much and glad to have been part of such an enjoyable group. They need to recognize what they've done, and consciously move on. Some describe stage 5 as "Deforming and Mourning", recognizing the sense of loss felt by group members.
Adapted from: ATHERTON J S (2003) Learning and Teaching: Group Development [On-line] UK: Available: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/~jamesa/teaching/group_development.htm Accessed: 2 July 2004 www.chimaeraconsulting.com/tuckman.htm