Group Work Rant...

jcb33 · 19 Nov 2008 at 19:58

Hey all,

So right now I should really be getting on with work but I need to de-stress a little.

We have a large multimedia group project due in tomorrow, all was going to plan however not so much any more, events have made it so that I have had to produce all of the post production work and about 75% of the documentation.

One member is home and hanging with friends, the other well... this is what annoys me:

He agrees to do research for the project into blue screen technologies, 3 days late and he finally sends the document out.... I think hmm that looks a bit odd so Google the first line

"Primatte is a high-end chroma key technology used in motion picture, television and photographic host applications. "

And what do you know, I find a website which he has copy pasted from, and this continues throughout the entire document...

We are in the third year of university, and I for one care about my degree, but how someone who seems happy to plagiarise has made it this far is beyond me.

The situation now leaves me and one other group member doing all the work which was supposed to already be done, meaning we are up all night, even more fun I have work after I hand the assignment in.

I am not sure what to do right now either, I am tired and did not sleep well last night and just feeling generally stressed about it all, on top of that we need to decide what to do about this problem as it now works out that the plagiarising group member has contributed nothing to the project, he is in our friends group and I do not wish for him to fail but I am jolly tempted to just exclude him from the group mark right now if other members agree...

Rant over anyway I need to get back to it.

Jcb33.

gareth.e · 19 Nov 2008 at 19:59

Dred.

tom_e · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:00

Id exclude him from the mark, why should he get a free ride just because hes a lazy ****

Sone · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:01

group work at uni is the worst idea ever, has no bearing on real world group work and just gives idiots an easy ride and dedicated students hell :mad:

mattheman · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:02

jcb33 said:
Hey all,

So right now I should really be getting on with work but I need to de-stress a little.

We have a large multimedia group project due in tomorrow, all was going to plan however not so much any more, events have made it so that I have had to produce all of the post production work and about 75% of the documentation.

One member is home and hanging with friends, the other well... this is what annoys me:

He agrees to do research for the project into blue screen technologies, 3 days late and he finally sends the document out.... I think hmm that looks a bit odd so Google the first line

"Primatte is a high-end chroma key technology used in motion picture, television and photographic host applications. "

And what do you know, I find a website which he has copy pasted from, and this continues throughout the entire document...

We are in the third year of university, and I for one care about my degree, but how someone who seems happy to plagiarise has made it this far is beyond me.

The situation now leaves me and one other group member doing all the work which was supposed to already be done, meaning we are up all night, even more fun I have work after I hand the assignment in.

I am not sure what to do right now either, I am tired and did not sleep well last night and just feeling generally stressed about it all, on top of that we need to decide what to do about this problem as it now works out that the plagiarising group member has contributed nothing to the project, he is in our friends group and I do not wish for him to fail but I am jolly tempted to just exclude him from the group mark right now if other members agree...

Rant over anyway I need to get back to it.

Jcb33.

Who gives a crap if it looks good alter it a bit, the grade is most important, do what ever is in your means to achieve the best grade, be it via hard work or cheating, doesnt really matter the grade is all that matters.

Dr.EM · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:03

Group work is annoying. I don't plan on staying here but they keep giving us group work and I couldn't just leave the group in the lurch so have to make an effort with it all.

Aero · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:03

Its your degree, and if you fail then they won't care. Look after number 1 its their fault they haven't bothered with it, luckily at my uni we got to peer assess.

Aero

gareth.e · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:05

I've got it both ways.. In some groups I feel like I'm the workhorse and other I feel almost like I'm getting a free ride!

scorza · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:06

Sone said:
group work at uni is the worst idea ever, has no bearing on real world group work and just gives idiots an easy ride and dedicated students hell

Of course it does. If you're in charge of something you can't say you haven't done it because one team member wasn't pulling his weight - you have to manage that situation.

Archibald0 · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:12

Im so glad I left uni after 6 months and got a job

dont fancy early baldness with all the stress

Gatsby · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:13

scorza said:
Of course it does. If you're in charge of something you can't say you haven't done it because one team member wasn't pulling his weight - you have to manage that situation.

What's he going to do, give the guy a warning? Threaten to fire him?

shifty_uk · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:14

Glad I'm not the only one that's totally stressed. Got a shed load of work to do within the next 2-3 weeks. Left it all to the last minute and in total panic mode.

gumbald · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:19

Don't give him a free ride. Have a word about his blatant copying to him, if he offers nothing else, speak to a tutor.

big_white_dog84 · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:32

I agree that university group work is very different to the real world. It's probably very similar to the group work that the academic staff at the university do, but again that's nothing like the real world.

GingerNinja1989 · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:45

I agree as well, second year student here, and why should my grade be at risk because of some lazy group members? At the moment it seems like I'm doing about 90% of the work on my project

Russinating · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:51

Welcome to the world of working in a group. Group work by its nature means someone will always be doing less work than everyone else :/

My entire university grade was based on the work of what other people did rather than what I did (in a negative way).

GingerNinja1989 · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:55

rghjones said:
Welcome to the world of working in a group. Group work by its nature means someone will always be doing less work than everyone else :/

My entire university grade was based on the work of what other people did rather than what I did (in a negative way).

Not exactly fair, is it? And all this in a degree that will have a major impact for the rest of your life. Personally, I want to do teacher training after I graduate, and the place I want to do it in asks for a First Class degree. If I don't get that because of some group member not pulling their weight and dragging me down, that could have a major bearing on my career and my life.

Kobrakai · 19 Nov 2008 at 20:59

It’s pretty unfair, luckily the people I worked with during my degree were hard working and we managed to get a 1st

Welshy · 19 Nov 2008 at 21:18

Everybody I've spoken to hates group work like nothing else, it's just ridiculous if you get a bad group.

The good thing about how they do it here though (and possibly all other uni's?), is we get to do 'peer-grading' when we hand them in, so if I were you I'd just rape them on that and take 90% of the mark for yourself.

GingerNinja1989 · 19 Nov 2008 at 21:30

Don't really get to do peer-grading, so looks like its tough luck to me

Anyway, apologies if it seems like I'm hijacking the thread.