Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine: 1) differences in students'group task skills after working on a trained or untrained project team; 2) differences in students'group maintenance skills after working on a trained or untrained project team; 3)differences in students'attitudes about group task skills; and 4) differences in students'attitudes about group maintenance skills. A correlational design was used for this study. The procedure for this study followed a pretest-posttest nonequivalent control group design. The sample consisted of students enrolled in a senior seminar class at Texas A&M University during the Spring semester of 1998. The instrument used, the Team Orientation and Behavior Inventory (TOBI), measured students'attitudes and self-perceived skills for working on a team. The TOBI consisted of 56 statements describing various team situations. Responses were based on a seven point Likert-type scale. The study found that team training combined with group assignments may have an impact on students' self-perceived teamwork skills, while group assignments alone have no impact on students'selfperceived teamwork skills. Like other studies, this study found that training has no impact on students'attitudes toward working in a group. The following recommendations for action were based on the findings and conclusions of this study: collegiate curriculum should provide explicit teamwork training in the classroom; students should not be expected to have an innate understanding of teamwork, nor should students be expected to 'pick up" teamwork as a result of group assignments. Second, team training should be provided early in students'collegiate careers in order to facilitate later group assignments and help students fully develop team skills.
Cummins, Richard Aaron (1998). An assessment of team teaching methodologies in selected classes at Texas A&M University. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -1998 -THESIS -C86.