The one interpersonal conflict that left a deep mark under
my skin was the time where I was involved in a group essay project. In our
group of five, we divided the workload equally and scheduled the deadline for
compilation. Unfortunately, there was a member who failed to turn up for our
scheduled meetings. Thus, I approached her for an explanation. She explained
that being a Music major, there were rehearsals scheduled late till night for
the upcoming concerts but promised that she would try her best to turn up for
meetings and do her part of the project.
Despite making a number of calls and leaving text messages,
she did not respond positively. She failed to submit her part on time and her
absence from meetings became a pattern. As it was a group project in which all
of us had a responsibility to shoulder, it was only fair that she played her
part regardless of other commitments. Afterall, weren’t the rest of us filled up to the
brim with a heavy workload as well? At that time, I began to feel annoyed and
wondered if the late-night rehearsals were simply an excuse to escape from her
responsibility.
The situation escalated to the point that the
teacher-in-charge was informed of the current happenings. Through an arranged discussion with the teacher, it was only then that I realized that contrary to my thoughts,
she was truly kept busy with late-night rehearsals five times per week. Nonetheless,
she did not receive the grade awarded for our project.
Upon reflection, I was wondering if more could be done to prevent
the situation from escalating to such a drastic point. Perhaps, we could have put
ourselves in her shoes and understand her schedule. Yet at the same time, this would
have required active response from her.
Do you think our group made a right choice by reporting about
her lack of contribution to the project?
Hi Yuki! The situation which you wrote is quite often happen also in my school life. I felt so sorry how you considering your member who didn't show up the meeting. It may seems quite annoying.
ReplyDeleteI am year 4 in Business, and I think I haven't report the absence of team member though there is the member who absence the project. I think it's because we use the scoring among the members about participation. This system is quite good since if the person absent, he/she would get the low peer-scoring point. And this result will directly affect the final score.
About your question, I think your team could do other way. For example, your team can charge her to look through all the essays or printing. He he.
It was really interesting to read your situation!
Hi Saerom,
DeleteThanks for your reply! I do agree that the system of scoring members about participation is a good idea. In that case, the grades of the person who did not contribute much to the project would be affected. This system is not used in many modules though. It would be nice if it could be implemented at a broader level (:
Hi Yuki. Your situation is quite similar to mine, except that my team did not report that particular group mate to the module coordinator. I think your team did the right thing. Since the project is shared, every single member should contribute to it. As a Music major, she should be well aware of her packed schedule and choose her elective modules(i assume) wisely in the first place. She has the responsibility to avoid such situation, and I feel that a lower grade is appropriate since she contributed less.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, however, I believe more could be done to avoid such a conflict from arising. For instance, delegate work which would not require her to attend every single meeting such as collating the works of all members, similar to what Saerom had suggested. Otherwise, create an online platform such as Dropbox where all the work is accessible to everyone, or hold online discussions. Although she had valid reasons to be absent from most meetings, there is no reason why she should contribute less.
I hope my suggestions are useful.
Cheers
Liying
Hi Liying,
DeleteThanks for the suggestion, i do agree that its a great idea to use technology to facilitate discussion. However, the situation gets a bit hard to manage if the person chooses not to reply or participate in online discussions. Nonetheless, as what you have mentioned, it would have been better for her to assume responsibility of arranging her timetable and contribute effectively to our group project (: