70 Activities for Tutor Groups

The pressure on contact time with students and the results required from it are constantly increasing - which means that tutors have to be more and more creative in how they approach their work. This book provides some solutions. 70 Activities for Tutor Groups explores the many and varied ways in which tutors can provoke and encourage meaningful, constructive and focused discussion among their students. It takes the form of a classified and cross-referenced manual of groupwork activities. For ease of use each activity is presented in a common format: ¢ In a nutshell ¢ Aims ¢ What is needed ¢ Time needed ¢ How it works ¢ Good example in action ¢ Diagram ¢ Advantages of this activity ¢ Potential problem(s) ¢ Main learning outcome ¢ Variation. The practical, 'low-tech' approach taken by Peter Davies means that these activities (which have all been trialled and are known to work) can be used easily by all tutors, at any level, and in any subject. If you are committed to improving the effectiveness of your work with groups you need look no further!

Peter Davies is Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Huddersfield. He teaches Modern European History, with special reference to France, and his research interests include small group teaching and learning, and far-right politics in France.

Introduction. Part I Activities - by Genre: Display: Introduction; Spin doctors; Gallery; Family trees; Caption competition; Society diagrams; Visual sources; Artefacts; Summary and evaluation; Games: Introduction; Trivia quiz; Card games; The end-of-term opinion poll; Geography puzzles; The most reasons; Revision games; The name game; Blockbusters; Party quirks; The alphabet; Top 5; Martians; Just a minute; Summary and evaluation; Worksheets: Introduction; The workbook; Themes; Multiple choice; Role-play questionnaires; Card groups; Summary and evaluation; Groupwork: Introduction; The committee system; Pairwork and buzz groups; Definitions; Essay-planning; The fishbowl; Editorials; Three planners; Rounds; Brainstorming; Press releases; Summary and evaluation; Role-play: Introduction; The press conference; The set debate; Role-play - international diplomacy; Set oral roles; Shock tactics; 'Question Time'; Sculpting; Simulation - mock meetings; The courtroom; Summary and evaluation. Part II Activities for Difficult Territory: Abstract ideas: Introduction; Role-playing ideas; Draw an idea!; Manifesto-writing; A Post-it wall; Theories as diagrams; 3-D ideas; Opposites and enemies; Sub-ideas within a big idea; Collage; Summary and evaluation; Primary documents: Introduction; Text and context; Quotation deconstruction; Newspaper headlines; Create a charter!; Read out loud!; Paragraphs; Role-play a text; Predict the passage; Maximum three; Key words; Summary and evaluation; Numerical data: Introduction; Socio-economic predictions; Recognition tests; Accept and reject; Vox pop; Dream statistics; Blank-out!; Bogus statistics; Invent a political party!; Summary and evaluation; References and further reading.