Collaboration for Fairness: A Pedagogical Strategy

Introduction

Participating in collaborative activities increases young people’s sense of fairness, leading to more fair and equitable behaviors afterwards.

Collaboration can take many forms in the classroom, such as group assignments or projects, which help foster longer-term cooperation. Collaboration can also be simpler, such as solving math problems collaboratively or using structured and supportive peer feedback methods. Art is a great place to explore collaborative creativity, and service-learning projects allow students to work together to solve real issues, while discussing and connecting over shared values.

We can model collaboration with our students by inviting them into decision-making with us, through building shared classroom norms together at the beginning of the year.

To support collaboration efforts, research shows that using “we” language can help students have more positive collaboration. For a related practice, see Say “We” to Nurture Collaboration in Students.

Here are some reflection and discussion prompts you can use before, during, and after collaborative activities to facilitate deeper conversations among students and expand their learnings when working together.

Before Collaborative Activities

Discussion questions that explore fairness and collaboration:

• What does fairness mean to you? Share a time when something felt unfair.
• Does fairness always mean everyone gets exactly the same thing?
• Sometimes fairness means everyone gets what they need, even if it’s different. What does this mean to you?
• When you’re working in a group, what makes you feel like your voice matters?
• What’s the difference between working in a group and truly collaborating?
• What are some examples of unfair collaboration you’ve observed in the world around you?

During Collaborative Work

To assess the quality of collaborative activities in real time, make strategic observations.

Participation Patterns

• Did all students contribute meaningfully to discussions and tasks?
• Who makes decisions and through what process?
• Were there students who dominated conversations and/or others who remained silent?
• Are quieter members’ contributions valued and included?

Communication Quality

• Did students build on each other’s ideas rather than just stating their own?
• How did students handle disagreements or conflicting viewpoints?
• Were students actively listening, asking clarifying questions, and showing genuine interest in others’ contributions?

Resource and Role Distribution

• How do groups divide materials and responsibilities?
• What patterns of resource-sharing emerged?

After Collaborative Activities

Facilitate reflective discussions with your students.

• How did your group decide who would do what?
• Did everyone’s ideas get heard? How did that make the group feel?
• What happened when someone disagreed with an idea?
• When you worked together well, how did it feel for everyone?
• Did collaboration help you find solutions that worked for everyone?

Assessment and Reflection

• How do you know if the collaborative activities have had a positive impact or how you might improve them in the future? Here are some reflections and suggested student self-assessment questions to evaluate collaboration efforts in your classroom.

Source

Jenna Whitehead, Ph.D., Simon Fraser University

Evidence That It Works

In a study of 491 children (ages 4 to 13) from rural India and Canada, researchers found that participation in collaborative games significantly increased children’s tendency toward fairness. Specifically, children rejected a personal advantage (taking more candies for themselves) if it meant it was unfair to their partner.

Why Does it Matter?

The ability to collaborate well with others is a crucial skill for succeeding both in school and after—and for building a world in which everyone is treated fairly. But this skill is not easy to develop. Students need continual practice to learn how to work effectively with others, along with the opportunity to reflect on their experience and how it contributes to their understanding of fairness.

By consistently integrating collaborative learning experiences into academics, educators can help students not only build stronger connections with peers, but also increase their motivation to be fair. The values and skills that students gain through these experiences also help to foster more equitable classroom communities.