Reflections on Student Affect in Group Projects: Are We Encouraging Our Students to Be in Community with Others?

Colleges and universities may create group-based learning environments that help students develop the interpersonal skills necessary for today’s business world. These skills are deemed necessary by many employers.1 Although many institutions of higher education support students’ learning how to work in groups, Jesuit universities may have a special calling for this task in light of the mission of our institutions and the call to community as men and women for others. The current study analyzed 137 undergraduate and graduate, campus and hybrid students’ responses from various disciplines at a Jesuit university using the Whissell Dictionary of Affect in Language.2 Given the lower pleasantness in and greater intensity of the responses at the end of the year, the current study suggests a call for action to provide opportunities for students to practice working in group projects designed to create a more positive experience. Group projects encourage greater community, which is consistent with the Jesuit mission