ChickenSoup88

I think the title explains itself. We've all had sucky experiences where we've been forced to work with less than desirable partners. Here is a chance to share your story or just vent.

Here's mine:
In 9th grade global we had a project that was loosely based on The Amazing Race. Each group was given a continent, and we were supposed to make all sorts of clues that would help the "teams" get from one important landmark to the next. My group was assigned Asia.

I first notice a problem when one of my teammates fails to realize that Switzerland is not in Asia. We end up assigning each person a section of Asia, and I get the Middle East. For the next few weeks I work my butt off coming up with important locations and clever clues to get to them. When my teammates and I meet up again, I am horrified. First, they've spent more time thinking about making pretty boards and posters than doing their project. While my clues led from Jerusalem to Tikrit to Mecca and Medina, their locations were places such as a spa in Japan (and not some historical thing, an overpriced tourist spa) or a restaurant in Korea. They had completely missed the entire point of the project.

I ended up handing in my own work separately, because we were given both group and individual grades and I wasn't going to let my grade suffer because of my idiot groupmates. I was furious later when I found out that they all still got B+s. None of them turned out to be real academic superstars, as you might have guessed. Now whenever we have group projects, I make sure to work with people I know will pull their own weight.

Serenade_Me

Hmm I've had plenty, but the most recent one was a final assignment given by my Global History teacher. It was worth 4 test grades and it was an all or nothing kind of assignment. I was grouped up with two other people so we divided the essays and questions up evenly into three parts. On the day that it was due, I had completed all the work and both of them together hadn't done at least half of the work. So, basically I got four zeros for doing everything I was supposed to. Not fun. :-|

ChickenSoup88

^That really sucks. I hate groups projects mostly because there is no way to get people who don't want to do the work to do it, and you suffer because of their laziness.

The last time I had a group project I was like "Ok, you three look up all the vocab words and write sentences with them. I'll write up the other three essays, type up notes for the class and make the powerpoint presentation."

I'm pretty bossy and a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to projects. It isn't pleasant.

futurenyustudent

I'm pretty bossy and I'm very perfectionist. Yeah, I'm usually the one managing the whole project.

I hate group projects.

GIMEurSTRESballZ

=D work with kids ranked in the top ten. thats what i do. or just work with hard workers and correct their mistakes. it really isnt that hard..if youre bossy during the proj why not be bossy while picking groups?

ChickenSoup88

The projects that suck are the ones where the teacher assigns the groups, and unless you have a restraining order against your groupmate, you two are working together.

The irony is I don't think teachers realize that they are forcing their hardworking student into a partnership with an unmotivated slacker who won't do their share.

jennylaw

anyone ever had the teacher deliberately put you with someone else who they know slacks because they think you'll teach them something because you work hard and then you're screwed for your grade?.
not cool.

GIMEurSTRESballZ

take hard courses only

Anonymous91

God where to begin... every group project ever assigned. In my global studies class we often had to share laptops and once we had to do this project on one and i was assigned to work with a kid who couldnt identify america on a map... of america. I dont know where teachers came up with the idea that if you assign a smart kids with an idiot, that some how that smart kid was the spark the idiot needed to begin his scholastic career.

adriannam

I'm one of those perfectionist GPA-whores, so, naturally, I took over for my group project in Honors English, even though my partners were both competent. We had to do a fake "newspaper" for the Catch-22.

Well, I was determined that we design our newspaper in Adobe InDesign, since I'm a yearbook nerd. Unfortunately our publications class hadn't upgraded yet, so I'd only used the program once previously, at three-day workshop. But I was the only one who knew what I was doing, so I had to design it all (eight 8x11 pages), place all the stories, find and place all the pictures, print it out, assemble it, and write my share of the stories.

The other two just wrote their stories and emailed them to me.

Molly247

i usually just end up doing group work by myself. this is mostly because i don't trust other people to do a good job, so i just figure i should do it myself.

S0ad

I usually boss people around now in group projects. I always rewrite anything they do into somewhat reasonable english. I'm not brilliant when it comes to english, but certainly better than some of the lazy/just plain stupid people I've worked with. I always due about 95% of the work. Other people are so lazy. One person typed the thing due that day (in school, cutting other classes) and used chatspeak in it, like "u." Luckily we didn't go that day, and I redid everything they messed up.

I still don't understand why teachers pair you with some random people. Do they honestly think they're going to create life-long relationships?

GIMEurSTRESballZ

repeat: take hard courses

S0ad

I take the "hardest" courses at my school.
The "hard" courses have a limited amount of people in them. There's about 40ish total of honors/AP people. I know that about 10 - 15 of them work up to their potential. The rest are lazy, and I have no idea how they are still in honors. Well, I know quite a few cheat. But yeah, "take hard courses" may not always work, since I always get stuck with idiots and/or slackers. And because I'm in the top 5 of the class people that work with me basically see it as a free ride for them.

silentsailor

I was going out of town winter break of freshman year, so my lab partner took home the mice we were cross-breeding. I cleaned the tank before it started, took it out to his car, made sure everything would be fine all week, and then came back to find that he had replaced the wood shavings with (now water-soaked) kleenex and killed off all of our mice - and left them in there. Ugggh yay :]

Oh and what's also lovely is when someone else volunteers to make a powerpoint, but his/her computer mysteriously crashes the night before it's due. That was an all-nighter and the girl was totally on AIM for a few hours at least.

The best solution I've found is to take control immediately and offer to do everything before someone else messes it up - which sounds ridiculously bossy and arrogant but it works.