{"id":203,"date":"2020-10-30T10:00:57","date_gmt":"2020-10-30T10:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-skills\/?p=203"},"modified":"2021-02-03T11:09:06","modified_gmt":"2021-02-03T11:09:06","slug":"writing-a-ground-rules-agreement-for-group-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/2020\/10\/30\/writing-a-ground-rules-agreement-for-group-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Writing a ground rules agreement for group work"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Before you begin your <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-skills\/2019\/11\/27\/th-five-steps-to-effective-group-working\/\">group working<\/a> task it is important to agree on a set of open and fair group rules. These rules should set out clearly what is expected of each member with shared obligations and responsibilities.<\/p>\n<p>A <em><strong>ground rules agreement<\/strong><\/em> will help you develop and maintain an all-for-one approach to team work.\u00a0 It will also help you avoid any group conflict or arguments further down the line.<\/p>\n<p>When devising your <em><strong>ground rules agreement<\/strong><\/em>, you\u00a0 may wish to include areas such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Respect the views of others<\/li>\n<li>Everyone's opinion counts<\/li>\n<li>Shared responsibilities and workloads<\/li>\n<li>Prepare for meetings and set agendas<\/li>\n<li>Co-operate and compromise - be generous and inspiring - don't compete with each other!<\/li>\n<li>Meet deadlines and keep record<\/li>\n<li>Respect the ground rules agreement - don't ignore it!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Here is a <em><strong>gound rules template<\/strong><\/em> you can use or adapt to suit your team.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/ground-rules-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-205\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/ground-rules-2-188x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"497\" height=\"794\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/ground-rules-2-188x300.jpg 188w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/ground-rules-2-641x1024.jpg 641w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/ground-rules-2-135x215.jpg 135w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/ground-rules-2.jpg 704w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 497px) 100vw, 497px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h6>Adapted from: Hopkins, D. and Reid, T., 2018.\u00a0<i>The Academic Skills Handbook: Your Guid<\/i><i>e to Success in Writing, Thinking and Communicating at University<\/i>. Sage.<a href=\"https:\/\/uk.sagepub.com\/en-gb\/eur\/the-academic-skills-handbook\/book253881\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-190 size-medium\" title=\"The Academic Skills Handbook\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2018\/10\/9781473997158-300x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2018\/10\/9781473997158-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2018\/10\/9781473997158-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2018\/10\/9781473997158-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2018\/10\/9781473997158-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2018\/10\/9781473997158-215x215.png 215w, https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2018\/10\/9781473997158.png 1349w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/h6>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Before you begin your group working task it is important to agree on a set of open and fair group rules. These rules should set out clearly what is expected of each member with shared obligations and responsibilities. A ground...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":399,"featured_media":266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[57],"tags":[58],"class_list":["post-203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-group-working","tag-ground-rules"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/referee-1149014_1920.jpg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":201,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/2019\/11\/27\/th-five-steps-to-effective-group-working\/","url_meta":{"origin":203,"position":0},"title":"Five steps to effective group working","author":"Kevin Renfrew","date":"November 27, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Group working is a core activity at university. The group working skills you learn during your studies will also set you up for your future career. It is vital therefore, that you develop effective strategies to establish\u00a0 and maintain effective group cohesion when working on group tasks and assignments. Follow\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Collaboration and group working&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Collaboration and group working","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/category\/capabilities-framework\/group-working\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/team-3393037_1920.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/team-3393037_1920.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/team-3393037_1920.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/team-3393037_1920.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/team-3393037_1920.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2019\/03\/team-3393037_1920.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":516,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/2020\/11\/02\/five-strategies-for-success-in-online-learning-whats-worked-for-our-students\/","url_meta":{"origin":203,"position":1},"title":"Five strategies for success in online learning: what\u2019s worked for our students","author":"Kevin Renfrew","date":"November 2, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Everyone\u2019s experience of online learning is\u00a0different and\u00a0finding\u00a0out what works for you\u00a0takes\u00a0time. Dr Eleanor Parker, Planning and Projects Manager (Skills) in the Skills Centre, looks at how you can get the most out of online learning. Last semester, we listened to our students with disabilities as they talked to Student Support\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Collaboration and group working&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Collaboration and group working","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/category\/capabilities-framework\/group-working\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Photo of a student sitting at a desk and looking at a laptop screen. She is gripping a pencil between her teeth and in a gesture of exasperation.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2020\/11\/onlinelearning.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2020\/11\/onlinelearning.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2020\/11\/onlinelearning.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2020\/11\/onlinelearning.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2020\/11\/onlinelearning.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1751,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/2026\/01\/16\/collaborate-for-success\/","url_meta":{"origin":203,"position":2},"title":"\u202fCollaborate for success!","author":"Justin Alam","date":"January 16, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"University study is often associated with independence and self-directed learning. While these qualities are important, collaboration is equally essential for academic success. This is firstly because some of your assignments may require you to work on group projects and you may be graded on how well you worked as a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Academic skills&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Academic skills","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/category\/academic-skills\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A group of students sitting at a table with laptops working together","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/01\/Blog-post-images-29.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/01\/Blog-post-images-29.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/01\/Blog-post-images-29.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/01\/Blog-post-images-29.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1627,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/2025\/06\/04\/why-your-brain-makes-genai-ethics-harder-than-it-should-be-and-what-to-do-about-it\/","url_meta":{"origin":203,"position":3},"title":"Why your brain makes GenAI ethics harder than it should be (and what to do about it)","author":"Kevin Renfrew","date":"June 4, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"A psychological perspective on academic integrity in the age of artificial intelligence Let us talk about something that is probably been on your mind lately: using Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools like Copilot for your work. If you are feeling confused about where the ethical lines are drawn, you are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Academic integrity&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Academic integrity","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/category\/academic-integrity\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A series of three stylised Generative Artificial Intelligence illustrations: 1) A circular blue tech-inspired pattern with concentric rings and digital elements. 2) A dark and light blue illustration showing a robotic figure reaching out of a laptop computer to access GenAI. 3) A blue robotic hand reaching out to a human hand, suggesting connection or assistance.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2023\/09\/GenAI-Info-page-banner.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2023\/09\/GenAI-Info-page-banner.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2023\/09\/GenAI-Info-page-banner.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2023\/09\/GenAI-Info-page-banner.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1816,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/2026\/04\/27\/developing-adaptability-at-university-a-foundation-for-the-modern-workplace\/","url_meta":{"origin":203,"position":4},"title":"Developing adaptability at university: A foundation for the modern workplace","author":"Justin Alam","date":"April 27, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"New learning environments In today\u2019s fast-changing world of work, adaptability has become one of the most valued professional skills. Employers increasingly look for graduates who can respond positively to change, learn quickly, and thrive in uncertain environments. While adaptability is often associated with workplace experience, many of the foundations for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Academic skills&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Academic skills","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/category\/academic-skills\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A hexagon with an icon representing adaptability","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/04\/Adaptability.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/04\/Adaptability.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/04\/Adaptability.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/84\/2026\/04\/Adaptability.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":621,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/2021\/06\/16\/why-theres-more-to-digital-skills-than-microsoft-office\/","url_meta":{"origin":203,"position":5},"title":"Why there's more to digital skills than Microsoft Office!","author":"Ciara Sherlock","date":"June 16, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"In this blog Skills Co-Creator and 2nd Year Management student Ciara Sherlock shares\u00a0how\u00a0she has been developing her digital skills to support her studies and her future career. https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@uniofbath\/video\/6979554485664337158?lang=en&is_copy_url=0&is_from_webapp=v1&sender_device=pc&sender_web_id=6979609393483548165 You may be aware that the University is encouraging students to assess their digital skills because of their growing importance for studying\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Collaboration and group working&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Collaboration and group working","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/academic-and-employability-skills\/category\/capabilities-framework\/group-working\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Cartoon of Microsoft Teams with a laptop in the middle showing the Teams logo. 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