Group Etiquette Question

[burbuja0512]

I've had this situation twice.

The first time, we ommitted the two members' names from the title page of our paper that failed to contribute. We had attempted to notify them on several occassions, but they failed to respond until the night before the project was due, and their response was less-than contributory. It was more like begging and pleading. We were less-than sympathetic.

The second time, I was in a group of three and the other two members contributed maybe 10% altogether. The research paper was missing information that the syllabus had deemed necessary, and when it came time to present our project, only I was capable of delivering the information. Unfortunatley I did not do so hot on the midterm so I needed a good grade on this project. I earned an overall grade of 'D' while the other 2 members earned C's and as a result I have to take the class over in June when I would already be closing-up degree otherwise. My 'D' on the transcript is surrounded by A's and B's, and it has dragged my GPA down to a 3.4.

Would I have done anything different? You darn right! I would have gone completely solo and would be reflecting on my wise decision while working on my masters, yet here I sit waiting....

Moral of the story: It's college! You should not have to babysit grown men and women! Give them the hint and if they fail to contribute, leave their name off of the paper. It worked the first time. The second time I gave in to the peer pressure of my "friends."

Very good points and I'm sorry you had to learn the lesson the hard way. I guess I am worried that the professor will see it as unprofessional if we don't include Jane's name on the paper. However, if she were an employee that worked for me, she would be disciplined, so it's unrealistic to act like nothing's wrong.

The good thing is that with such a large group and with 6 out of 7 people participating, the work is getting done. It's just annoying to carry someone that wants to go along for the ride.