Collaboration Framework

The creation of a Collaboration Framework is a strategic initiative of the Faculty of Mathematics to give students clearer guidelines on the amount of collaboration permitted in a course. Below are the different levels of collaboration that may be permitted in a course, best practices for students, and suggestions/resources for instructors to better incorporate collaboration.

This website was last updated Winter of 2026.

Introduction

The suggested levels for collaboration are as follows. An instructor may permit different levels of collaboration depending on the assessment type, and may also vary collaboration expectations between individual assessments of the same type. For ease of use, icons to represent each level were created, shown below in the collapsible section. This framework refers only to peer-to-peer collaboration — to learn more about permissible collaboration with AI, visit the Artificial Intelligence in Math Assessment site.

  No Collaboration Discussion Co-Authorship (Individual Submission) Group Work (Joint Submission)

No Acknowledgement 

0

No collaboration permitted whatsoever.

Examples: Tests, Midterms

D

Students can feel free to discuss questions/code strategy with peers, but may not write any solutions down together or share previously written solutions.

Examples: In-class activities, Assignments, Discussion posts

C

Co-authorship is allowed, but not required. Students can work together to create solutions and code, but submissions are individual. 

Examples: In-class activities, Assignments

 n/a
Acknowledgement  n/a

DA

Students can feel free to discuss questions/code strategy with peers, and ensure to note who they collaborated with on their assessment. Additionally, students may not write any solutions down together or share previously written solutions.

Example: In-class activities, Assignments

CA

Co-authorship is allowed, ensure to note who you collaborated with on your assessment. Students can work together to create solutions and code, but submissions are individual. 

Examples: In-class activities, Assignments, Two-Stage Quizzes/Tests

G

Students may optionally get into pairs or groups for the assessment. If you work in a pair/group, make one submission together.

Examples: In-class activities, Assignments, Projects
Required n/a

DR

Students must discuss with peers.

Examples: In-class activities, Discussion posts

 n/a

GR

Students are required to complete and submit the work in groups. There may or may not be a peer evaluation and/or individual grades.

Examples: Projects, In-class activities

Below are some icons (inspired by Creative Commons) to represent the different permitted levels of collaboration. These may be used in course outlines as a quick way to indicate which level is allowed. A custom level has been added to the icons so instructors may use some form of collaboration that is not exactly outlined in the framework.

Collaboration Framework Icons
A X with a circle around it

No Collaboration Permitted

The letter D, icons of two people with a discussion bubble between them.

Dicussion Permitted

The letter C, icons of two people with two papers between them

Co-Authorship Permitted

The letters DA, icons of two people with a discussion bubble between them, a paper with a pencil indicating you must acknowledge who you are discussing with

Discussion Acknowledged

The letters CA, icons of two people with two pieces of paper between them, indicating co-authorship is permitted. A paper with a pencil indicating you must acknowledge who you are co-authoring with

Co-Authorship Acknowledged

The letter G, an icon of a group of 3 people

Group Work Permitted

The letters DR, icons of two people with a discussion bubble between them, an exclamation mark in a circle indicating it is required

Discussion Required

The letters GR, an icon of a group of 3 people, an exclamation mark in a circle

Group Work Required

A circle with a question mark inside

Custom Collaboration Level

A X with a circle around it
1 / 9
No Collaboration Permitted
The letters CA, icons of two people with two pieces of paper between them, indicating co-authorship is permitted. A paper with a pencil indicating you must acknowledge who you are co-authoring with
5 / 9
Co-Authorship Acknowledged
A circle with a question mark inside
9 / 9
Custom Collaboration Level

Benefits of Collaboration

Below are just some of the found benefits of incorporating collaboration into learning

Group work helps students with:

  • Communication skills
  • Critical thinking
  • Conflict management
  • Networking abilities
  • Giving and receiving constructive criticism
  • Preparing for being part of a team in the workforce
  • Reducing the feeling of isolation in a course
  • Improving engagement in lecture material
  • Better recognition of errors made (more commonly caught by other students)
  • Reducing anxiety surrounding tackling a difficult problem 
  • Overcoming imposter syndrome

Addressing common concerns about collaboration

Incorporating collaboration into your course may come with some potential concerns. We have compiled some of these common issues, and some resources/solutions that can help you overcome them!

Concern Solution
Group dynamics
  • Check out the Teamwork Skills Project under Learning Resources that may help students with difficult group dynamics
  • Consider different methods of selecting groups (allowing students to choose their own may be more likely to lead to a positive group environment)
GenAI
Fairness in marking/giving appropriate grades
  • Ensure some percentage of the students' grade comes from individual assessments
  • Incorporate a peer evaluation sheet, so student feedback on group performance is recognized (Sample peer evaluation can be found under the Teamwork Skills Project under Learning Resources)
  • See Methods for Assessing Group Work for more tips on how to grade group assessments
Want to ensure students experience productive struggle
  • Incorporating a two-stage test can ensure a student struggles on their own, but then they can collaborate to understand portions that they missed
  • Ensure some percentage of the students' grade comes from individual assessments
Student/TA unfamiliarity with group work
  • Talk to students about the benefits of using in-person time to collaborate. Some tips for beginning this conversation can be found in the article First Day Questions for the Learner-Centered Classroom
  • Have TA's run icebreakers on the first day of classes or the first tutorial
Accessibility of collaboration
  • Occasionally, students have accommodations surrounding group work, so it is helpful to make collaboration accessible by design
  • This could mean giving flexibility in the choice of group members, size of groups, or methods of meeting with the group. Note that students will not be exempted from group work due to accommodations. 
Equitable opportunity to participate
  • If groups are self selected, use the Piazza "Search for Teammates" post so students can find group members
  • If groups are assigned, some advice of ensuring equitable participation can be found in Implementing Group Work in the Classroom
Physical classroom space is not suitable for collaboration
  • Talk to your scheduling representative before the term begins to see if an active learning or flexible classroom is right for your course
  • EdTech resources below may provide a means of collaboration despite an unsuitable environment

EdTech Resources for Collaboration

There are many technologies already made available by the University that could assist in lowering the barrier to incorporating collaboration in your courses. Below is a summary of some of these EdTech resources and how they could be help facilitate collaboration.

Resource Description
Bongo Video Assignments

Supports group assignments both online and in person
Crowdmark

Allows seamless marking for group assignments, and proctored group assessments
iClicker

Allows a “group mode” where students can work in teams
PebblePad

Has group functionality, but does not sync with Learn groups
peerScholar

Can be used to give peer evaluations for group work
Perusall

Can be used for collaborative reading and annotating of class readings
Piazza

Can get opinions and answers from instructors and other students about course material
Vevox

Supports interactive team quizzes