How can we help?

Small Group Mode allows you to divide your students into separate groups, each working independently on their own copy of a template discussion. Admins can manage and participate in all groups, while students see and engage only with their assigned group.

Small Group Mode is ideal for facilitating in-depth, detailed discussions, even with larger class sizes. For instance, if you’re running a class debate with 30 students, Small Group Mode can automatically create five groups of six, encouraging more active participation and collaboration.

Key Features

• You can split students into groups based on LMS groups, randomly, or manually, depending on your chosen Group Assignment method.
• Your template discussion, including claims, theses, and comments, is copied to each group as a starting point. Any changes you make to the template later will automatically update in all groups, even after work begins.
• Students can only view and contribute to their own group’s discussion.
• You can view, edit, or participate in any group’s discussion anytime.
• You can move students between groups or change the number of groups. However, existing student contributions do not transfer, so it’s best to finalize groups before students begin any substantial work.
• Student Participation is initially disabled, allowing you to set up the discussion first. Enable it when you’re ready for students to start working.

Setting Up Small Group Mode

To start using Small Group Mode: 

1. Create your template discussion:
   a. Create a new discussion, pick one from Kialo’s Topic Library, or open an existing one.
   b. Enable Small Group Mode when prompted. (For existing discussions, click the Settings icon in the top-right of the discussion, go to the Small Group Mode tab, then check Enable Small Group.)
   
   
2. Choose your Group Assignment method:
   
   a. Automatically assign to groups: Students are distributed evenly across the specified number of groups. Select this to get started quickly if group composition isn’t a priority. 
   
   b. Manually assign to groups: Students join the discussion in the Waiting Room, where they cannot view or participate in discussions until assigned to a group. This gives you control over each group’s composition; however, this may be time-consuming if you have an especially large number of students. You can view the Waiting Room by clicking the top bar in a Small Group Mode discussion to open the Groups pane:
   – To move a participant, drag their username and drop it in the appropriate group.
   – To quickly move all Waiting Room members to a group, click Assign All, then the relevant group. 
   
   c. Use LMS Groups: Automatically imports and syncs your existing Moodle or Canvas groups. Groups sync when the first student joins the discussion. (This method requires the Moodle plugin or LTI integration with your LMS.)
   
   
3. Invite students to the discussion (if necessary):
   For LMS Groups: No action is required – students will join when they open the discussion from your LMS platform.
   For Automatic or Manual: Enable a Sharing Link (recommended) or invite students manually.
   
   
4. Enable student participation:
   Student participation is disabled while you set up the discussion. Make any needed adjustments to the template or group compositions, then enable participation when you’re ready to start:
   a. Click the Settings icon in the top-right of the discussion.
   b. Open the Small Group Mode tab.
   c. Click Enable Student Participation, then Confirm.
   

Done! Your students can begin working in their groups.

Reminder:

Changes you make to the template after students begin work will be reflected in all groups. We recommend finalizing the template before enabling student participation.

Navigating Between Groups

The top bar in a Small Group Mode discussion will display your current perspective (e.g., Template, Group 1, etc.). To change views:

1. Click the name of the current version in the top bar (e.g., Template, Group 1, etc.). The Groups pane opens.
2. Select the Template or Group to switch to. 

Managing Groups and Members

Note:

You must have Owner or Admin permissions in a discussion to configure Small Group Mode settings.

Moving Users Between Groups

To move participants to different groups:

1. Click the Settings icon in the top-right of the discussion.
2. Open the Small Group Mode tab.
3. At the bottom of the page, the Waiting Room and Groups sections display their current members. To move a participant, drag their username from their current group and drop it in their new group.
   

Warning:

Existing student contributions will remain in the original group when moving participants between groups. To prevent potentially redundant student work, finalize groups before students make significant contributions.

Deleting a Group

If you delete a group, all contributions (including claims, comments, and feedback) to that group will be deleted, and users will be moved to the Waiting Room to be assigned to another group.

1. Click the Settings icon in the top-right of the discussion.
2. Open the Small Group Mode tab.
3. Next to the desired group to delete, click the Menu icon, then Delete.
4. Click Delete.

Warning:

Deleting a group is irreversable and permanently removes all contributions to that group. Ensure you want to do so and double-check you’re deleting the right group!

Additional Information

• When choosing the number of groups to create, keep the expected size of groups in mind. Divide the total number of students by the number of groups to determine group size (Students ÷ Groups = Group Size).
  • We’ve found that groups of roughly 4-8 students are best for long-form or assessed discussions.
• If enabled, the discussion chat is accessible to all discussion participants, making it convenient to coordinate with everyone involved.
• If you enable Small Group Mode in an existing discussion, any pending claim suggestions will be removed.