Learning Cohorts

In an effort to help support the class as a community during this remote semester, we have created a set of diverse cohorts to give you an opportunity to work with a group of students (hopefully beyond just your known friends) that you can get to know and support each other throughout the semester. Participating in these cohorts is optional and is not intended to replace your own support structures, but studies show that many students benefit greatly, beyond simply learning the material better, by being part of a study group.

How you choose to work together as a cohort is up to you and will likely vary greatly, but the overall goal is to provide you with an extra place to turn to rather than an extra time burden. Some may choose to schedule regular meetings to discuss course topics, some may remind each other to stay on track, some may work together to complete the exercises, some may always meet together as a complete group or as sub-groups depending on the need or situation, or some may simply use them as a "personal Piazza" to address technical issues.

Whatever ends up working for your group, we encourage everyone to at least give it a try so as many people as possible benefit. Studying in a group gives you the opportunity to figure out both what you do and do not know. The diversity of the groups means that during the semester, likely everyone will have a chance to teach others something they understand as well as learn something from the someone else. Working with others will also likely give you a better chance to see the material from a different perspective than we can provide or to come up with ways to make it more enjoyable (and we encourage you to share!).

During some class meetings, we may create Breakout Rooms based on these cohorts to simplify the process of helping as many people as possible with specific questions. Also, while collaboration is important and encouraged, we still expect the assignments to be your own work.