In Academy, you can allocate learners into groups within a cohort. For example, a program may require project groups or study groups. There are several features that can be used with groups:

• Adaptive Sections – different learning activities can be shown to different groups
• Group Task Submissions – tasks can be submitted by one individual on behalf of a group and shown as complete for all group members
• Group Sessions – each group can be allocated to a different live session (eg. face-to-face or webinar) and will only see their own session in Academy
• Posts and Announcements – posts can be made to specific groups instead of the whole cohort. 

You can have more than one type of group in your program. Program example: learners may be split into groups for a project, and then into different groups for networking. 

Creating Groups

First, you will need to set up groups for your program. 

Open your program in Edit view, then navigate to Program Overview, then Social Learning. 

On the Social Learning page, click on the second tab titled Group Work Settings. 

Click Add Group Type to create a group type. In the example below, there are two types of groups - one for activities, and one for a tour. 

If you will be automatically allocating learners to groups, toggle on Enable Auto Group Allocation. This will open an additional menu where you can choose how your participants will be allocated:

• Number of groups – set the number of groups, and learners will be randomly distributed across the groups.
• Maximum participants per group – learners will be assigned to as many groups as needed, ensuring no group is larger than the maximum.

Assigning Learners to Groups

Now that you have created your groups, you can assign learners. You can do this automatically or manually. 

Manual Group Allocation

To manually assign your learners to groups, navigate to Facilitator View, then select the relevant group type under Manage Cohorts.

You can add learners one by one by using Add to Group next to the learner's name, or randomly assign participants to a group by using the button above. You can also add new groups and reassign participants from this view. 

Auto Group Allocation

If you set up Enable Auto Group Allocation when you created your groups, you can run the allocation from the same menu:

Once you have run the allocation, you can view your groups from the Facilitator view. 

Creating Adaptive Sections

You can create sections on an Academy page that are specific to a certain group. 

Program example: learners are required to read a case study for their group, but should not be able to view the case studies for other groups. 

To create an adaptive section, navigate to Edit view, then open the relevant page. Click New Section to add a new section. 

At the bottom of the section settings, you will find the Available To dropdown. Select the Specific Learners option. Click New to create the adaptive filter. 

Under Add Specific Learners, select Learners with Specific Groups. In the dropdown boxes below, you can select the relevant group type, and which group the section will be shown to. 

If you would like to use this filter in other sections, turn the Share this filter with other sections within this program toggle on. 

For information on overall section settings, visit the Introduction to Section Types article.

Creating a Group Task

The following tasks can be submitted by a group instead of an individual:

• File Submission
• Short Response
• Record a Video

Program example: learners complete a group project as part of their program, and need to make their final submission as a group. 

When creating your task, select the relevant group from the Completed By options, or add a new group type if required. Otherwise, task settings are the same as for individual tasks. 

For information on creating tasks, visit the Adding Objects to Sections and Pages – Tasks article. 

Group tasks requiring marking will appear in the facilitator's Tasks to Review. The result or outcome will apply to all learners in the group. For information on marking tasks, visit our help article. 

Creating a Group Session

Group sessions allow you to set up virtual or in-person sessions with different date/time slots for each group. 

Program example: a large cohort is split into smaller groups for hands-on lab workshops. 

To create a group session, navigate to Edit view, then open the relevant page. Click New Section to add a new section. 

Select Group Session from the section type options, then choose the relevant group type. Click Add Group at the bottom of the screen and Add in the groups. 

To add the details of each group session, click the Groups tab on the left of the popup window and complete the information for each session.

Learners can only see the session for the group they are in, while facilitators and coordinators can see all sessions. 

For information on setting up sessions, visit the Setting Up Live Sessions in Academy article. 

Group Posts and Announcements

You can make a post or announcement to a specific group, instead of the whole cohort. 

First, create your post. For info about creating posts and announcements, visit our help article. 

Under Post Settings, you can select which audience to post to. Select the relevant group type, then the specific group you would like to post to.