Group projects are supposed to teach teamwork, but many students know the unfair version too well. One person organizes the slides, another does most of the research, and someone else appears only on presentation day.

Teachers often say group work prepares us for real jobs. That is partly true. People do need to communicate, share responsibilities, and solve conflicts. But badly designed group projects mostly teach responsible students to rescue everyone else.

The problem is not teamwork itself. The problem is invisible labor. Planning meetings, reminding people, editing mistakes, and fixing last-minute gaps often count as nothing, even though they decide whether the project survives.

Teachers can make group work better by requiring role logs, private peer evaluations, checkpoints, and individual reflection. Students should also learn how to speak up early instead of silently taking over.

Teamwork should not mean one student carrying the team while everyone receives the same grade. Real collaboration needs accountability.