At times groups schedule meetings with me to discuss their progress, timelines they have set for longer projects, and questions or problems with the work. I do not feel like I am consistent in monitoring groups. I am still working on this area also. Student journals which are submitted each week via e-mail work very well for me. I am more able to respond to problems in a timely fashion using this format than when I used written journals collected on a rotating basis.
Informal observations are crucial.
Often I am able to spot developing problems and deal with them early. Of course, this only works in courses where a large amount of class time is spent in group work, so that I am able to observe them. Formal meetings are useful, especially in cases where a group has developed major problems. However, they do constitute another demand on the students' time, so if finding time to meet is a problem, it can be very hard to get students to show up for such a meeting. Informal observations tend to be quite accurate.