A trend toward the use of groups can be seen both at the workplace and in education. The growing presence of groups at work provides one motivation for groups in educational context, especially ESP, because students now need to acquire a higher form of literacy to participate in groups at work. Involved in this broader literacy are such skills as exercising initiative, peer-training, group problem solving, and interpersonal communication. Such literacy will be especially difficult for second language learners to achieve. The author discusses the nature of this trend toward groups and the reasons for it. Next, groups at the two sites are compared in areas such as the changing roles of managers/teachers and employees/students and the degree of commonality of interests between employers/teachers and employees/students. The author concludes that the use of groups in education is valuable for helping students acquire the skills and attitudes of cooperation and complex thinking. Such preparation will serve students well regardless of what they encounter in their careers and beyond. Additionally, the content of education must also be considered in preparing students for the situations they may experience with employers and others. [This article was published in "ESP Malaysia," v2 p106-117 1994.]