3. OBJECTIVES
Describe the nature of Cooperative learning
Explain Cooperative learning principles
Discuss different strategies of cooperative learning
Discuss Cooperative learning structures and techniques
Apply the conditions for effective cooperative learning
Manage activities based on cooperative learning strategies
4. COOPERATIVE LEARNING
Cooperative learning is the instructional use of small groups so that students work together to
maximize their own and each other’s learning.
Further there are principles and techniques for helping students work together more
effectively.
Cooperative learning is the process of getting two or more students to work together to
learn. Students often work in small groups composed of participants with different ability
levels and using a variety of learning activities to master material initially developed by
an instructor, or construct knowledge on substantive issues. Each member of the team is
responsible for learning what is taught and for helping teammates learn
5. CONTINUE…
• The lessons are based on a learner-oriented approach to
teaching and within an overall democratic learning
environment; collaboration, cooperative learning and
project-based learning are the leading methods of teaching.
9. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COLLABORATION AND
COOPERATION
Differentiates between collaboration and cooperation in the following
words:
• “Collaboration is a philosophy of interaction and personal lifestyle
whereas cooperation is a structure of interaction designed to
facilitate the accomplishment of an end product or goal.”
• Gerlach (1994) described the definition of cooperative learning as
“Cooperative learning is based on the idea that learning is a naturally
social act in which the participants talk among themselves. It is through
the talk that learning occurs.”
11. COOPERATIVE LEARNING PRINCIPLES
1. Heterogeneous Grouping
2. Collaborative Skills
3. Group Autonomy
4. Simultaneous Interaction
5. Equal Participation
6. Individual Accountability
7. Positive Interdependence
8. Cooperation as a Value
12. COOPERATIVE LEARNING PRINCIPLES
1. Heterogeneous Grouping.
This principle means that the groups in which students do cooperative learning
tasks are mixed on one or more of a number of variables including sex,
ethnicity, social class, religion, personality, age, language proficiency, and
diligence.
2. Collaborative Skills.
Collaborative skills such as giving reasons are those needed to work with others.
Students may lack these skills, the language involved in using the skills, or the
inclination to apply the skills. Most books and websites on cooperative
learning urge that collaborative skills be explicitly taught one at a time.
13. COOPERATIVE LEARNING PRINCIPLES
3. Group Autonomy.
This principle encourages students to look to themselves for resources rather than relying
solely on the teacher. When student groups are having difficulty, it is very tempting for
teachers to intervene either in a particular group or with the entire class. We may
sometimes want to resist this temptation because as Roger Johnson writes,
“Teachers must trust the peer interaction to do many of the things they have felt
responsible for themselves”
4. Simultaneous Interaction.
In classrooms in which group activities are not used, the normal interaction pattern is that
of sequential interaction in which one person at a time – usually the teacher – speaks.
In contrast, when group activities are used, one student per group is speaking. In a
class of 40 divided into groups of four, ten students are speaking simultaneously, i.e.,
40 students divided into 4 students per group = 10 students (1 per group) speaking at
the same time.
14. COOPERATIVE LEARNING PRINCIPLES
5. Equal Participation.
A frequent problem in groups is that one or two group members dominate the group and
for whatever reason, impede the participation of others. Cooperative learning offers
many ways of promoting more equal participation among group members.
6. Individual Accountability.
When we try to encourage individual accountability in
groups, we hope that everyone will try to learn and
to share their knowledge and ideas with others.
15. COOPERATIVE LEARNING PRINCIPLES
7. Positive Interdependence.
This principle lies at the heart of CL. When positive interdependence exists
among members of a group, they feel that what helps one member of the group
helps the other members and that what hurts one member of the group hurts
the other members. It is this “All for one, one for all” feeling that leads group
members to want to help each other, to see that they share a common goal.
8. Cooperation as a Value.
This principle means that rather than cooperation being only a way to learn, i.e.,
the how of learning, cooperation also becomes part of the content to be
learned, i.e., the what of learning. This flows naturally from the most crucial
cooperative learning principle, positive interdependence. Cooperation as a
value involves taking the feeling of “All for one, one for all” and expanding it
beyond the small classroom group to encompass the whole class, the whole
school, on and on, bringing in increasingly greater numbers of people and
other beings into students’ circle of ones with whom to cooperate.
16. STRATEGIES OF COOPERATIVE LEARNING
1. Jigsaw: Groups with five students are set up. The faculty member divides an
assignment or topic to the group.
2. Think-Pair-Share: The students a few minutes to think about a response, and
then asks students to share their ideas with a partner.
3. Three-Step Interview: In the first step students form dyads (pair of
individuals); one student interviews the other. Then Students switch roles. And
at the third step the dyad links with a second dyad
17. CONTINUE…
4. Round Robin: It is primarily a brainstorming technique in which
students generate ideas but do not elaborate, explain, evaluate, or
question the idea.
5. Three-minute review:team members three minutes to review
what has been said, ask clarifying questions or answer questions.
6. Numbered Heads: A team of four is established. Each member is
given number 1, 2, 3 and four. Teacher calls out a number (three)
and the number three in each group is asked to give the answer.
This could be used for comprehension exercises.
18. 7. Buzz Groups: Buzz groups are teams of four to six students. Buzz Groups
serve as a warm-up to whole-class discussion.
8. Talking Chips:This technique encourages silent students to participate
and solve communication or process problems, such as dominating or
clashing group members.
9. Critical Debate: This activity could be used while drafting argumentative
essays. In this individual students select their side of an issue in contrary
to their own views
Continue…
19. 10. Write Around: Students should be given time to add a conclusion and/or edit their
favourite one to share with the class.
Continue…
20. COOPERATIVE LEARNING TECHNIQUES
There are many cooperative learning techniques available for just about any
learning situation.
1. Roundtable: Roundtable structures can be used to brainstorm ideas and to
generate a large number of responses to a single question or a group of
questions.
1) Faculty poses question.
2) One piece of paper and pen per group.
3) First student writes one response, and says it out loud.
4) First student passes paper to the left, second student writes response, etc.
2. One Minute Papers:What was the most important or useful thing you learned
today?
21. 3. Focused Listing: Focused listing can be used as a brainstorming technique
or as a technique to generate descriptions and definitions for concepts.
Focused listing asks the students to generate words to define or describe
something. Once students have completed this activity, you can use these lists
to facilitate group and class discussion.
4.Structured Problem-solving : Structured problem-solving can be used in
conjunction with several other cooperative learning structures.
I. Have the participants brainstorm or select a problem for them to consider.
II. Discuss task as group.
22. 5. Paired Annotations Students pair up to review/learn
same article, chapter or content area and exchange
double-entry journals or reading and reflection.
6. Structured Learning Team Group Roles When
putting together groups, you may want to consider
assigning (or having students select) their roles for the
group. Students may also rotate group roles
depending on the activity.
Continue…
23. 7. Send-A-Problem can be used as a way to get groups to
discuss and review material, or potential solutions to
problems related to content information.
8. Value Line One way to form heterogeneous groups is to
use a value line. Present an issue or topic to the group
and ask each member to determine how they feel about
the issue.
9. Team Expectations:Groups then can use this as a way
to monitor individual contributions to the group and as a
way to evaluate group participation.
Continue…
24.
25. INTERACTIVENESS IN COOPERATIVE LEARNING
1. Pre and Post-Tests: Before the session begins, learners can be given a 3-5
question quiz or asked to list 3-5 points they would cover in an essay on a
particular question. If learners are provided access to correct or sample answers,
the tests can be self-scoring.
2. Attention Span Break: After every ten to twenty minutes of your session pose a
question that summarizes. you might ask learners to provide a written example
appropriate to your topic, collect them, and discuss a few that are either excellent
or erroneous examples
26. 3. Checking Learner Understanding: After 15-25 minutes of lecturing (or after a
page or two of an online, textual session) ask learners to respond to one or two
questions.
4. Think-Pair-Share: This is a cooperative learning technique that can has
dramatic results. After a bit of lecturing, ask a multiple-choice question that is
fact-based or checks learner comprehension.
5. Making Material Relevant: you might show a news clip or a movie segment
and ask learners how it relates to the session material
Continue…
27. 6. Changing People’s Minds: Sessions have been
shown to be fairly ineffective at changing people’s
attitudes or values. Discussion and concrete
experiences are better for meeting these types of
learning goals.
7. Discussion Questions: At some point during the
session, groups of 2-4 learners respond to a
carefully prepared and written out discussion
question.
8. Group Activities: A variation on discussion is to
provide a small group activity instead of a discussion
question
Continue…
28. 11. Summarizing and Evaluating: At the end of the session or a session
segment, ask learners to summarize or evaluate the session in a short
paragraph.
12. Hints for Better Learning Groups Below is a checklist adapted from
Bowen and Jackson (1985-6) of things groups can do to function better. If
appropriate for your class, distribute to your students.
Continue…
29. ADVANTAGES OF COOPERATIVE LEARNING
1. Cooperative learning increases student retention by increasing student involvement
2. It can increase tolerance of diversity
3. It can increase learning in televised and interactive video classes
4. It increases critical thinking skills
5. It is an effective means to various liberal education goals
6. It prepares students for work groups in later employment
7. It builds a sense of community on campus
8. It offers a method to improve instruction
9. It responds to diversity of learning preferences and styles
