Cooperative+Learning

Cooperative Learning

Read and Reflect

Cooperative learning is a good strategy to use in the classroom so that students will learn the skills to be able to work effectively with other members on a group project. This strategy will also hold the students accountable for the academic material being covered in class. I use the informal group approach with the face-to-face promotive interaction element when lecturing and reading through the textbook. I find the students seem more engaged in the topic when they have a partner to discuss information with for a few minutes. Encouraging praise from peers helps build relationships in class and outside the classroom. I would like to use more of the elements of the cooperative learning strategy in the classroom. The research indicates that students who work in cooperative groups consistently outperform students who don’t.

The students in my class benefit from the cooperative learning strategy. Many of our students struggle with their leadership, problem solving, and social skills. I feel giving the students the opportunity to work in small groups provides them the chance to work on interpersonal skills and the assigned task. I will continue to use informal groups because I find them to be very flexible in the classroom when understanding new content, to review a new skill, or to provide closure on an activity. The students will be working on the Renaissance Period and they will be responsible for completing a Renaissance WebQuest by the end of the unit.

Apply and Reflect

I liked using Google Docs because everyone can post their part of the project when it’s completed. This is a good way to create, edit and share work online. It also lets you access your documents from anywhere. We started a resource page of websites for teachers to use and we want them to continue to add websites they find helpful in the classroom.