Teaching
Main Learning Styles EDSE 415 PLSI School Climate Page
Shindler Index Classroom
Management
Week
#6: Managing Cooperative Learning
As we seek to create the most effective, engaging and productive cooperative learning experiences for our students, consider how learning within a social context is different from learning independently. Recall the social learning theory in the previous section. The key to a successful collaborative effort is using the social aspect to the class’ collective advantage. If you are doing cooperative learning because you think they need a break from the routine, and want to try something a bit more social you may be missing the point. It may be a nice change and can be inherently more engaging for students to work in groups, but group work is not inherently the same as cooperative learning. The management of each will be similar, but as we discussed in week #4, true cooperative learning has a built in “psychological movement” to it.
A good place to start may be to ask yourself a few questions:
·
Product/ Performance (i.e., group creates
something).
·
Discovery exercise/ Lab (i.e., group does
collaborative research using an inductive or deductive process).
·
Processing of content (i.e., group reads
and discusses some text).
·
Jigsaw method (each member learns one part
of a multi-faceted whole and then they take turns sharing their piece with the
other members of the group).
·
Size and membership of the group (be
purposeful in your group selection).
·
Time of the task
·
Arrangement of desks/workspaces
·
Roles (if so, which?)
·
Manager
·
Reporter
·
Reader
·
Consensus builder
·
Recorder
·
Researcher
·
or any you think that fit the task
C.
Teach the Process Skills that you want to see performed.
Take the time before and during the activity to
teach students....
·
how
to use the process that you have given them (i.e., how to perform each of the
roles, or how to do inquiry, etc.).
·
how
to give their opinions (i.e., I think, I feel, my idea, this is
only my opinion, etc.).
·
how
to listen (i.e., wait for others, active listening).
·
how
to clarify what they heard by asking questions.
·
how
to resolve conflict when there is a disagreement.
·
Group self-assessment form (good for low
pressure, complex reasoning situations)
·
Group process evaluation rubric (reinforces
that success comes from effort toward “how we get there” and “how well we work
together”).
·
Group product evaluation (reinforces
putting it all together, but may miss emphasis on the process elements).
·
Individual group-member evaluation rubric
(reinforces individual accountability, but does not promote interdependence).
·
Informal group vs. group competition (this
can be motivating, especially for tasks that are more for fun, but make sure
the purpose is clear. Never grade or give any kind of meaningful reward based
on group or individual competition).
·
No Assessment (promotes intrinsic
motivation, but may not provide enough motivation for tasks that are less
inherently interesting, or students who need a little external incentive).
2.
Manage your Cooperative Exercise Effectively
·
Be clear, get 100% attention, check for
comprehension and have students wait until all is understood before any group
begins.
·
Expect 100% comprehension before starting
(if they do not understand the directions, what are they going to be doing?)
·
Move from one group to the next providing
help and clarification
·
Have a well-established cue to stop
students to be able to interject ideas, clarify the task, or micro-teach (the
shorter the interruptions the better).
·
Use you words/conspicuous feedback to help
clarify successful performance. Be as
concrete and specific as possible.
·
Use your attention and focus purposefully
(per social learning model).
·
Think in terms of the “social learning
model” – what are the other groups learning by your action/intervention with
the group you are working with?
·
Use the principle – activity is a positive
consequence, inactivity is a negative consequence. Reward with more work. Students should never be penalized with more
or different work! Work should be
associated with learning and growth.
·
If a group is having trouble working
together, keep the locus of choice on students, and provide interventions that
provide choices and consequences. All the while keep your intervention anger
free and your attention on the groups that are on task.
·
Intervention 1 – What is the problem?
(clarify any misunderstanding)
·
Intervention 2 – How are you going to solve
your problem? (when I come back what will I be seeing from this group)
·
Intervention 3 – Given a clear
understanding of the task and a second opportunity to get it together, the
behavior is a result of choice, so at this point it might be appropriate to
withdraw the students opportunity to take part in the
activity.
·
Intervention 4 – (optional) members write
how they are going to solve their problem for the next time, and/or another
chance after a few minutes.
3.
Debrief the Process after the Activity
·
This time will create or reinforce your
concept of “a good group member” and be motivational to students at all ability
levels. It is well worth the time
investment.
·
Ask your students for examples of other
students in their group they observed doing a good job of those things in your
“good group member” concept (e.g., things that you consider important to making
a successful group such as positive attitude, consistently making an effort,
being cooperative, doing their role, working through conflict, working through
a problem, or whatever you think makes a group learn, succeed at the task, and
function well). Ask for one specific
area at a time, and encourage students to give specific examples of what they
saw that was so valuable.
·
This exercise provides students opportunity
to compliment one another which makes both complimenter
and complimented feel good, and builds community in the class.
·
It provides for groups to hear how other
groups functioned (i.e.,
better, worse, different approach), so that they can hear very specific
behaviors that will help them in their efforts in the future.
In-Class Group Activity
In groups of 3-5, develop a
cooperative activity for a grade level and subject(s) of your choice, and later
share your creation with the class.
1.
Brainstorm some good activities that would
fit well into a cooperative structure, them select one
that you want to use to construct an activity around.
2.
Decide on the structure of the activity.
·
Process and Goal?
·
Roles?
·
Incentives?
·
Assessment?
3.
How are you going to communicate your
expectations to your students for how to function in a cooperative group?
4.
What do you plan to do if there are groups
that are not on task or in conflict? What if it is . . .
·
One student in the group that is the
problem?
·
A whole group that is mired in conflict?
Group
Assessment Options Chart:
Type
|
Individual Accountability |
Group Accountability |
|
No Formal Assessment |
Fine, as long as the task is inherently engaging
and you want to promote internal LOC. May not provide enough incentive. |
|
|
Formal Self- Assessment |
Good for having the students reflect on their
process effort. Problematic when
trying to promote accountability. |
|
|
Process Assessment |
Helps motivate the student to put forth full
effort and be cooperative. Does not penalize students for other’s lack of
effort |
Helps motivate the group to work through
problems, collaborate and use the prescribed process format. |
|
Product Assessment |
Rewards students for their personal contribution
and does not penalize them for others lack of quality. Does not readily
promote cooperation skills. |
Helps motivate students to create a quality
outcome, but may lack the ability to reward effort and desired process along
the way. |
Learning
stations are a good way to organize time in the classroom. Learning stations
provide the needed change in a routine while moving students around in an
orderly fashion. They can also maximize the use of limited equipment or other
resources. If you have only one computer in your room, make it one of the
learning stations. Both cooperative learning groups and learning stations
provide hands-on learning experiences, require that students practice essential
knowledge and skills, free you up to observe and assess learning, and are more
likely to meet the needs of individual students.
To
use learning stations, divide the class into learning teams and rotate the
teams through a series of learning stations that require the teams to perform a
key task related to the topic under study at each learning station. Here is a
sample time line:
|
15
minutes |
Introduction
of the lesson and instructions for using learning stations |
|
15
minutes |
Station 1 |
|
15
minutes |
Station 2 |
|
15
minutes |
Station 3 |
|
15
minutes |
Station 4 |
|
15
minutes |
Review
and refinement of the learning by each group |
This
time line assumes that the next class period will deal with a review to ensure
that students have understood the material.
The
keys to successful learning centers/stations are 1) meaningful activities and
2) good directions. It may be helpful to
put the directions on a sheet of paper and/or a poster board. Model at each station before letting the
students do the task independently. Recall
from our earlier discussions about what makes work meaningful (i.e., synthesis,
problem solving, feedback, success at a relavent task, collaborative effort
toward a goal). If your stations are not meaningful, why are you having the
students do them? Also, consider the motivational questions. Why are students
working at each station and how are they getting feedback about the quality of
their effort? Consider a process assessment or a self assessment of what is
accomplished each day.
Try
this fun way to use learning stations. Assign groups a particular topic that
you would like them to "master." Once groups have a thorough
understanding of their topic, have them design learning stations for their
classmates and conduct the review session. You could assign one group a topic
per month and use learning stations creatively throughout the year.