Week 5: Cooperative Learning Theory

Prompt: Reflect on the strategy and how it relates to social learning theories. Consider the social networking and collaboration tools you explored. How do they correlate to the instructional strategy and social learning theories?

Cooperation is Collaboration

Cooperative learning is a strategy that can help students apply an understanding of both new and existing knowledge. When looking to constructionist/constructivist models, students are to use and apply knowledge in an active manner. The students become a source and perspective of one another; together they then build on to common knowledge, what they can learn from one another, and new experiences they have as a pair (Orey, 2001).

Cooperative learning challenges students to exercise their minds in various forms of thinking. “Cooperative learning utilizes ideas...that both the individual and the social setting are active dynamics in the learning process as students attempt to imitate real-life learning” (Orey, 2001). The students are making an observable impact on one another’s learning, whether that be in ,building skills for future collaborative projects, a better understanding of content material, and/or skills that will be used for years to come.

It is important that students understand how the collaborative process works, why it is important, and how they can learn, as well as, teach their classmates. One might present the question, “How do we implement technology into cooperative learning?”. This also begs the question of whether it possible for students to work cooperatively and effectively in a virtual environment if he/she is unable to do so with classmates in an actual classroom. Of course there are numerous ways that teachers can implement technology from using it as a basic resource for information to having students collaborate using a wiki or blog. The implementation of technology will only be as effective as the students who are using it. If students are not instructed on how to work in groups, what is appropriate/inappropriate when working with others, and why collaborating is important, no matter how much technology is implemented into the process, students may not be successful (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007).

My VoiceThread can be found at: http://voicethread.com/share/896579/

For more information on cooperative learning and student collaboration strategies please browse this site: http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/coopcollab/index.html

References:
Orey, M. (Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.