The focus of the undertaken study is upon whether small group learning of industrial and technological skills is differentially effective depending upon whether the teacher forms the learning groups, or the students themselves form the groups. So that the study may be viewed within the context of the existing research in the field, this study examines the literature on small group learning.
The importance of grouping for effective learning in general has been a concern of educators for many years. Indeed, as early as 1929, Purdom noted that there already existed a large amount of literature on the topic of efficacious grouping. Many of the debates concerning grouping have been centered around whether students should be grouped in a heterogeneous collective (dissimilar levels of existing knowledge, skill level, aptitude, intelligence) or a homogeneous collective (similar levels of existing knowledge, skill level, aptitudes intelligence). However, as pointed out by Slavin (1988), while homogeneous grouping appears to offer the benefit of instructional efficiency, it has been associated with a number of disadvantages. Specifically, Slavin (1988) states that homogeneous grouping based on ability:
. . . may stigmatize low achievers, put them into classes or groups for which teachers have low expectations, or lead to the creation of academic elites (or) doom children . . . to second-class instruction and, ultimately, second-class futures. It may deprive students of examples and stimulation (Slavin, 1988, p. 68).
Slavin notes that a reasonable alternative to homogeneous, ability-based grouping is what he classes the within-class grouping methods of cooperative learning. He states that these methods:
. . . involve students working in small, heterogeneous learning groups. If the groups are rewarded on the basis of individual learning of all group members, then cooperative learning can consistently increase student achie...