The proposed study will examine the efficacy of a cooperative learning program on the reading performance of primarily non-white fifth graders drawn from a single, local urban elementary school. This chapter of the proposal delineates and discusses all of the methods and procedures that will be used to collect and analyze research data.
The study will utilize a two-group, pretest-posttest design.
The two groups will consist of: (1) fifth grade students exposed to the cooperative learning program; and (2) fifth grade students not exposed to the cooperative learning program but who only receive their school's traditional instructional format for reading.
Both student groups will have their reading levels assessed prior to the beginning of any reading instruction. It is likely that this pretest assessment will be given at the beginning of the academic term. After the termination of the program, which will occur at the end of the school term, both groups of students will be retested using the same reading assessment instrument utilized at pretest.
In terms of design variables, it can be noted that the study has one dependent variable which is the measure of reading. With respect to independent variables, there are two. These independent variables are: (1) the Reading Instruction strategy variable with two levels: the cooperative learning instructional strategy and the traditional instruction strategy; and (2) the Testing variable with two levels: the pretest and the posttest. This basic design can be graphically depicted as follows:
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
TESTING Cooperative Learning Traditional
All subjects in the study will be fifth graders attending a large, local, urban elementary school. This school serves a predominately low inc...