This paper is an examination of the concept of cooperative learning and its importance in the school setting, particularly from a school administrator's perspective. Cooperative learning uses combined accountability to make learning a joint experience for all members of the educational team. Because it is an approach to learning that uses existing tools and can be adapted to all kinds of curriculum, its implementation is primarily a matter of broad-based understanding and acceptance, rather than of substantial reorganization of the existing methods of instruction. Nevertheless, while it can be put into use with relative ease, its value as an approach is dependent on full acceptance by all parties, including students, teachers, and administrators. Each may need to be convinced of its effectiveness in order to make it work.
Cooperative learning (CL) employs a team approach to the academic experience, in which all participants are responsible to another for results and are required to work together in order to accomplish the group's goals. Johnson and Johnson (2002) define it in this way:
Cooperative learning is a relationship in a group of students that requires positive interdependence (a sense of sink or swim together), individual accountability (each of us has to contribute and learn), interpersonal skills (communication, trust, leadership, decision making, and conflict resolution), face to face promotive interaction, and processing (reflecting on how well the team is functioning and how to function even better) (p. 1).
While the techniques to implement it can require a sophisticated level of knowledge of group interaction, CL can be used effectively even with very young students. In fact, as soon as students begin to master the skills needed for successful social interaction, they can begin to learn cooperatively.
Robert M. Felder and Rebecca Brent (1994, October) spell out the five components necessary for effecti...