Two aspects of teacher education for cooperative learning are the content taught and the processes used to teach the content. Of the two, the processes used may have the most powerful influences on the desired outcomes. One important theory related to the processes of learning is social interdependence theory. It posits that there are three ways…

When students enter middle school, they face 2 major challenges, one involving the biological, cognitive, and socioemotional changes they are going through, and another involving the transition from elementary to middle school. Peer learning has considerable influence on how well they manage these challenges. The research that exists on peer…

One of the basic purposes of counseling is to help clients achieve some kind of behavioral and cognitive change that increases their competence in managing interpersonal relationships. The advantages and procedures for increasing clients' interpersonal skills within the context of a counseling group are discussed in this article. (Author)

The effect of cooperative and individualistic learning experiences within which majority students worked with lower-achieving minority peers were compared. The results support the position that cooperative experiences result in liking regardless of the ethnic membership or achievement level of collaborators. (Author/PN)

This monograph explores the current use in higher education of cooperative learning, the instructional use of small groups so that students work together to maximize their own and each other's learning. The opening section sets out to define cooperative learning, and to look at the history of the technique, its basic elements, types of cooperative…

Two university professors describe how they train teachers to use cooperative learning (CL) in the classroom. The article discusses the historical development and present implementation of CL, teacher role, and the conceptual/essential components approach. It also explains how teachers can gain expertise and defines a cooperative school. (SM)

Modern cooperative learning began in the mid- 1960s (D. W. Johnson & R. Johnson, 1999a). Its use, however, was resisted by advocates of social Darwinism (who believed that students must be taught to survive in a "dog-eat-dog" world) and individualism (who believed in the myth of the "rugged individualist"). Despite the resistance, cooperative…

Two studies compared effects of different levels of cooperation (cooperative controversy, cooperative debate, individualistic; and intergroup cooperation vs intergroup competition) on cross-handicap interaction among 123 intermediate grade students (normal or learning/behavior disordered). Pure cooperation promoted more frequent cross-handicap…

Examined the effects of positive interdependence versus no interdependence on college students' academic achievement. Students took weekly electronic quizzes where they could interact with groupmates in a chat room. Achievement was measured via biweekly examinations. Students in the positive interdependence condition engaged in significantly more…

This book is designed to provide the theory and experiences necessary to develop effective interpersonal skills. Each chapter begins with an introduction and explanation of the concepts discussed. Discussion questions and a short exercise to diagnose the student's present skill level of the concept follow. Exercises designed to increase skill…

Discusses some of the benefits of having students work cooperatively toward a shared goal. Suggests that teachers become involved in research in this area and become associated with the National Science Teachers Association's Every Teacher a Researcher (ETR) program. Lists various types of research projects teachers could undertake. (TW)