Introduction: The research focused on metacognition in a collaborative learning setting. Based on a comprehensive literature study the researchers designed a metacognitive teaching-learning strategy for pair programmers. Our purpose was to investigate the influence of this metacognitive teaching-learning strategy during pair programming in an…

Issues in making small-group instruction effective are addressed in this theme issue, which focuses on an approach called Complex Instruction (CI). Developed by Elizabeth Cohen at Stanford University (California), the approach is designed for middle school students in heterogeneous classes. The program is based on four goals to help teachers…

This book provides educators with the background and procedures needed to conduct group investigation, a method for classroom instruction in which students work collaboratively in small groups to examine, experience, and understand their topic of study. Significantly different from traditional instruction, group investigation is designed to appeal…

This paper discusses "Guided Design," a method for teaching course content which engages students in group decision-making, where problems are solved or issues are resolved in a step-by-step process using instructions and feedbacks especially prepared to make students think for themselves about subject matter rather than depend on the…

This workbook presents guidelines and information on the use of cooperative learning (an instructional technique that requires students to work together in small, fixed groups on a structured learning task) and the development and implementation of student learning teams in postsecondary education. The workbook covers: (1) a definition of…

This handbook was written to review current research on multigrade instruction, to identify key issues faced by multigrade classroom teachers, and to offer novice teachers a set of resource guides for improving instructional quality. The first chapter reviews previous research on multigrade instruction. It addresses questions regarding the effect…

This book describes the framework for an individualistic approach to learning--critical self-directed learning (SDL). A preface explains what is meant by "critical practice of SDL," describes educational streams that have fed into the concept, and situates the context within which the ideas about critical SDL developed. The order of the chapters…

A questionnaire on use of cooperative learning was distributed to all faculty (76 respondents) in the College of Technical Careers at Southern Illinois-Carbondale (SIUC) and a sample of the membership (66 respondents) of the American Technical Education Association (ATEA). For both samples, the main use of groupwork was with laboratory…

Introduces a simple student-centered activity that can effectively complement a traditional lecture by encouraging group discussion and reflection. Students orally review the lecture in groups and submit summaries to the lecturer that are ultimately compiled into a course review. Discusses the benefits of this practice and students' responses.…

This paper reports on a 12-week study of 131 students in eight fourth-grade social studies classrooms in two elementary schools in the southwestern United States with low socioeconomic, high minority populations. Although research has indicated that cooperative learning enhances student achievement, promotes self-esteem, and improves interpersonal…

A cooperative activity involving eight sixth grade students over five days focused on inventing static representations of motion. In generating, critiquing and refining numerous representations, strong metarepresentational competence was found. An intricate blend of the children's conceptual and interactional skills, their interest in and sense of…

In a time of high demand for qualified nurses, mass education has become the norm. This is a necessary constraint within which we have to learn to function. However, the need to educate large numbers of nurses may lead to a one-sided unimaginative reliance on the traditional lecture method, creating a learning environment that inadvertently limits…

This two-volume set offers 16 narrative case studies and a facilitator's guide. Cases were written by teachers about their personal experiences with teaching and groupwork, especially the problematic situations and dilemmas they faced. Groupwork is a well-documented and highly recommended strategy for enhancing students' academic, cognitive,…

Describes a research project in which the students examine data showing the income disparity between men and women. The students decide on which sociological theories might explain this discrepancy and devise a study to test this hypothesis. Includes instructions for the assignment and guidelines for cooperative learning. (MJP)

Reports on the impact of an introductory biology course sequence that incorporated experience-based, group learning. Achievement results indicate that students were not disadvantaged by this new approach and, in fact, displayed a superior grasp of group-work, open lab utilization, and creative problem solutions. Attitudes regarding anxiety over…