Addresses aspects of group process that affect learning in groups: maintenance and task functions, group cohesion, the facilitator's role, group formation, and power and conflict issues. Suggests that the relationship between group process theory and learning theory needs further exploration. (SK)

Themes from the special issue on group learning are highlighted: perceptions of learning, process versus content, the facilitator's role, power relations, and learning communities. (SK)

Summarizes theme articles on learning communities: place is important, learning content is situated in daily life; knowledge is locally produced; and learning communities may be power structures. (Contains 16 references.) (SK)

To develop adult learning groups in formal educational settings, the educator must understand the nature of learning in groups. Three types of group learning are instrumental, communicative, and emancipatory. The type of learning that occurs in groups varies according to the learning tasks and goals. Group learning that has as its goal the…

In collaborative learning, both facilitators and learners are active participants in the process, a sense of community is created, and knowledge is considered to be located in the community rather than the individual. Its guiding principle is that learning is enhanced when knowledge that is created and transmitted is shaped by the activities and…

Examines selected aspects of the theory and practice of learning in groups; discusses how the history of groups in adult education has influenced perspectives about learning in groups; considers the nature of learning in groups; and discusses power and the role of the facilitator. (JOW)

The terms "learning communities" and "communities of practice" are being used with increasing frequency to describe the phenomenon of groups (communities) of individuals learning together. Theories focusing on the social nature of cognition and meaning, as opposed to those focusing on individual learning, are stressed. In works…

A form of group learning, cohorts, has become increasingly attractive to administrators, instructors, and participants in adult education. Basic academic skills cohort learning supports three types of knowing: instrumental, socializing, and self-authoring; whereas, in higher and adult education cohort learning, the development of critical…