What is cooperative learning?

• Cooperative learning involves students working together in small teams or groups on a shared
task to achieve a common objective. Each student may be responsible for a specific part of the
group task and the group will only be successful if everyone does their work.

• For students to work together in a cooperative team or group, they will need to be taught
specific cooperative learning skills. Teach one or two of these skills at a time as the students
need to improve different ways to work together.

Cooperative Learning Skills

• Active listening

• Taking turns

• Asking good questions

• Respecting others

• Negotiating

• Sharing

• Helping and encouraging others

• Problem solving

• Decision making

• Conflict resolution

• Eye contact

• Assertive speaking

Why is cooperative learning a useful strategy for multigrade classes?

• In the multigrade class, there will be a wide range of abilities. In mixed cooperative learning
groups all students can contribute to the group task according to their level of skills and
maturity.
• The students learn from each other by actively participating, hearing and seeing what others
can do. They are more motivated to work and usually learn more. Students are more likely to
develop respect for each other and their efforts as well as more tolerance of other’s differences.
Cooperative learning helps build a positive supportive classroom environment.

Cooperative learning groups can be used across the curriculum for many different
purposes such as:

• Makabayan projects

• Organizing

• Team games

• Clarifying ideas

• Peer teaching

• Topic related discussions or projects

• Speaking and listening tasks

• Science projects

• Discussing class/school issues

• Solving Math problems

• Writing group stories and plays

• Reading and analyzing texts

• Art projects

Co-operative Games

Co-operative games are fun ways for students to learn and practice their co-operative skills
together. These skills are necessary for effective group work in a multigrade (and single-grade)
class. These co-operative activities can be integrated into the program or may be useful
between lessons, before a break time or when a particular skill needs to be practiced. They can
also be used for the following purposes:
 • Making decisions

• To practice sharing and taking turns

• To practice helping others

• For talking positively and encouraging each other

• Active listening and asking good questions

Selecting cooperative games and activities: Competitive or cooperative?

Many competitive games can be modified (or changed a little) so that there are no losers to
become cooperative games. For example:

• ‘Chasey’ – a competitive game when two or three ‘catchers’ chase and touch others to
eliminate them. Those students who are ‘out’ have to sit out until the game is over. However,
instead of eliminating children from the game, the game could be changed to cooperative game
such as –

• ‘Stuck in the mud’ – when someone has been touched (caught) she/he has to stand still
with their arms stretched out. They can be ‘freed’ and join in the game again, when they are
touched on the hand by someone who is still free to run around.

Playing this game means that no-one is eliminated (‘out’) and the students are encouraged to
help each other.