Cooperative learning

It is an instructional strategy that enables small groups of students to work together on a common
assignment. The parameters often vary, as students can work collaboratively on a variety of problems, ranging
from simple math problems to large assignments such as proposing environmental solutions on a national
level. Students are sometimes individually responsible for their part or role in the assignment, and sometimes
they are held accountable as an entire group.

Cooperative learning is a teaching method where students of mixed levels of ability are arranged into groups
and rewarded according to the group's success, rather than the success of an individual member. Cooperative
learning is sometimes thought of simply as 'group work,' but groups of students working together might not
be working collaboratively.

Cooperative learning has received a lot of attention and praise—especially since the 1990s when Johnson and
Johnson outlined the five basic elements that allowed successful small-group learning:
 Positive interdependence: Students feel responsible for their own and the group's effort.
 Face-to-face interaction: Students encourage and support one another; the environment encourages
discussion and eye contact.
 Individual and group accountability: Each student is responsible for doing their part; the group is
accountable for meeting its goal.
 Social Skills: Group members gain direct instruction in the interpersonal, social, and collaborative skills
needed to work with others.
 Group processing: Group members analyze their own and the group's ability to work together.

Think-pair-share
Think-pair-share is a technique that encourages and allows for individual thinking, collaboration, and
presentation in the same activity. Students must first answer a prompt on their own, then come together in
pairs or small groups, then share their discussion and decision with the class. Discussing an answer first with a
partner before sharing maximizes participation, and helps to focus attention on the prompt given.
Using the think-pair-share technique allows students time for individual reflection, thinking, and processing
new information before they may be influenced by other students’ answers. This process also teaches
students how to explain their thoughts first to a peer, and then to a larger audience (the entire class).
To Use Think-Pair-Share teacher should explain the technique to the students before beginning the exercise —
describe the purpose, set discussion guidelines and time limits, and model the strategy to ensure that students
know what is expected of them.

Think-pair-share is a simple technique that enhances students’ critical thinking skills, improves listening and
reading comprehension, and helps with collaboration and presentation skills.
 
Students who are typically shy may feel more comfortable sharing with the class after sharing with a partner,
and students who are outspoken will benefit from first listening to others before sharing their own opinion.

The think, pair, share strategy is a cooperative learning technique that encourages individual participation and
is applicable across all grade levels and class sizes. Students think through questions using three distinct steps:

1. Think: Students think independently about the question that has been posed, forming ideas of their
own.

2. Pair: Students are grouped in pairs to discuss their thoughts. This step allows students to articulate
their ideas and to consider those of others.

3. Share: Student pairs share their ideas with a larger group, such as the whole class. Often, students are
more comfortable presenting ideas to a group with the support of a partner. In addition, students'
ideas have become more refined through this three-step process.

Forming Groups

There is abundant evidence that having students work in groups improves educational outcomes. The
benefits include improved academic, cognitive, and social skills, as well as deeper learning.   Group work
has become accepted as beneficial to the point where many centers for teacher development include a
page on using groups to improve learning. Working in groups allows students to give and receive
feedback, challenge assumptions, encounter new perspectives, pool knowledge and skills, refine
understanding through discussion and explanation, and more.

Group Roles

Group roles have an important function on workplace teams because they help members work together
effectively. Assigning different group roles that balance one another's strengths and weaknesses allows team
members to contribute to the team's shared goals in specific and measurable ways. This benefits both the
team and the organization. In this article, we discuss what group roles are, list types of group roles for
workplace teams and explain the definitions and benefits of each.

Group roles are specific assignments or functions that individual members of a team oversee as part of their
duties. The number of group roles within a team depends on the team's size and purpose. Organizations rely
on many team roles to complete projects successfully, and some of these roles align with specific categories.
The primary types of beneficial team roles include:

 Task roles: People in task roles keep the group focused on reaching the goal by completing
specific assignments.
 Procedural: Team members in procedural roles manage the information and communication
shared in the group.
 Social-emotional roles: Also known as building and maintenance roles, social-emotional roles
involve maintaining harmony within the group and fostering interpersonal relationships among
members.

Group discussion

Group discussion is a child centered strategy, in which students are divided into groups and they are
encouraged to discuss on the subject matter given. Group discussion is dominated by the teacher. Classroom
climate is autocratic and most of the time, teacher is active and student accept his ideas and views. After
giving lectures teachers encourages the student to participate in group-discussion. Teacher supervises them
and provide guidance to make the discussion fruitful.

It is focused to achieve higher order of cognitive objectives and affecting objectives. The strategy is based on
the following principles.
1. Principles of active participation
2. Principle of learning by listening

Formal & Informal Group Discussion

Group discussions are organized in two forms, formal and informal. In formal discussion the matter to be
discussed is highly structured, proper schedule is prepared and certain rules are followed. Teacher acts as a
leader of the group. In informal discussions, the subject matter to be discussed in unstructured. No fixed
schedule is prepared and no rules are to be followed. An outstanding student is selected as the leader by the
group of students. He plans for the discussion and lead the discussion. Teacher is passive and supervise the
pupils involved in the discussion. Planning for group-discussion follows the below given steps.

1. Topic is decided for discussion

2. Objectives of discussion are decided
3. Time limit is fixed
4. Weightage point are decided
5. Penalty points are also decided

Advantages and Disadvantage Group Discussion Teaching Strategy

Below are some of the advantages and disadvantages of this teaching strategy

Advantages
1. Affective and higher level cognitive objectives are achieved
2. Group discussion helps in developing self-confidence among the learners
 3. It helps in organizing comparative discussion at favor and disfavor
4. It helps in providing freedom for expression to the learners.
5. It helps in developing habit of cooperation
6. It helps in developing habit of listening one’s own criticism
7. Learners try to reach at one conclusion with the help of team spirit and cooperation
Disadvantages
1. Group-discussion cannot be used as a teaching strategy but it can be used as a supplement technique
after lecture and demonstration method of teaching.
2. This teaching strategy is quite time consuming. So teacher must fix the time schedule for discussion to
make it a purposeful activity
3. It can only be applied for average and above average students. So it is the teacher duty to form groups
on the basis of some criteria of intelligence and abilities. He should provide them topics accordingly. So,
that students of low intelligence and abilities can also be benefited.
4. If not properly organized, it may create bitterness and results are unfruitful. It is just a wastage of time.
So a teacher must plan for discussion beforehand to avoid irregularities and make it more effective.

Talking Circle

Talking Circles or Circle Talks are a foundational approach to First Nations pedagogy-in-action since they
provide a model for an educational activity that encourages dialogue, respect, the co-creation of learning
content, and social discourse. The nuance of subtle energy created from using this respectful approach to
talking with others provides a sense of communion and interconnectedness that is not often present in the
common methods of communicating in the classroom. When everyone has their turn to speak, when all voices
are heard in a respectful and attentive way, the learning atmosphere becomes a rich source of information,
identity, and interaction.

The term “Talking Circle” comes to us from the Native American tradition and is again finding broad appeal
in contemporary culture. Talking circles are being used by facilitators of personal and spiritual growth, grade
school teachers, high school football coaches, religious groups, 12-step and other group therapy gatherings.

Within a talking circle, all members are equal and each one belongs to the circle, which itself represents the
interconnectedness of its members and the cycles of life. The talking circle symbolizes a sacred space created
where all who come, come to listen and respect the views of all others in the circle. A stick, stone, or feather
(which symbolizes connectedness to the land) can be used to facilitate the circle. Whoever is holding the
object has the right to speak and the others have the responsibility to listen.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a method design teams use to generate ideas to solve clearly defined design problems. In
controlled conditions and a free-thinking environment, teams approach a problem by such means as “How
Might We” questions. They produce a vast array of ideas and draw links between them to find potential
solutions.

Brainstorming is part of design thinking. You use it in the ideation phase. It’s extremely popular for design
teams because they can expand in all directions. Although teams have rules and a facilitator to keep them on
track, they are free to use out-of-the-box and lateral thinking to seek the most effective solutions to any
design problem. By brainstorming, they can take a vast number of approaches—the more, the better—instead
of just exploring conventional means and running into the associated obstacles. When teams work in a
judgment-free atmosphere to find the real dimensions of a problem, they’re more likely to produce rough
answers which they’ll refine into possible solutions later. Marketing CEO Alex Osborn, brainstorming’s
“inventor”, captured the refined elements of creative problem-solving in his 1953 book, Applied Imagination.
In brainstorming, we aim squarely at a design problem and produce an arsenal of potential solutions. By not
only harvesting our own ideas but also considering and building on colleagues’, we cover the problem from
every angle imaginable.

“It is easier to tone down a wild idea than to think up a new one.”
Independent Study
Independent study programs are found at nearly every level of education in the United States, from
elementary school through graduate school. Although the concept of independent study was not new, a
spectacular increase in interest in the subject occurred in elementary and secondary schools in the 1960s. In
the early twenty-first century, many courses delivered within a traditional format are expected to have some
component of independent study and to build independent learning skills. The major elements of independent
study are the following:
 Individualized teaching and learning takes place through the student's activity.
 A tutorial relationship exists.
 Learning is made convenient for the student.
 The learner takes responsibility for progress.
Independent study programs are sometimes criticized because they release students from group-learning
situations. Students themselves, while they may select or volunteer for independent study experiences, are
frequently unprepared because they lack experience with any other way to learn except in a classroom.
However, some research has shown that computer-based learning is as effective as traditional instruction.
Students were able to organize their own learning effectively, were generally positive about using this form of
instruction, and scored similarly on examinations.

Purposes and Goals of Independent Study

Successful independent study programs provide preparation for students and guidance along the way:

 Students are taught knowledge and skills that cannot easily be communicated in classrooms.
 As evaluated by exams, independent students learn at least as well as students in classes.
 Independent study provides useful practice in the process of learning.
 Independent study is viable when an educational institution is inaccessible to the learner.
 Independent study meets the convenience needs of many learners.
 Independent study develops self-motivation, concentration, and discipline.
 The learner is taught to identify a problem, gather data, and take responsibility for conclusions.
 The learner does all the work and cannot slide by on the anonymity of group activity.

Independent Study and Extensiveness in Grades K– (12)

The amount of time that students devote to independent study could be much greater than is the case in most
schools. Although often identified as a tool for meeting the needs of gifted students, independent study
should be available for all. Each year, teachers demand more group attention on the part of students, leaving
less time for independent study even though the students' capacity for independent study grows. Of course,
students differ in their degree of self-direction, creativity, and performance, but all can profit from a greater
amount of independence. In the past independent study has too often been viewed as being synonymous with
learning by doing or with special term projects. Independent study needs to be viewed as an integral part of
the total process of learning in all fields. Each curricular area needs sequenced materials that enable students
to learn independently effectively. The materials first should describe the required outcomes in terms that
each student can understand. Concepts and skills should be defined in behavioral terms. For example, if
students are asked to research an issue through independent study, the exact parameters of their project,
depth and breadth, the types and numbers of sources, the form conclusions should take, and the formats that
may be used to present the results should be clearly spelled out, so that each student will know precisely what
the school expects. Each segment in the learning sequence should provide a variety of learning activities that
may be used to arrive at specified outcomes. Pretests and self-tests that enable monitoring of learning and
suggestions of some ways to study in greater depth should be included. Motivation is enhanced by self-
selection of learning strategies that work well for individual students and by the immediate reinforcement of
self-testing. Provocative questions or activities to stimulate the learner's creativity such as those described by
Phil Schlemmer (1999) for students in grade six and above can be used in concert with a traditional
curriculum. Students no longer fail; they simply make less progress in the learning sequence. Each student's
special projects should be recorded as part of an educational portfolio.
Portfolio development

Portfolio development is the process by which a student documents and demonstrates college-level

competencies (knowledge and skills) acquired in environments and agencies outside the traditional higher

education classroom. In essence, it is evidence that the student has met learning outcomes or objectives

equivalent to specific university courses. Knowledge and skills gained through work, training, or life experiences

may translate to college credit if students can document and demonstrate comprehension of learning

outcomes and objectives equivalent to our courses. Students must be able to demonstrate at least 70%

knowledge of learning outcomes or objectives of a related college course, which most often includes theoretical

or conceptual knowledge as well as application of subject-specific principles.

One may wonder what is a portfolio for students. A student portfolio is a comprehensive, ongoing collection
of work samples, projects, and other supporting bodies of evidence that demonstrate a student's present level
of educational performance and serves as an assessment tool. Unlike standardized assessments in the form of
tests, portfolios provide a broader picture of the entirety of the student's learning process. This full picture of
the student assists teachers when developing learning opportunities and tracking progress.
Essentially, portfolios should fulfill the following criteria:

 Demonstration of academic achievement and progress

 Alignment with grade-level standards
 Reflections on the individual's learning process
 Archive of accomplished work

Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages of student portfolios versus traditional methods include the following:

 Student is actively involved, placing him or her in the midst of the learning process versus the fringe,
making the assessment authentic.
 Assessment occurs in a natural setting with meaningful, real-time learning tasks.
 Both strengths and weaknesses are demonstrated with opportunities to enhance or remediate skills.
 Ongoing and comprehensive with multiple opportunities to demonstrate abilities.
 Teachers, parents, and students have opportunities to conference, collaborate, and reflect on the
student's learning.

It is also important to realize the disadvantages of portfolios compared to traditional assessments. Student
portfolios can be time-consuming to develop, maintain, and assess for both student and teacher. They tend to
be subjective in form with occasions for bias. There exist gray areas that cannot definitively be graded with a
percentage; therefore, grading consistency across the board may be lost. Ultimately, the energy and effort put
into the portfolio determines its accuracy and legitimacy as a grading tool, as does the following of set-forth
guidelines and expectations.

Purpose of Student Portfolios

One may inquire what is the purpose of a portfolio. Essentially, a portfolio serves as an alternative assessment
tool to more formal methods. This comprehensive assessment is necessary when looking at the
implementation of teaching methods such as constructivism, which is a theory that focuses on the individual
learner playing an active role in the building of knowledge, as well as multiple intelligence theory. Both of
these philosophies require a broad assessment due to the nature of the learning process which is applied to
demonstrating knowledge in various ways, not simply paper and pencil tasks and tests. Methods requiring
critical thinking, open-ended questions, and project-based learning go hand in hand with portfolio
assessments.
Additional purposes of portfolios include:
  Demonstration of student growth over time
 Identify specific skills to show improvement
 Creation of a tangible body of evidence to show to parents
 Collection of reflections on growth and learning
 Initiate personal responsibility on behalf of the student
 Documentation of learning standards with corresponding products
 Communication device for parents, teachers, and students

The Portfolio Process

The process of facilitating successful student portfolios can be broken into four steps:

1. collection
2. selection
3. reflection
4. connection

Collection

Although the first step, collection, is straight-forward, it is not always an easy step to facilitate successfully. It
simply requires students to collect and store all of their work. Three challenges at this step are common.
One, most students and many teachers are not accustomed to documenting and saving all class work. Two,
there is seldom an obvious place to put the work as it is collected, particularly when artwork or lab work is
involved. And three, it is not always obvious how to generate artifacts from things like field trips, community
service projects, jobs, and sports. The key skill in this step is to get students accustomed to collecting and
documenting whenever possible.

Selection

How one facilitates the second step, selection, depends on the kind of portfolio (process or product oriented)
and to what degree a teacher stipulates portfolio requirements. In this step, students will go through the work
they collected and select the artifacts for their portfolio. This may be done by the student alone, with peers,
and/or with the teacher. Many characteristics about the curriculum come to light in this step, particularly the
nature of the work students are doing in class. For instance, if all students have to show are quizzes and tests,
the portfolio will be rendered almost meaningless by failing to shed light on anything other than a student's
ability to take exams. If, however, students have a more diverse set of work such as audio/video recordings,
artwork, projects, journals, computer work, homework, compositions, etc., as well as exams, the portfolio will
come to life. In this manner, portfolios provide a great deal of motivation to diversify approaches to teaching
and learning.

Reflection

Most agree that the third step, reflection, is perhaps the most important step in the portfolio process. It is
what distinguishes portfolios from mere collections. Reflection is often done in writing but can be done orally
as well, particularly with younger children. Students are asked to explain why they chose a particular artifact,
how it compares with other artifacts, what particular skills and knowledge were used to produce it, and where
he or she can improve as a learner. The importance of this step lies in having the student take an active role in
the assessment process. Students can observe more directly the quality of their own achievement and
internalize more clearly where improvements are needed.

Connection

The last step, connection, has two related facets. The first is a direct result of the reflection process. Upon
reflecting on their own achievement and identifying the skills and knowledge they applied in producing the
artifacts, students can answer the perennial question for themselves, "Why are we doing this?" They are able
to make a more concrete connection between their school work and the value of what it is they're learning.
Furthermore, students may come to understand the wider curriculum more deeply. To a teacher's delight or
chagrin, depending on the teacher, students may take more active and informed roles in evaluating the
effectiveness of the curriculum.

The second facet is about connecting with the world outside the classroom. Many successful portfolio
programs have students formally present their portfolio to a panel of peers, teachers, parents, and other
community members. In some cases, students are defending their work, much like a graduate student might
defend a thesis. In others, students exhibit their portfolios in a more celebratory manner. In either case, the
resulting connection between the students and the greater community creates an invaluable celebration of
student achievement and a rare dialogue about the quality of learning at the local school.