Class Size Increasing? Use Cooperative Learning Tools to Differentiate Curriculum and Motivate Students

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Class Size Increasing? Use Cooperative Learning
Tools to Differentiate Curriculum and Motivate
Students
Susan Belgrad Professor of Elementary
Education California State University Northridge
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As class size increases, California teachers
continue to be faced with meeting the needs of
the diverse students they teach.
Feeling outnumbered? This can happenespecially
if students have difficulty with attention and
behavior teaching can become difficult and
learning impossible? Can cooperative
learning strategies assist teachers in promoting
more student responsibility, engagement and
success? This workshop will introduce some key
strategies that will make classroom life more
productive and satisfying for all.
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Business Card Activity
A Goal
A
Success NAMEName of your School Favorite
Book
A Benefit
Balance the Budget
Completed the

Training
Plan Susan Cal State Northridge The Kite
Runner
Travel
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PortmanteauActivity

1. ASSIGN GROUP ROLES
2. DISTRIBUTE PORTMANTEAU WORD LISTS
3. ENCOURAGER TEACHES 3 WORDS TO GROUP
4. CHECKER CHECKS
5. WORRIER TEACHES 3 WORDS
6. CHECKER CHECKS ETC....

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Portmanteau Activity
7. ORAL GROUP QUIZ 8. TEAMS PROCESS PERFORMANCE
USING MRS. POTTERS QUESTIONS 9. FACILITATOR
PROCESSES THE ACTIVITY USING COOPERATIVE LEARNING
TEMPLATE
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MRS. POTTERS QUESTIONSAssess Your Group!

• ONE THING WE DID WELL . . .
• ONE THING WE COULD DO BETTER ON . . .
• FORMING SKILLS _________________
• SOCIAL SUPPORTING SKILLS ________
• COMMUNICATING SKILLS __________
• ON A 1 (HIGH) TO 5 (LOW) SCALE, OUR GROUP IS
  A ______.

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What is authentic cooperative learning?

• Cooperative learning is the presence of joint
  goals, mutual rewards, shared resources and
  complementary roles among members of a group
• Activity that creates a learner-centered climate
  leading to positive psychological adjustment
• Activity that develops students social skills

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What is authentic cooperative learning?

• Results in more positive heterogeneous
  relationships
• Results in higher self-esteem for each student
• Leads to greater intrinsic motivation in all
  learners
• Provides greater social support.

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It is NOT Cooperative Learning When

• Students are presented with a goal or reward that
  only one or a few group members could achieve by
  outperforming the others
• The motivator for the activity is to beat their
  competitors so they can become frustrated with
  group members who dont contribute or get in the
  way of success
• Students in groups do not know what their
  individual contributions should be as a result
  they either take over the activity or refuse to
  participate.

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Five Elements of Cooperative Groups

• 1. Face-to-Face Interaction. The physical
  arrangement of students in small, heterogeneous
  groups encourages students to help, share, and
  support each other's learning.
• 2. Individual Accountability. Each student is
  responsible for the success and collaboration of
  the group and for mastering the assigned task.
• 3. Cooperative Social Skills. Students are
  taught, coached, and monitored in the use of
  cooperative social skills, which enhance the
  group work.
• 4. Positive Interdependence. Students are guided
  by a common goal, group rewards, role
  assignments, and other means in completing the
  learning task.
• 5. Group Processing. Students reflect on how well
  they work as a group to complete the task and how
  they can improve their teamwork.

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Why Do We Need to Engage Students in Cooperative
Learning Strategies?

• Helps to develop better attitudes toward school
• Helps to build better attitudes toward teachers
  as well as peers
• Results in more on-task behavior in subject
  areas
• Develops students higher order thinking as well
  as integration across subject areas

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Why Do We Need to Engage Students in Cooperative
Learning Strategies?

• Results in higher achievement in subject areas
• Increases retention of new knowledge, skills,
  ideas
• Develops students perspective takingan
  intelligent behavior!
• And most importantly. the social skills and
  habits of mind that are derived from regular
  cooperative learning activity in the classroom
  makes learning AND teaching enjoyable for all!

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DO YOU KNOW THE THREE TYPES OF COOPERATIVE GROUPS?

• BASE GROUPS
• INFORMAL TASK GROUPS
• FORMAL TASK GROUPS

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DO YOU KNOW THE THREE TYPES OF COOPERATIVE GROUPS?

• BASE GROUPS
• A.K.A HOME Groups are assigned by the
  teacher considering diverse student
  characteristics and learning needs. They stay
  together over several weeks and many bonding
  activities are used to model, teach and norm
  desired social skills.

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DO YOU KNOW THE THREE TYPES OF COOPERATIVE GROUPS?

• FORMAL TASK GROUPS
• These are the groups assigned by the
  teacher when students enter into a long-term
  project like California Missions or California
  Rivers Science Units or Problem-Based social
  studies units. Also plays, performance and
  projects that may be across grade levels. Social
  skills and habits of mind are identified as
  desirable and assessed.

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DO YOU KNOW THE THREE TYPES OF COOPERATIVE GROUPS?

• INFORMAL TASK GROUPS
• These are the groups assigned by the
  teacher for single-day or single-period lessons.
  Students may be assigned randomly to groups and
  have roles assigned randomly as well. Product of
  these task groups are usually shared the same day
  or period. Social skills and habits of mind are
  identified as desirable and assessed.

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What was the type of cooperative group we just
engaged in?

• Right! The Informal Task Group.

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T-CHART ON ATTENTIVE LISTENING
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B U I L D
B Build in higher-order thinking skills
U Unite the teams so students form bonds of trust
I Invite individual accountability
L Look back and debrief what and how students learned
D Develop students social skills
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PHASES OF SOCIAL SKILLS INTRODUCTION

• FORMING
• NORMING
• CONFORMING
• STORMING
• PERFORMING
• RE-FORMING

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SOCIAL SKILLS ARE EXPLICITLY TAUGHT IN
COOPERATIVE LEARNING

• FORMATION OF GROUPS
• How were our groups formed today?
• What social skills were needed?
• What habits of mind were needed

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COOPERATIVE GROUP FORMING SKILLS

• PRACTICE ALL RULES!!
• MOVING INTO A GROUP
• MOVING OUT OF A GROUP
• ONE PERSON TALKS AT A TIME
• STAYING WITH THE GROUP
• CONTROL VOLUME OF TALK (3, 6, 12 VOICES)

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PRACTICE FORMATION OF GROUPS

• GET INTO GROUPS QUIETLY
• SIT EYEBALL TO EYEBALL (KNEES TO KNEES)
• MAKE EYE CONTACT
• USE EACH OTHERS NAMES
• SHARE MATERIALS
• FOLLOW ROLE ASSIGNMENTS (NOT negotiable!
  Stay in your rolebut you may help others
  with their roles.

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PRACTICE SUPPORT OF GROUPS

• CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING
• OFFER YOUR HELP
• ASK YOUR GROUP FIRST FOR HELP IF YOU DONT
  UNDERSTAND
• ENCOURAGE EACH OTHER
• ENERGIZE THE GROUP
• DISAGREE WITH THE IDEA- NOT THE PERSON!

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PRACTICE COMMUNICATION IN GROUPS

• USE 6-INCH VOICES
• TAKE TURNS
• MAKE SURE EVERYONE SPEAKS
• WAIT UNTIL SPEAKER IS FINISHED BEFORE YOU
  SPEAK

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PRACTICE CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN GROUPS

• DISAGREE WITH THE IDEA-NOT THE PERSON
• RESPECT THE OPINIONS OF OTHERS
• THINK FOR YOURSELF
• EXPLORE DIFFERENT POINTS OF VIEW
• NEGOTIATE AND/OR COMPROMISE
• REACH CONSENSUS

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Want to Learn More about Cooperative Learning?

• Dr. Susan Belgrad
• will be conducting 4 workshops on
• Creating the Cooperative Classroom
• The workshops are free and will be held on the
  CSUN Campus in the Education Building
• Seats are limited to 18!
• Email Dr. Belgrad to reserve your
  place.susan.belgrad_at_csun.edu