Taxonomy of cooperative learning varieties and Kagan's content-free structures¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · 5 claims (4 for, 1 mixed) · 3 studies (2 review, 1 design), q2 · 0 of 3 report an effect size · 4 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The bulletin organizes the main cooperative learning methods: Circles of Learning/Learning Together (an 18-step implementation), Jigsaw and its Jigsaw II and III variants, STAD, Teams-Games-Tournaments, and Group Investigation with its six stages. It also presents Kagan's structural approach, in which "structures" are "content-free ways of organizing social interaction in classrooms" classified by instructional focus (team building, class building, communication building, mastery, concept development, multifunctional). Kagan argues structures are easier for teachers to master one at a time and can be combined into multistructural lessons.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Teachers need training beyond a single inservice session; methods differ in suitability for different goals

Constraints¶

• STAD is considered appropriate for science material with single right answers; Jigsaw III is designed for bilingual classrooms

Target Learners¶

• Elementary through secondary science students
• Bilingual students (Jigsaw III)

Target Learning Objectives¶

• Mastery of factual science content
• Inquiry and collaborative skills

Claims¶

• Conceptual change strategies in cooperative groups reduced misconceptions in community college chemistry, but poor group leadership undermined discussion [+M]
• Cooperative learning shows benefits for gifted and high-ability students, though long-term evidence is lacking [+M]
• Science-classroom studies of cooperative learning show mixed results, with several null or negative comparisons [~M]
• Meta-analyses by Johnson and Johnson find cooperative learning promotes higher achievement than competition or individual work across ages, subjects, and tasks [+M]
• In secondary-school research, cooperative learning beat frontal teaching in 68% of comparisons, with STAD most and Jigsaw least successful [+M]

Related Theories¶

• Five common models of cooperative learning
• Kagan's structural approach to cooperative learning (KCLS)

Examples¶

• Implement cooperative learning with extended training, direct social-skills teaching, and small initial groups
• Student-Teams Achievement Divisions (STAD)
• Jigsaw Method
• Numbered Heads Together
• Cooperative Classroom Activities
• Jigsaw Method
• Modified Jigsaw Activities
• Cooperative Learning Strategies

Key Sources¶

• Blosser, P. E. (1993). Using Cooperative Learning in Science Education. ERIC Clearinghouse for Science, Mathematics, and Environmental Education. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED351207