An Overview of Cooperative Learning. Johnson, RT & Johnson, DW. Defines cooperative learning, describes its key elements, summarizes current research findings, and proposes how best to apply the beliefs and principles underlying CL. Oriented to K-12 but provides useful guidance for all involved in teaching/learning.

Benefits of Cooperative Learning in Relation to Student Motivation. Panitz, T. A book chapter outlining the benefits of cooperative learning in terms of its motivational impact. Excerpted from: Theall, M. (Ed.) Motivation from within: Approaches for encouraging faculty and students to excel, New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 78, Summer 1999, San Francisco, Josey-Bass.

Cooperative Learning. Johnson, RT & Johnson, DW. Defines cooperative learning (CL), provides a rationale for its use and briefly describes what make CL groups work. From the University of Minnesota Cooperative Learning Center.

Cooperative Learning in Post Secondary Education: Implications from Social Psychology for Active Learning Experiences. Sherman, L.W.. Provides a scholarly overview of the theory underlying cooperative learning, with an emphasis on Lewinian-oriented psychology. A linked appendix presents some examples of cooperative pedagogical strategies which are presently being used in post-secondary environments, especially in the context of teaching psychology.

Cooperative learning is active learning. Maihoff, S.. Operationally defines cooperative learning in terms of six procedural elements: Intentional Group Formation; Continuity of Group Interaction; Interdependence among Group Members; Individual Accountability; Development of Social Skills; and Instructor as Facilitator. Previously published in Radiologic Technology, 65, 265-267, 1994.

Cooperative Learning Vs. Small-Group Discussions and Group: The Critical Differences. Cuseo, J.. Operationally defines Cooperative Learning (CL) in terms of six procedural elements and delineates the key differences between CL and two other forms of small-group learning used in higher education: small-group discussions and group projects.

Cooperative Learning: Increasing College Faculty Instructional Productivity. Johnson, D. Defines cooperative learning (CL) and describes several ways to ensure that students actively create their knowledge rather than passively listening to the professor.

The Essential Elements of Cooperative Learning in the Classroom (ERIC Digest). ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies/Social Science Education. Identifies and describes the essential elements or requirements needed to be successful in setting up and having students complete group tasks within a cooperative learning framework. Although the emphasis is on K-12, provides useful guidance for all levels of education.

Using a Formal Collaborative Learning Paradigm for Veterinary Medical Education. Klemm, WR. Defines collaborative learning (CL), outlines its basic elements, describes why CL is effective, presents a practical CL lesson template and discusses the future of CL, including the barriers that need to be overcome to succeed. From the Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, Volume 21, Number 1, 1994.

Building Blocks for Teams. Penn State University - Center for Excellence in Learning & Teaching. Shows how you how to effectively incorporate teamwork into your courses, to avoid common pitfalls, and turn it into a valuable learning experience both you and your students will appreciate.

Changing a Course from Lecture Format to Cooperative Learning. McManus, DA. Describes one professor's experience in converting a science course (oceanography) from a traditional lecture/demonstration mode to a cooperative learning approach. Includes tips on course structure and grading, and the typical challenges in making such a change. Provides a summary assessment of the new approach.

Commonly Asked Questions about Teaching Collaborative Activities. Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence. Provides practical answers to the following common questions instructors ask about using collaborative activities for teaching. How do I decide which assignments/activities to make collaborative? How do I divide students into groups? How can I help students learn to work in groups? How can I deal with conflicts within the groups? How do I grade collaborative work? In what ways can technology support the goals of collaborative learning? Excerpted from Chapter II of the Penn State Teacher II

Cooperative Learning. University of Tennessee at Chattanooga - Teaching Resource Center. Defines cooperative learning (CL) and describes several CL structures and techniques, including the three-step interview, roundtable, focused listing, structured problem-solving, paired annotations, value line, team expectations, double entry journal and guided reciprocal peer questioning.

Cooperative Learning in Higher Education. Ledlow, S.. Cooperative learning is a formal instructional model in which teachers carefully design lessons and activities that are suitable for use by student teams. When using teams in the classroom, faculty should direct their attention to six different areas: climate-setting; team formation; teambuilding; cooperative skills development; lesson design; and classroom management.

Cooperative Learning in Technical Courses: Procedures, Pitfalls and Payoffs. Felder, RM & Brent, R. Summarizes procedures for implementing cooperative learning (CL) in technical courses that stress quantitative problem solving and describes common problems that can arise when CL is implemented.

Cooperative Learning: Students Working in Small Groups. Stanford University. Provides good suggestions on how to assign group tasks that promote learning, teach students to work in groups, form and guide groups, and evaluate group work. Includes a useful preparatory checklist for collaborative tasks and a recent bibliography. From Stanford University's Speaking of Teaching, Vol. 10, No. 2, Winter 1999.

Cooperative/Collaborative Structures Designed To Promote Positive Interdependence Among Group Members. Illinois State University - Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology. Outlines several strategies useful in promoting positive interdependence among students working in groups. Includes team-building activities, listening structures, resource-sharing and information-integration structures, and studying and test-taking structures.

Doing Collaborative Learning. National Institute for Science Education. From the National Institute for Science Education. Focuses on the 'practical' side of implementing collaborative learning (CL), i.e., ways to make it work in the classroom. Addresses course structure and objectives, creating goals, and helping student 'buy into' the method. Also covers evaluation issues, creating groups, student/faculty roles, and some ideas on group dynamics.

Effective Strategies for Cooperative Learning. Felder, RM & Brent, R. Provides tips on forming teams, dealing with dysfunctional teams, grading team assignments, and using cooperative learning in a distance learning environment. PDF File.

From Rowdy Crowd to Effective Team: Further Notes on Group Behavior, Rapport, Trust, and Etiquette. Border, L. Applies Blake and Mouton's classification of group behaviors (maintenance-, self- and task-oriented) to plan and set norms for acceptable and unacceptable behaviors; to derail non-task-oriented behaviors; and encourage students to focus actively on the task-oriented dimensions of the class.

Sabotaging Cooperative Learning: or, Snatching Defeat from the Jaws of Victory. Cooper, J.. Provides a list of six small group teaching techniques which are commonly and wrongly used, along with suggestions for avoiding these problems.

Teaching small groups. Jaques, D. Full text of British Medical Journal article on this topic (BMJ 2003; 326: 492-494), from the ABC of learning and teaching in medicine series (clinical reviews).

Teaching Small Groups. The University of New England (Australia) - Teaching and Learning Centre. Effective small group teaching requires careful planning and monitoring of appropriate group activities. The teacher/tutor must also be sensitive to the diverse needs of students and group dynamics. Time for reflection, evaluation and discussion of group processes with students also contributes to effective teaching in this mode. This booklet deals with these and other issues relevant to small group teaching.

Assessment in and of Collaborative Learning: A Handbook of Strategies. Evergreen College - Washington Center Evaluation Committee. This Handbook provides a set of assessment tools for college teachers and staff involved in collaborative learning and in learning communities. Describes approaches found effective in the authors' own classrooms. Articles in the first section address assessment in collaborative learning environments, while those in the second section discuss assessment of collaborative learning environments.

Cooperative Learning and Assessment. University of Minnesota Cooperative Learning Center. Assessment is the collection of data to make a judgment. Evaluation is the rendering of a judgment based on merit. Reporting is the communication of the results of assessment and evaluation to interested audiences. Cooperative learning groups can enhance and at times are required for assessment, evaluation, and reporting - particularly when performance, authentic, or total quality assessment is employed.

Cooperative Learning/Cooperative Grading. University of Virginia - Teaching Concerns. Recommends a form for students involved in collaborative learning activities to evaluate group members' contributions anonymously and confidentially.

Grading in Collaborative Classrooms. Petrulis, R. Grading in collaborative classrooms raises many complex issues. The author outlines the common concerns and illustrates a range of possible approaches suggested by colleagues in the field.

Group Projects and Group Grading. Arango, R. Proposes a scheme that provides three separate evaluations: (1) instructor's grade for the group's work; (2) students' grade for their group; and (3) student's grading of each other's performance in the groups. The final grade is equally based on all three components. Includes a list of evaluation criteria applied by the author to determine the group and individual grades.

Peer Assessment in Group Work. Bulman, T. Describes a framework for peer assessment used in small to medium sized classes involving group projects. An accompanying assessment form is available in PDF format.

Peer Assessment in Group Work - Form. Bulman, T. A peer assesssment form for use with student groups that has each group member rate others' participation in each of several tasks related to a group research project and presentation.

Peer Ratings in Cooperative Learning Teams. Kaufman, DB, Felder, RM & Fuller, H. A research study that examined the validity of concerns about using peer ratings in cooperative learning teams. According to the study's results, most of the concerns frequently raised about peer ratings in cooperative learning were not borne out. The incidence of identical ratings for all members of a team was also relatively low; less than 10% of the students were revealed as possible 'hitchhikers' and complaints about the system were almost non-existent.

Tips for Grading Group Work. Illinois State University - Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology. Briefly outlines eight practical suggestions on grading group work.Outlines how to prepare for classroom discussion and provides a number of good suggestions to help instructors facilitate discussion sessions. Includes a description of how five common types of classroom questions can impede good discussion.

Collaborative Learning Enhances Critical Thinking. Gokhale, AA. A research study that examines the effectiveness of individual learning versus collaborative learning in enhancing drill-and-practice and critical-thinking skills on a technical education topic (electronic circuits).

Cooperative Learning Methods: A Meta-Analysis. Johnson, DW, Johnson, RT & Stanne, MB. A meta-analysis of 164 studies investigating eight cooperative learning methods at all levels of the educational spectrum. The studies yielded 194 independent effect sizes representing academic achievement. All eight cooperative learning methods had a significant positive impact on student achievement.

Measuring the Success of Small-Group Learning in College-Level SMET Teaching: A Meta-Analysis. Springer, L, Stanne, ME & Donovan, S. Based on research since 1980, concludes that small-group learning among undergraduates in science, math, engineering and technology (SMET) curricula results in higher academic achievement, more favorable attitudes toward learning, and greater persistence than traditional methods.

Active/Cooperative Learning: Best Practices in Engineering Education. Foundation Coalition. Provides a solid base of information on why and how to set up active/cooperative learning classrooms. Offers faculty suggestions for preparing students for teamwork, developing instructional materials, and implementing and assessing cooperative learning lessons and activities. Emphasis is on engineering education, but a good resource nonetheless. Funded by the National Science Foundation.

Annotated Bibliography on Cooperative Learning. Cooper, J & Robinson, P. A four-part bibliography on cooperative learning (CL). Part 1 identifies resources related to general research on CL. Part 2 focuses on science, math, engineering and technology (SMET) -related research. Part 3 focuses on cooperative learning in higher education, while the fourth section focuses on SMET-related applications at the college level.

Collaborative Learning in the Health Professions. National Library of Medicine. A dynamic search of the NLM Medline database on this topic using the NLM PubMed interface.

Collaborative Learning: Small Group Learning Page. National Institute for Science Education. Defines and justifies use of collaborative learning (CL), describes relevant group factors needed for success and reasons groups can fail, reviews advantages and disadvantages of CL and covers specific techniques of (course structure; group selection, role and dynamics; lecture methods; CL structures).

Cooperative Learning Center. University of Minnesota. The Cooperative Learning Center is a research and training center sponsored by the University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development. The Center focuses on making classrooms more cooperative places and the teaching of cooperative skills. Emphasis is on K-12, but many provides many resources applicable to higher education.

Cooperative Learning E-Book. Panitz, T. An 18-chapter electronic book on cooperative learning (CL). Chapters include: Benefits of CL; Getting Started and/or Expanding Your Use of CL; Teaching Examples of CL; Preparing Students for CL; Helping Students Take Responsibility for Their Own Learning; Assessment & Grading Techniques; Warm-up and Group Building Activities; and Policies Needed for Implementing CL.