Co-operative learning

‘What the child can do in co-operation today he can do alone tomorrow’. ( Vygotsky 1986, p.188)

According to Nielsen (1994), co-operative learning can be traced back as far as 1875-1880, when Colonel Parker introduced this concept to his school. Maller (1992) studied cooperation versus competition. His findings indicated that cooperation was more efficient amongst group members who were similar in age, intelligence and experience similar social factors. Following Parker, Dewey (1936, p.79) also focused on the social aspects of learning and asserted that the ‘isolation of subject matter from a social context is the chief obstruction in current practice to securing a general training of the mind’. As stated earlier, the theory developed by Deutsch is based on two continua, namely-:

1. The interdependence among the goals of the people involved in a given situation, and 2. The type of actions they take.

Deutsch suggested that the goals may be positively or negatively related, and that the actions may be effective or ineffective. When these two continua are combined, Deutsch hypothesized on the joint effect on substitutability, cathexis and inducibility. The origin of these two types of social interdependence was, however, based on what Lewin (1935) called

‘intrinsic motivation’ i.e. tension within an individual which moves the individual into achieving desired goals.

But then, during 1978, Vygotsky introduced another element i.e. the social nature of language and its influence on student learning. Vygotsky hypothesized that the potential for development at any time is limited to what he calls the ‘zone of proximal development’ (ZPD) defined as follows: Working alone the child may function up to a certain level. Working in collaboration with more capable peers, or perhaps with adult or professional guidance, the child may function at a higher level. This middle ground that the child is capable of reaching with assistance and not on his/her own is the ZPD. The child thus acquires higher order skills by exercising those skills in the ZPD with the help of others. Those skills are then internalized up to the point when they can master it on their own. Through the use of the ‘zone of proximal development’, Vygotsky (1978, p.85) concludes ‘what children can do with the assistance of others might be, in some sense, even more indicative of their mental development than what they can do alone’.

(Various scholars [McClintock and Sonquist (1976), Aronson, Blaney, Rosenfield, Sikes and Stephan (1977), Johnson, Johnson, Johnson and Anderson (1976), Barnes and Todd (1977), Johnson and Johnson 1979)] all tried to develop an understanding of the working of co- operative learning. The focus now gradually moved more to specific learning strategies.

Recently scholars such as Moffett (1994, p.85) expressed themselves strongly against what they term ‘the commercialization of a natural human process’:

…a perfectly natural human process requiring no commercial materials was proceduralized beyond recognition. Small group interaction was ritualized fore and aft by so much goal setting and assessment, briefing and debriefing, that little time remained for the substantive collaboration itself, which was so formalized, moreover, that little choice of spontaneity remained.

Despite the claims made by Moffett about the apparent ‘abuse’ of co-operative learning by groups, the positive outcomes associated with co-operative learning are indisputable. Sharo (1980) investigated the learning strategies that were employed and the mechanics of group work, and concluded that all of the methods reviewed resulted in superior performance in small groups as opposed to large groups.

With Moffett’s notion and the results produced by Sharo in mind this research work will also make use of the work presented by Johnson and Johnson. Co-operative learning as presented by Johnson et al., (1976, 1979, 1981, and 1991) is based on the theoretical frameworks of Lewin (1935, 1948) and the seminal work of Deutsch (1949, 1951, and 1983). According to Johnson et al (1989) individuals can be engaged in individual and/or group activities. These activities can promote, obstruct or have no effect on the performances of others. All of these activities are social in nature and manifest as co-operative, competitive or individualistic. The actions of one individual may effect the actions of another individual, now called social dependence, or it may not effect the actions of another individual, then called social independence. When social dependence and interdependence are lacking, operational activities become individualistic. Each one of these social interdependences (i.e. positive or negative interdependence) also has its own bi-directional relationships. Positive

interdependence, cooperation (and psychological health) are interwoven and each one will induce the other. These three outcomes, namely, the joint efforts to achieve mutual goals, joint efforts to achieve positive relationships and psychological health each have their own specific bi-directional relationship.

Within co-operative situation efforts to achieve mutual goals often - 1. Creates caring (cohesiveness) and committed relationships.

2. Creates positive relationships which are powered by the caring and committed relationships.

3. Promote psychological health.

Johnson et al (1989, pp.54-55) claims that cooperation promotes-: 1. Greater productivity and achievement.

2. More frequent use of higher-quality reasoning. 3. More frequent process gain.

4. Greater transfer of learning.

5. Joint rewards are perceived as more fair then differential rewards.

In a learning situation, group work does not necessarily guarantee high achievement performances. A number of plausible theories as to why co-operative experiences should have an impact on interpersonal preferences have however been proposed although not all have been tested one against the other. Co-operative efforts will however be successful if specific elements are present namely -

1. Positive interdependence.

2. Considerable promotive (face-to-face) interactions.

3. Frequent use of relevant interpersonal and small group skills.

4. These elements are bi-directional and one element will induce and promote the other.

1. Positive interdependence. It is one of the criteria needed to ensure successful cooperation. Group membership and interpersonal interaction within a group are not sufficient to ensure the success of a group. Johnson and Johnson (1989) argue that outcome interdependence is what ensures productivity and achievement of a group. Outcome interdependence creates feelings of personal responsibility to work towards mutual benefit of the group.

2. Considerable promotive (face-to-face) interactions. Participants in the group provide each other with help and assistance, exchange needed resources, provide helpful feedback, challenge reasoning and conclusions, open to influences, act responsibly and trustworthily, demonstrate high achievement and intrinsic motivation. Efforts individuals commit to achieve goals they perceive as being meaningful and worthwhile, exhibit low anxiety and stress levels.

3. Frequent use of relevant interpersonal and small group skills. The group’s future effectiveness will be determined by leadership skills, good communication skills, decision- making, trust building- and conflict resolution skills. Cooperation amongst groups, whether

inside or outside teaching-learning environments, enhances the well-being of the various groups involved, but it also makes the members in the group vulnerable to each other.