Cooperative Learning in Higher Education: Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Undergraduates' Reflections on Group Grades

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to share reflections from 140 non-Hispanic undergraduate students and 83 Hispanic students who have participated in cooperative written examinations for group grades. Reflections are clustered by themes identified from the students' comments using Van Manen's (1990) hermeneutic phenomonological approach, which is how the direct statements of individuals describe a common shared experience add to the affective understanding of the event. The experience is examined and defined through reflections of the participants. Students experience positive interdependence within a cooperative learning setting. Results of 140 non-Hispanic undergraduates and 83 Hispanic students are compared.Key words: university, cooperative learning, strategy, assessment, Hispanic, reflection