Cooperative Learning Environment Research Articles

Does a cooperative training design influence pre-service teachers’ perceived quality of life?

PurposeOne of the main challenges of teacher education is to prepare pre-service teachers (PSTs) to implement various instructional models that promote the quality of learning at school. Beyond individualistic efforts and competition, cooperative learning (CL) environments provide PSTs with opportunities to experience positive interpersonal relationships and support. However, both instructional content knowledge acquisition and motivation for serenely implementing learning environments later in classrooms depend on PSTs being trained to make links between theory, research, and practice. The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of CL instructional programs on PSTs’ quality of life in light of their motivation and competencies for teaching in comparison with traditional direct instruction in the physical education (PE) setting.MethodAfter a pre-test, 69 PE-PSTs were randomly assigned to one of the following three training conditions comprising a theoretical presentation of CL designs coupled with (a) a Learning Jigsaw experience (LJE), (b) a Teaching Jigsaw experience focused on instructional acts (TJE), and (c) a Direct Instruction experience (DI).ResultsAlthough integrating CL into the PE-PST training program positively influenced instructional content knowledge acquisition, unexpected results related to participants’ motivation were obtained when the instructor made links between theory, research, and practice focusing on the teaching activity during Jigsaw training sessions.DiscussionRecommendations for planning innovative conditions in PE-PSTs’ training with respect to CL instruction and quality of life are discussed.

Development of the project activities of future primary school teachers based on a collaborative environment

The aim of this study is to determine the views of future primary school teachers on the development of project activities based on a collaborative environment. Permanent teaching is provided by providing diversity in learning with new generation learning techniques. For this purpose, the project activities listed in the education faculties of the universities were analysed. Primary school teacher candidates' opinions on whether education is provided in a cooperative learning environment in project activities are very important. Depending on the results of this research, it will be clear whether the prospective classroom teachers will use these techniques in their future professional lives. For this purpose, a qualitative research method was used with the participation of 72 university students in the spring term of 2021–2022 in order to determine the opinions of the students of the classroom teaching department studying at the university about the collaborative environment. Project-based teaching and two universities with education faculties were included in the research. The research study group consists of senior students studying at the education faculty of the university. As a result of the survey, the opinions of future classroom teachers about the probe activities and the collaborative environment were taken. Semi-structured interview questions prepared by the researchers were asked of the students. It was revealed that, in the last year, teacher candidates studying in the department of primary school teaching were effective in project-based learning and supported the collaborative approach. In the same way, it was suggested that the project activities of the teacher candidates should be increased.
 
 Keywords: Teacher training, classroom teaching, project-based teaching, collaboration, education

블렌디드 협동학습에서 교직이수 대학생들의 교직선택동기수준과 수업만족도 간 교수실재감과 사회적 실재감의 매개효과

Objectives The purpose of this study is to suggest a more effective online course design direction by analyzing whether a sense of teaching presence and social presence have a mediating effect in the relationship between teaching job selection motivation and course satisfaction in online small group cooperative learning environment. Methods The subjects were 51 students in the teaching profession course in Semester 21-2. To analyze the mediating effect, a multiple regression analysis was performed. Results First, According to the level of altruistic motivation, significant differences were found in teaching presence, social presence, and course satisfaction. According to the level of intrinsic motivation, there was a significant difference in social presence and course satisfaction, and extrinsic motivation showed significant differences in teaching presence and social presence. Second, The significant influence of the teaching presence and social presence on the class satisfaction was confirmed. Third, Intrinsic and altruistic motivation have a significant effect on teaching presence and social presence, and extrinsic motivation has a significant effect on social presence. Fourth, Teaching presence showed a partial mediating effect on intrinsic motivation and a fully mediating effect on altruistic motivation. Fifth, The social presence showed a fully mediating effect on intrinsic and altruistic motives. Conclusions In the online class environment, learners' motivation and sense of presence are very important factors for course satisfaction. In particular, in the case of learners with intrinsic and altruistic motives for choosing a teaching profession, class satisfaction can be increased when the level of presence is increased. Therefore, it is necessary to design an online class that considers the learner's motivational type and level of presence.

Teaching cooperative learning through cooperative learning environment: a qualitative follow-up of an experimental study

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of cooperative learning (CL) on the academic achievement of student teachers. A mixed-methods sequential explanatory design was implemented in which quantitative data were collected first, followed by qualitative data to clarify the results of the experimental study. Achievement test, interviews, and classroom observations were used for data collection. The results showed that there was a significant difference between the achievement of students in the experimental and control groups in favour of students in the experimental group (p < 0.01). Follow-up interviews and classroom observations indicated that CL creates a suitable learning environment for students, and it strengthens their life skills. Implementing CL in a university classroom provided opportunities for student teachers to learn how to apply CL in their school classrooms. This study was used to firstly, provide insights into student teachers’ perceptions of their CL experiences and secondly, to help explain these experiences in more depth.

Integrating Immersive Experiences to Instruction through BreakoutEDU

This study employed an escape room motif to engage students to use information literacy course material to solve puzzles. Students practiced research techniques in a classroom environment that bypassed their expectations of traditional course instruction. Instructor objectives were to increase student engagement with the course material, and to foster teamwork among students in a cooperative learning environment. Authors initially obtained 9 kits from Breakout EDU, a company specializing in immersive games. Games were devised for three of the course units, with each unit identifying 4-5 information literacy skills or concepts. The puzzles were focused on reinforcement of the key concepts. After each escape room class session, students completed a short survey. At the end of the semester students completed another survey about their experiences. Over 80% of students indicated the games helped them understand course concepts. Comparisons of final grades in the gamified courses with previous, non-gamified courses revealed that students achieved more A’s and fewer D’s and F’s in the gamified courses. Future directions for study include flipping game design to student groups, and further analysis of correlations between concepts learned through traditional teaching techniques and those learned in Breakout EDU classes.

국내 대학 우수학생 관련 연구동향

Objectives This study intends to present the direction and implications for the future research of honor students in domestic universities by analyzing research trends related to honor students in domestic universities.&#x0D; Methods This study was conducted from December 2021 to January 2022, and 31 domestic journals were selected and the study period, research subjects, research types, research contents, related variables, and program trends were analyzed.&#x0D; Results First, domestic research related to honor students was actively conducted between 2007 and 2011 and between 2017 and 2021. Second, the trend by study subject was the highest among four-year students, followed by four-year freshmen, cyber college students, and four-year graduates. Third, as for the trend by research type, the proportion of qualitative research was high, followed by quantitative research, mixed research and literature study. Fourth, as for the trend by research content, most of the studies on the characteristics of honor students were conducted. Fifth, as for the trend by related variable, the use of academic achievement and career confidence as the independent variable was high, and the university honor student program was used as the dependent variable. Sixth, when designing programs for honor students, the development of a portfolio management system, cooperative learning environment establishment, and continuous program quality management were emphasized.&#x0D; Conclusions This study is meaningful in that it examines research trends related to honor students in domestic universities, seeks directions for future research, and suggests implications.&#x0D; &#x0D;

국내 대학 우수학생 관련 연구동향

Objectives This study intends to present the direction and implications for the future research of honor students in domestic universities by analyzing research trends related to honor students in domestic universities. Methods This study was conducted from December 2021 to January 2022, and 31 domestic journals were selected and the study period, research subjects, research types, research contents, related variables, and program trends were analyzed. Results First, domestic research related to honor students was actively conducted between 2007 and 2011 and between 2017 and 2021. Second, the trend by study subject was the highest among four-year students, followed by four-year freshmen, cyber college students, and four-year graduates. Third, as for the trend by research type, the proportion of qualitative research was high, followed by quantitative research, mixed research and literature study. Fourth, as for the trend by research content, most of the studies on the characteristics of honor students were conducted. Fifth, as for the trend by related variable, the use of academic achievement and career confidence as the independent variable was high, and the university honor student program was used as the dependent variable. Sixth, when designing programs for honor students, the development of a portfolio management system, cooperative learning environment establishment, and continuous program quality management were emphasized. Conclusions This study is meaningful in that it examines research trends related to honor students in domestic universities, seeks directions for future research, and suggests implications.

Jigsaw strategy: strengthening achievement and interest in mathematics among elementary pre-service teachers

Mathematics is considered one of the most challenging courses for many elementary pre-service teachers (EPTs). In hopes for improvement, teacher educators have been incorporating a jigsaw strategy to equip future teachers with the necessary competencies. Hence, the study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the jigsaw strategy with EPTs’ level of mathematics achievement and interest in an online cooperative learning environment. The research utilized a pre-experimental design with 40 participants. The researchers used pretest and posttest questions covering fraction operations and a mathematics interest questionnaire before and after the intervention. With the implementation of the jigsaw strategy, results showed that the EPTs’ mathematics achievement improved while their interest in mathematics improved to some extent. Likewise, a significant difference between the pre-and post-intervention concerning the EPTs’ mathematics achievement and interest in mathematics was found. Furthermore, correlation analysis revealed that study time is negatively related to mathematics achievement, as is the overall level of interest in mathematics. These findings imply that a jigsaw strategy is a useful tool in teaching mathematics online. However, several modifications may be considered to recognize that the EPTs’ interest in mathematics varies from one person to another. Teacher education institutions are encouraged to apply this strategy not only for EPTs to increase their mathematical know-hows but also to serve as an example for them to employ in their future teaching careers.

Cooperative problem-based learning experience and coaching strategies of engineering course

&lt;span lang="EN-US"&gt;The problem-based learning (PBL) methodologies are considered adequate for core engineering courses. The integration between cooperative learning and PBL methodologies establishes an encouraging environment for the students. However, for effective implementation of cooperative problem-based learning (CPBL) environment, close supervision of students’ experiences is vital, and deficient areas are to be improved, as PBL is a dynamic process. A study was conducted for the first-year undergraduate engineering class taught under the PBL environment. The objective was to evaluate the course by the preview of students, for highlighting weak domains in the teaching methodology for future improvements. A course experience questionnaire was designed considering PBL implications, with 35 question items, and 31 responses were collected by the end of the semester. Three different analyses were performed on the collected data, i.e., descriptive statistics and Cronbach’s alpha, Student's t-test, and Pearson Chi-square test. The achieved results supported the effective adoption of the PBL system by the students. However, few areas were highlighted requiring special consideration, such as PBL workload, pressure due to extra course content, and assessment opportunities under the PBL system. It was proved that maximum students considered PBL methodologies convenient and effective for learning than the traditional learning approach.&lt;/span&gt;

Analysis of student attitudes towards cooperative learning in a collectivist culture: a case of South Korea

PurposeThis study concentrates on South Korean university students' attitude towards cooperative learning by utilizing the “Student Attitudes toward Group Environments” survey (n = 427–181 female and 246 male) originally developed by Kouros and Abrami (2006).Design/methodology/approachThe purpose of this study is to unfold what factors affect the cooperative learning environment in the Higher Education context of South Korea, which is known as a collectivist society, and conduct comparative analysis on gender, department type, GPA level and school year as variables in the perception of cooperative learning. The factor analysis findings demonstrated that there are four factors influencing students' attitude about cooperative learning environments in South Korean higher education; “frustrations with group members”, “peer support”, “fairness” and “quality of product and process”. Moreover, the gender, type of department, school year and GPA variables were yielded statistically differentiating results.FindingsThe overall results showed that effective cooperative learning strategies depend on the type of culture and other demographic variables including learner's gender, department type and school year. In South Korea, known to have a collectivist culture, fairness has appeared as a new criteria needing to be considered when designing a cooperative learning environment, which is a different case than in individualistic cultures. Thus, when employing cooperative learning strategies in South Korea, educators should take learners' culture into consideration. For this, educators might utilize the final instrument of this study as a guideline or criteria to establish an effective cooperative learning environment.Originality/valueThis article provides an example from South Korea which is known as both a collectivist and high-tech country.

Enabling spatial thinking through an augmented reality for teaching crystal structure

ABSTRACT The crystal structure is an important topic in the STEM field and the basic knowledge to determine the material structure and its behaviour. There is a wealth of literature on three-dimensional (3D) and augmented reality (AR) technology to represent 3D crystal environments to provide a new way of visualisation and to foster spatial skills. This article aimed to develop and evaluate an AR system for teaching Bravais Crystals in Natural Science, especially the potential of AR as an innovative teaching tool to encourage spatial skills. The users were satisfied with the AR system (Mean = 4.3, SD = 0.49) to learn spatial representation techniques in a cooperative learning environment. The AR system provided excitement and motivation and was attractive and flexible while allowing the students to engage in independent learning.

Thinking about cooperative learning: The impacts of epistemic motives and social structure on cooperative learning environments

The effects of epistemic motives and individual social structure on behaviors that affect cooperation in a learning environment have important implications for cooperative learning and management education. Specifically, the impacts of these two factors on promotive behaviors that are essential to cooperative learning are examined. The effect of social structures and epistemic motives on learning outcomes is introduced into the cooperative learning and management education literature. Hypotheses are developed and tested. The results suggest that social structures have different implications for individuals depending on their epistemic motives. For individuals with a need for closure, social networks offer protection from social ambiguity and assignment uncertainty, whereas, for individuals with a need for cognition, social networks provide social opportunity and assignment sustenance in an interdependent cooperative learning environment. The results have important implications for other learning approaches (e.g., active learning, experiential learning, service learning) that lean on cooperation among students for important learning outcomes. Implications and recommendations are discussed.

Incorporating Reader’s Theater in Japanese University EFL Classrooms

Reader's Theater is an activity that is often utilized in classrooms for younger learners. However, this activity, which fosters a cooperative learning environment, can also be used to increase the fluency of Japanese university EFL learners. This article explains how the author uses Reader’s Theater (hereafter called RT) with adult learners and how it can be scaffolded in a Japanese university setting through the introduction of information on the Japanese voice acting industry. Moreover, the benefits of implementing RT in the EFL classroom, potential challenges when doing so, and different ways of addressing these challenges are also discussed. The article focuses on the use of cooperative learning strategies, such as the jigsaw technique, which can be used to enhance student voice acting skills, delivery, pronunciation, and teamwork. Utilizing strategies like these can help ensure that RT will be an engaging activity for students in an English-medium classroom.

Application of Web 2.0 Technology to Cooperative Learning Environment System Design of Football Teaching

In general, web 2.0 technology serves as an educational tool for teaching and learning aspects. The study is aimed at exploring the interactive system of football teaching in the information technology era. The coach and players will utilize the mobile learning resources to get effective learning about the fun. Using mobile learning technology, the coach has to implement different modes to make the players learn about the game. The study implemented the convolutional neural network (CNN) algorithm to evaluate the accuracy of using web 2.0 technology to cooperative learning environment system design of football teaching. The results show that the network teaching interactive learning system of football courses based on web 2.0 can achieve the intended function of the college educational administration management system.

A holistic framework for developing purposeful practical work

This work applies a cultural historical activity theory (CHAT) framework to understand how the outcome of a high school laboratory task may be positively influenced without making changes to the hands-on practical task itself. Informed by cognitivism, novel practical instruction videos that were based on the same video but had different audio content (“one video two voice overs”) have been developed to provide opportunities to prepare for the practical task procedure and then to reflect upon the task's underlying concepts. We use the CHAT framework as a guide to change pupils’ lab roles and rules of engagement were made to structure student interaction and facilitate an equitable and cooperative learning environment. We demonstrate that students benefit from these interventions and achieve significantly higher attainment scores in GCSE chemistry examination practical-themed questions than those students who prepared for the practical task by watching either the novel videos or standard instructional videos during the lesson. In, addition the students working in the scaffolded cooperative learning environment also perceived their confidence in relation to practical-related tasks at higher levels than those in other groups. This work contributes a novel approach to laboratory teaching by placing greater emphasis on dialogic processes as a tool accomplish a practical-based activity.

Mechanisms of Change for Child Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Conflict Settings: A Systematic Review

There is a growing evidence-base for the effectiveness of mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) programmes for children affected by conflict for a range of mental health and wellbeing outcomes, but with limited evidence for how these interventions produce change. This study aimed to review the evidence for mechanisms of change of MHPSS interventions for children affected by conflict. Systematic review methodology was used to screen the PubMed, Published International Literature on Traumatic Stress (PILOTS) and PsycInfo databases for primary quantitative studies. Out of 3,903 records, seven studies were included, all evaluations of school-based preventative programmes. Results showed a mediation effect of peer relations on treatment change for wellbeing outcomes, while a predictable and cooperative learning environment partially mediated treatment change for academic outcomes, victimisation and mental health. One study found a small negative mediation effect of play-based social support for posttraumatic stress disorder. No evidence was found for any other mechanisms. The findings of this review highlight the role of social relationships as mechanisms of change in MHPSS programmes, but with limited studies to draw from. Future programme evaluations should include measures of proposed mechanisms to further our understanding of how MHPSS programmes work to continue to improve their relevance and scope and to do no harm.

Perceived faculty development needs of physical therapy adjuncts: a comparison study

Background Faculty development needs to consider the perceived needs of the teachers it serves. However, little is known about the faculty development needs of physical therapy adjuncts (casuals, contingent, non-tenured, sessional). Objectives The aim of this study was to compare the highest-rated faculty development needs identified by physical therapy adjuncts who teach only in the classroom (‘classroom adjuncts’) to those who only teach in clinical placements (‘clinical adjuncts’). Methods Using a cross-sectional, web-based survey, perceived faculty development needs were compared among classroom adjuncts (n = 14) and clinical adjuncts (n = 18) using a Likert scale. Analysis included identifying highest-rated needs (i.e., > 75% agreement) for each group and t-tests to determine if highest-rated needs were significantly different between groups. Results Six of the highest-rated needs of classroom adjuncts were, not surprisingly, focused on needs within the classroom. Four of the highest-rated needs of clinical adjuncts were specific to this group and three were significantly different from classroom adjuncts – mentoring students and peers, learning how to deal with common challenges within teaching, (e.g., diversity, dishonesty, disability and struggling students), and using simulation and skills training. Highest-rated needs of clinical adjuncts appeared to be focused on effective communication with diverse students and how to build a co-operative learning environment that facilitates the students’ own initiatives to learn. Conclusions Faculty development should address context-specific perceived needs to support physical therapy adjuncts.

Electronic health records based reinforcement learning for treatment optimizing

Electronic Health Records (EHRs) have become one of the main sources of evidence to evaluate clinical actions, improve medical quality, predict disease-risk, and optimize treatment effects. However, EHRs present several modeling challenges, including heterogeneous data types and dynamic characteristics. Reinforcement learning provides an efficient way for sequential decision-making. Powered by model-based reinforcement learning approach, we propose an EHRs-based reinforcement learning algorithm to optimize sequential treatment strategies for diseases, such as sepsis, diabetes, and their complications. We conduct our experiments with this algorithm to optimize physicians’ historical treatment strategies and achieve better glucose control for diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) patients, which is one serious complication of diabetes. The research includes the modeling process and reinforcement learning process. During the EHRs modeling process, besides considering the necessary physiological variables, we also consider the major disease factors to enhance the interpretability of the model. In the reinforcement learning process, a deep Q network is employed to explore the optimal insulin dose for patients. Moreover, inspired by the real medical scenes, we extend the algorithm to cooperative learning environment. We use the joint policy of the two agents to simulate doctor consultations, and achieve better treatment performances in terms of policy and blood glucose control than single agent and clinicians.

Characterizing Team Orientations and Academic Performance in Cooperative Project-Based Learning Environments

Information technology professionals are required to possess both technical and professional skills while functioning in teams. Higher education institutions are promoting teamwork by engaging students in cooperative and project-based learning environments. We characterized teams based on their collective orientations and evaluated their team performance in a cooperative project-based learning environment situated in a sophomore-level systems analysis and design course. We explored the orientation patterns in terms of goals, roles, processes, and interpersonal relations (GRPI). Specifically, we analyzed team retrospectives of 23 teams using a mixed-method approach. Findings characterized teams into balanced and unbalanced orientations. Teams with balanced orientations demonstrated a higher level of team performance in terms of academic achievement than the unbalanced category.

Incorporating a Cooperative Teaching and Learning Approach in Life Orientation Lesson Planning

&lt;p style="text-align: justify;"&gt;In the field of education, globally, teachers are recognised as important contributors in shaping learners’ interaction in a cooperative learning environment through effective lesson planning. There is a plethora of research conducted internally on lesson planning, as a critical instructional competency for good teaching and as a purposeful activity that precedes the delivery of instruction. This study aimed to explore Life Orientation teachers’ lesson planning incorporating a cooperative teaching and learning approach in secondary schools in De Aar, South Africa. The researchers adopted a mixed-methods phenomenological research design. Seven Grade 10 Life Orientation teachers were purposely selected to collect semi-structured interviews data, non-participatory observation, and document analysis. Data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis and supported with the literature review and the theory underpinning this study. This paper suggests an enactment between teachers’ subject and pedagogical content knowledge and instructional material. Lastly, it is also evident that many teachers lack knowledge, insufficient instructional resources, and an understanding of effective lesson planning to implement a cooperative teaching approach.&lt;/p&gt;