In times of financial restrictions, the demand for more efficiency and effectiveness in the higher education system is often connected to the potential of tele-supported university teaching. At the Institute of Law and Computer Sciences of the Saarland University, international online courses have been offered regularly since 1996. The didactic…

This study investigated Hong Kong elementary school teachers' and students' attitudes toward cooperative learning. Teachers from one school completed a two-part questionnaire. Part 1 asked for personal information. Part 2 had eight sections that discussed: organizational strategies used in the classroom; frequency of using classroom organizational…

The social and collective aspect in human activities has become one of the main issues in Vygotskian analyses of learning and development. The study assumed that this aspect presupposes some feeling of belonging together and having a shared commitment on the part of the participants. Asserting that relatively little attention has been given to…

This paper describes an ongoing research project that uses a set of formative evaluation activities to examine a multimedia production group project in a teacher education course at the University of Lethbridge (Alberta, Canada). The study presents the notion of peer evaluation and target population feedback as tools for scaffolding students'…

This study examined the effect that instruction about and participation in groupwork/cooperative learning had on preservice teachers' attitudes toward cooperative learning, especially their knowledge of related academic and social benefits, and their pedagogical competence to organize classrooms for group work/cooperative learning. Surveys…

Describes the five-cups activity in which students explore materials in the cups. Discusses the effects of this activity on students' understanding of the nature of evidence and the quality and evaluation of that evidence. Includes test results during class and overnight. (KHR)

The literature pertaining to evaluation of student work in groups is reviewed, and a number of group assessment methods are identified. Two alternative methods used at the University of Sunderland (England) are described. Issues and practical considerations in peer and self-evaluation of work in groups are also examined, particularly the tendency…

To investigate collaborative learning with multimedia, four groups of three ninth-grade math students worked for one hour with a multimedia package presenting the relationships between distance, speed, and time. Interactions were videotaped and transcribed. Groups engaging in cycles of observation, reflection, discussion, and feedback were seen to…

Describes a study that determined whether combining cooperative learning strategies with instruction delivered using an integrated learning system (ILS) produced academic and attitudinal gains in fifth-grade students. Results revealed that students using an ILS in cooperative groups for mathematics instruction performed better and were more…

Reports on a study of 86 undergraduate students working in dyads in five sections of elementary education. States that students felt more pride when they perceived their ability as higher than their partner's, and had higher expectations for future success when they perceived their partner as more able. (Contains four tables and seven references.)…

Working cooperatively in groups can help students connect learning with experience and build relationships at the same time. In collaborative inquiry, student questions can connect the big ideas that cut across disciplines. This paper describes how collaboration promotes social skills and a sense of partnership; discusses the appropriate learning…

Data are presented from a study of cooperative learning as a teaching strategy in teacher education courses. Two university methods courses were restructured to incorporate learning teams and interactive practice activities. Results indicated that students who had difficulty mastering specific content performed better with cooperative learning…

Offers a view of writing as a process involving three forms of collaboration: coauthoring, workshopping, and knowledge making. Offers guidelines for designing courses in which writing is consciously, deliberately collaborative in all three of the realms identified. (MG)

Presents class activities to help elementary teachers prepare their students for cooperative learning. Phase one involves building team spirit and appreciating differences. Phase two includes strategies for trying substantial cooperative projects. Phase three offers ideas for adding cooperation to basic subject areas all year long. (SM)

Presents guidelines for promoting and using cooperative learning in physical education. To establish cooperative learning, teachers must plan for specific group dynamics. Physical educators need to understand their roles with groups and how groups should be structured. The article offers two cooperative learning lesson examples. (SM)