Restructuring the Classroom: Conditions for Productive Small Groups

Moving beyond the general question of effectiveness of small group learning, this conceptual review proposes conditions under which the use of small groups in classrooms can be productive. Included in the review is recent research that manipulates various features of cooperative learning as well as studies of the relationship of interaction in small groups to outcomes. The analysis develops propositions concerning the kinds of discourse that are productive of different types of learning as well as propositions concerning how desirable kinds of interaction may be fostered. Whereas limited exchange of information and explanation are adequate for routine learning in collaborative seatwork, more open exchange and elaborated discussion are necessary for conceptual learning with group tasks and ill-structured problems. Moreover, task instructions, student preparation, and the nature of the teacher role that are eminently suitable for supporting interaction in more routine learning tasks may result in unduly constraining the discussion in less structured tasks where the objective is conceptual learning. The research reviewed also suggests that it is necessary to treat problems of status within small groups engaged in group tasks with ill-structured problems. With a focus on task and interaction, the analysis attempts to move away from the debates about intrinsic and extrinsic rewards and goal and resource interdependence that have characterized research in cooperative learning.

[1]  C. Perrow.  A FRAMEWORK FOR THE COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF ORGANIZATIONS , 1967 .

[2]  Joseph Berger,et al.  Status Characteristics and Social Interaction , 1972 .

[3]  Douglas R. Barnes,et al.  Communication and learning in small groups , 1977 .

[4]  E. Aronson.  The Jigsaw Classroom , 1978 .

[5]  S. J. Rosenholtz,et al.  The Effect of Classroom Structure on Shared Perceptions of Ability , 1980 .

[6]  S. Sharan.  Cooperative Learning in Small Groups: Recent Methods and Effects on Achievement, Attitudes, and Ethnic Relations , 1980 .

[7]  Elizabeth G. Cohen,et al.  Interdependence and Management in Bilingual Classrooms. Final Report. , 1981 .

[8]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Effects of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic goal structures on achievement: A meta-analysis. , 1981 .

[9]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Can conflict be constructive? Controversy versus concurrence seeking in learning groups. , 1981 .

[10]  J. Tammivaara.  The Effects of Task Structure on Beliefs about Competence and Participation in Small Groups. , 1982 .

[11]  N. Webb.  Student Interaction and Learning in Small Groups , 1982 .

[12]  S. Sharan,et al.  Effects of an Instructional Change Program on Teachers' Behavior, Attitudes, and Perceptions , 1982 .

[13]  E. Cohen,et al.  EXPECTATION STATES AND INTERRACIAL INTERACTION IN SCHOOL SETTINGS , 1982 .

[14]  Louise C Wilkinson,et al.  Requests and Responses in Peer-directed Reading Groups , 1982 .

[15]  Penelope L. Peterson,et al.  The Relationship of Student Ability and Small-Group Interaction to Student Achievement , 1982 .

[16]  Marlaine E. Lockheed,et al.  Sex and Social Influence: Does Sex Function as a Status Characteristic in Mixed-Sex Groups of Children?. , 1983 .

[17]  R. Slavin.  When does cooperative learning increase student achievement , 1983 .

[18]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Interdependence and Interpersonal Attraction Among Heterogeneous and Homogeneous Individuals: A Theoretical Formulation and a Meta-analysis of the Research , 1983 .

[19]  J. Driskell,et al.  Beauty as Status , 1983, American Journal of Sociology.

[20]  N. Webb.  Predicting learning from student interaction: Defining the interaction variables , 1983 .

[21]  Noreen M. Webb,et al.  Microcomputer Learning in Small Groups: Cognitive Requirements and Group Processes. , 1984 .

[22]  D. Dansereau,et al.  Cooperative Learning Strategies in Processing Descriptive Text: Effects of Role and Activity Level of the Learner , 1984 .

[23]  Roger T. Johnson,et al.  9 – Goal Interdependence and Interpersonal Attraction in Heterogeneous Classrooms: A Metanalysis* , 1984 .

[24]  Ernest T. Pascarella,et al.  The Influence of Cooperative Learning Strategies on Teacher Practices, Student Perceptions of the Learning Environment, and Academic Achievement , 1984 .

[25]  Noreen M. Webb.  Sex Differences in Interaction and Achievement in Cooperative Small Groups , 1984 .

[26]  Shlomo Sharan,et al.  Cooperative learning in the classroom : research in desegregated schools , 1984 .

[27]  Peter Akinsola Okebukola,et al.  The relative effectiveness of cooperative and competitive interaction techniques in strengthening students' performance in science classes , 1985 .

[28]  Neil Davidson.  Small-Group Learning and Teaching in Mathematics , 1985 .

[29]  Stuart O. Yager,et al.  Oral Discussion, Group-to-individual Transfer, and Achievement in Cooperative Learning Groups , 1985 .

[30]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Classroom Conflict: Controversy Versus Debate in Learning Groups , 1985 .

[31]  Penelope L. Peterson,et al.  Students' Cognitions as Mediators of the Effectiveness of Small-Group Learning , 1985 .

[32]  B. Fletcher,et al.  Group and Individual Learning of Junior School Children on a Microcomputer‐based Task: social or cognitive facilitation? , 1985 .

[33]  J. Putnam.  Applications of classroom management research findings , 1985 .

[34]  M. Brewer,et al.  Cooperative Interaction in Desegregated Settings: A Laboratory Analogue , 1985 .

[35]  Hamish Macleod,et al.  Computers and Children of Primary School Age: Issues and Questions , 1986 .

[36]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Positive Interdependence, Academic and Collaborative-Skills Group Contingencies, and Isolated Students , 1986 .

[37]  Scott Lewis,et al.  Problem-Solving Strategies and Group Processes in Small Groups Learning Computer Programming , 1986 .

[38]  Gordon Wells,et al.  The Literate Potential of Collaborative Talk. , 1987 .

[39]  Myron H. Dembo,et al.  Effects of perceived ability and grade status on social interaction and influence in cooperative groups. , 1987 .

[40]  Fred M. Newmann,et al.  Effects of Cooperative Learning on Achievement in Secondary Schools: A Summary of Research. , 1987 .

[41]  R. Slavin.  Developmental and motivational perspectives on cooperative learning: a reconciliation , 1987 .

[42]  Keith F. Widaman,et al.  Cooperativeness and Achievement: Interaction of Student Cooperativeness with Cooperative versus Competitive Classroom Organization. , 1987 .

[43]  Simon Hooper,et al.  Cooperative CBI: The Effects of Heterogeneous versus Homogeneous Grouping on the Learning of Progressively Complex Concepts , 1988 .

[44]  Shlomo Sharan,et al.  Language and learning in the cooperative classroom , 1988 .

[45]  S. Bossert,et al.  Chapter 6: Cooperative Activities in the Classroom , 1988 .

[46]  S. Bossert,et al.  Cooperative Activities in the Classroom , 1988 .

[47]  John A. Ross.  Improving Social-Environmental Studies Problem Solving Through Cooperative Learning , 1988 .

[48]  Stephen M. Alessi,et al.  The effect of reward structure and group ability composition on cooperative computer-assisted instruction , 1988 .

[49]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Impact of Goal and Resource Interdependence on Problem-Solving Success , 1989 .

[50]  D. Harwood.  The Nature of Teacher‐Pupil Interaction in the Active Tutorial Work Approach: using interaction analysis to evaluate student‐centred approaches , 1989 .

[51]  Elizabeth G. Cohen,et al.  Can Classrooms Learn , 1989 .

[52]  The Use of Groupwork in High School Social Studies. , 1989 .

[53]  A. King.  Verbal Interaction and Problem-Solving within Computer-Assisted Cooperative Learning Groups , 1989 .

[54]  N. Noddings.  Theoretical and Practical Concerns about Small Groups in Mathematics , 1989, The Elementary School Journal.

[55]  Rachel Hertz-Lazarowitz,et al.  Cooperation and helping in the classroom: A contextual approach , 1989 .

[56]  G. Salomon,et al.  When teams do not function the way they ought to , 1989 .

[57]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Cooperative learning and achievement. , 1990 .

[58]  Jean Underwood,et al.  Gender Differences in a Cooperative Computer-Based Language Task. , 1990 .

[59]  David W. Johnson,et al.  Impact of Group Processing on Achievement in Cooperative Groups. , 1990, The Journal of social psychology.

[60]  Dennis Raphael,et al.  Communication and Problem Solving Achievement in Cooperative Learning Groups. , 1990 .

[61]  N. Webb.  Task-Related Verbal Interaction and Mathematics Learning in Small Groups. , 1991 .

[62]  Support Structures for Cooperative Learning. , 1991 .

[63]  P. Abrami,et al.  The Relationship between Student Team Learning Outcomes and Achievement, Causal Attributions, and Affect. , 1991 .

[64]  F. Newman.  Linking Restructuring to Authentic Student Achievement. , 1991 .

[65]  E. Cohen.  TEACHING IN MULTICULTURALLY HETEROGENEOUS CLASSROOMS: FINDINGS FROM A MODEL PROGRAM , 1991 .

[66]  Making the Best of Schools: A Handbook For Parents, Teachers, And Policymakers , 1992 .

[67]  Philip C. Abrami,et al.  Group outcome: The relationship between group learning outcome, attributional style, academic achievement, and self-concept☆ , 1992 .

[68]  J. Tudge.  Vygotsky, the zone of proximal development, and peer collaboration: Implications for classroom practice , 1992 .