## *A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n*

**Number 1**
**June 1992**
Cooperative Learning**WHAT IS IT?** Cooperative learning is a successful teaching strategy in which small teams, each with students of different levels of ability, use a variety of learning activities to improve their understanding of a subject. Each member of a team is responsible not only for learning what is taught but also for helping teammates learn, thus creating an atmosphere of achievement. 
**WHY USE IT?**  Documented results include improved academic achievement, improved behavior and attendance, increased self-confidence and motivation, and increased liking of school and classmates. Cooperative learning is also relatively easy to implement and is inexpensive. 
**HOW DOES IT WORK?** Here are some typical strategies that can be used with any subject, in almost any grade, and without a special curriculum: 
- Group Investigations  are structured to emphasize higher-order thinking skills such as analysis and evaluation. Students work to produce a group project, which they may have a hand in selecting.   STAD (Student Teams-Achievement Divisions)
 is used in grades 2-12. Students with varying academic abilities are assigned      to 4- or 5-member teams in order to study what has been      initially taught by the teacher and to help each reach his or      her highest level of achievement. Students are then tested      individually. Teams earn certificates or other recognition      based on the degree to which all team members have progressed      over their past records.
Jigsaw II
 is used with narrative material in grades 3-12. Each team member is responsible for learning a specific part      of a topic. After meeting with members of other groups, who      are "expert" in the same part, the "experts" return to their      own groups and present their findings. Team members then are      quizzed on all topics.
**WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF SPECIFIC PROGRAMS?**  These are just a few of the successful programs available that use specially developed material: 
-  Team Accelerated Instruction (TAI) in Mathematics : An      elementary, individualied program that provides direct      instruction within a cooperative learning setting, emphasizing      concepts, real-life problems, and manipulatives. TAI is for      grades 3-6 and older students not ready for algebra.       Contact: Barbara Luebbe      Center for the Social Organization ofSchools      3505 North Charles Street      Baltimore, MD 21218      (410) 516-0370
Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (CIRC):
  A comprehensive approach to reading and writing/language arts for grades 2-6 that integrates the latest reading research findings with the essential components that make cooperative learning so successful. 
      Contact:  Anna Marie Farnish, CIRC        Center for the Social Organization of Schools      3505 North Charles Street      Baltimore, MD 21218      (410) 516-0370)
Success for All:
 A schoolwide program for grades pre-K through 5 that strives to ensure that every child will be performing at grade level in reading, writing, and math by third grade and will be able to maintain grade level from then on. 
Contact: Robert Slavin or Nancy Madden Center for Research on Effective Schooling for Disadvantaged Students3505 North Charles Street Baltimore, MD 21218 (410) 516-0274) 
 Finding Out/Descubrimiento:
 A science and math curriculum for bilingual Spanish-English students in grades 2 through 5. 
Contact:  Michael Chatfield Stanford University, School of Education Stanford, CA  94305(415) 723-5992 
**WHAT ELSE DOES IT DO?**  Schools are using similar strategies with both students and teachers to do the following: 
-     Develop and use critical thinking skills and teamwork;      Promote positive relations among different ethnic groups; 
   Implement peer coaching;
    Establish environments where academic accomplishments are    valued; and even
    Cooperatively manage schools.

**WHAT ELSE DOES THE RESEARCH SAY?**  More than 70 major studies--by federally sponsored research centers, field-initiated investiga- tions, and local districts examining their own practices--have demonstrated cooperative learning's effectiveness on a range of outcomes: 
**Student achievement**: When two necessary key elements--*group goals* and *individual accountability*--are used together, the effects on achievement are consistently positive. 
**Improved relations among different ethnic groups:** One of the earliest and strongest findings shows that students who cooperate with each other like each other. 
**Mainstreaming students with learning disabilities:** Significant improvements in relationships occur between these students and other children in their class when these learning strategies are used. 
Where can I get more information?
**Harold Himmelfarb**U.S. Department of Education, OERI 555 New Jersey Ave. NW  Washington, DC  20208-5573  (202) 219-2031
**ERIC** Clearinghouse on Educational Management University of Oregon 1787 Agate Street  Eugene, OR 97403-5207  (503) 346-5043
**ERIC**Clearinghouse on Handicapped and Gifted Children 1920 Association Drive Reston, VA 22091-1589 (703) 264-9474
**ACCESS ERIC**1600 Research Blvd. Rockville, MD 20850-3166   1-800-USE-ERIC
by Stephen Balkcom 
*Education Research CONSUMER GUIDE* is a new series published for teachers, parents, and others interested in current educational themes. 
OR 92-3054ED/OERI 92-38Editor:  Margery Martin This **Education Research Consumer Guide** is produced by the Office of Research, Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) of the U.S. Department of Education. *Lamar Alexander*, Secretary of Education*Diane Ravitch*, Assistant Secretary, OERI*Francie Alexander*, Deputy Assistant Secretary, OERI*Milton Goldberg*, Director, Office of Research 
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