The instructor has just completed a lecture outlining fact and perception finding techniques, and student learning teams are given an assignment. At the end of the exercise, any one of the team members could be called upon to present the group's results, or to represent the group by writing up the group's response. The students' backgrounds guide their views of the techniques and their views of each technique's potential for eliciting information. Students' prior experiences also influence their perceptions of the type of information needed for the project. Whereas one student's view of the relationship among techniques may be biased, the group's view will represent a much broader understanding of issues.
Reflection is spawned from argument.
As the scenario illustrates, collaborative learning entails more than assigning students to groups and giving them a task. Collaborative learning experiences require positive interdependence among students in terms of goals, roles, resources and rewards. It is helpful to diagram a matrix for each classroom exercise that explicitly outlines each element and how it promotes interdependence. Collaborative learning experiences encourage and promote interaction among group members. In general, the more heterogeneous the group, the more interaction the group will experience.