An instructional approach in which students work together in groups towards learning goals.
Varied strategies help students with individual learning and group achievement.
Cooperative learning takes many forms within classrooms. Its essential characteristic is that it fosters positive interdependence by teaching students to work and learn together in a small-group setting. Traditional cooperative learning groups consist of three to four students who work on an assignment or project together in such a way that each group member contributes to the learning process and then learns all the basic concepts being taught. Both individual students and the group as a whole are help accountable for the outcome. Cooperative learning provides unique learning experiences for students and offers an alternative to competitive models of education.