512+Agenda+-+7.29.14

-Whadya Think?
Post questions, comments, ideas to discuss based on your professional engagement research on cooperative learning. (To post - 1) Sign in, 2) Click "edit", 3) Type your entry, 4) Sign your post (three tildes ~), 5) Click "save")

I agree with Alec in many ways, including that I too often found cooperative learning to be poorly implemented, leading to a lack of value for students and the appearance of "busy work" type activities.For this reason I was glad to see that much of our reading material addressed the problems that can occur with cooperative learning and did not romanticize the technique too much. One issue that I have seen particularly often, and that was brought up by multiple texts, is the tendency in group work for one or two high-functioning students to carry the vast majority of the work-load while the other students spend most of their time socializing. I understood the argument that this can act as modeling for the poorer students, however it also can allow them to 'skate' through lessons while obtaining good grade. Properly designed cooperative learning can probably mitigate this problem to a large extent through techniques that were discussed such as assigning roles or grading the students on their individual contributions. In summary, I feel that if a teacher plans to use cooperative learning they must be intentional about ensuring that all students can obtain value from the activity. user:pcocco9870

I'm somewhat skeptical of structured cooperative learning because I think it's often implemented poorly. I remember from my own experience in high school that group work was virtually useless to me, and that I disdained it severely. That I was an introvert may have been the first problem, as one of the videos articulated. I found that, almost always, I was more capable when working alone then when I was restrained by the slow learning speed of others. I never found it interesting to try to explain ideas that I had already grasped to my classmates, both because I didn't want to appear like a know-it-all, and because at the time, I had little compassion for the slow learners -- perhaps this is indicative of there being an unsuitable classroom atmosphere or of my being an introvert or something, but I don't think I was alone in feeling like this. Jigsaw activities in particular I found repulsive -- they were a way to guarantee that I'd have three or four times the homework on a given night, because I could always count on my peers giving an insufficiently deep or rigorous or logical explanation of whatever they were tasked with telling me. I'm interested in ability grouping. user:jones.alecj

I really like the idea of cooperative learning and I will definitely incorporate it in my class. I think it can be a challenge for students who are very shy but if approached in an effective way it can really help get the students engaged. A lot of the cooperative learning techniques are similar to what we have been using in class. I really like self-reflection personally because they help remind you of what was learned that day and trigger questions, which really helps one's learning. user:mona.ali

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I thought it was interesting to read about cooperative learning and realizing how much of it teachers use on a daily basis. Within our own program we have taken part in CL influenced activities in the form of think-pair-share, jigsaw, and debate. I think you can see the merit in this strategy. However, there was a quote in one of the readings that struck me as very intriguing. The author essentially states that CL is not useful if you are just using it to mix-up the structure of the classroom, and that there needs to be a very pragmatic strategy with explicit outcomes. I also was surprised to read that CL can be good if you are trying to improve the skills of the students with the lowest proficiencies, but not to improve students in the middle tier of proficiency. The video on the 11th grade Social Studies class was awesome. That is my ideal classroom, and his lesson got me brainstorming many new ways to present material. It was, however, a little intimidating to see someone teach that lesson so flawlessly.user:gmaechler=====

Two ideas really stood out to me during this PET. First, I found the history lesson on farming in the Gilded Age to be highly informative, interactive, and fun. The students seemed to be particularly engaged with the topic and I imagine that they had a great number of takeaways (both life skills like managing money and content knowledge) that will stick with them for a while. We did similar projects in high school with investment groups and the like, so it definitely brought back some great memories. Second, the portion of the PET on introverts was also very thought-provoking. When I was younger, I always thought introverts were just rude people who refused to open up. This was obviously a wrong assumption and was likely caused by trying to compare introverts against my extroverted self. Now that I am so much older and wiser, I have realized this is not the case and, in fact, some of my best collaborative learning experiences have been with introverts because our skills accompany each other well. I love when research verifies my life experiences (haha). user:hharper12

What I really liked about cooperative learning that I hadn’t considered was purposefully grouping students and being sure that each student has a task for that activity. Equally distributing the all the tasks for the activity ensures that not one person is doing more work than another. This sort of grouping is really the responsibility of the teacher to be sure there is a specific task to be completed by each student in the group. Cooperative learning can be very beneficial to the classroom by promoting collaboration however, it seems like it would only work with students who can be trusted to this type of learning. user:jordanashley016

http://prezi.com/r2wum3tfcrry/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

I'm not really sure I want to depend on cooperative learning to engage my classroom. It works really well with high-functioning students, but when the classroom ranges from underachievers to overachievers, it can get tough. I remember I hated being forced into groups when I was in high school, especially for projects that spanned over the quarter because I could never count on anybody in my group. But thinking back on it, maybe it was more collaborative than cooperative. Then our group was graded as a whole so the work usually defaulted to the person who cared the most about their grade, but cooperative grades each person individually and then as a whole. I still think it could easily result into defaulting to the "best" student, which is horrible for everybody. user:krystalvalle

CL is definitely something that I see myself using in my classroom, though I loved the video by Sarah Cain on introverts. Being a more introverted personality myself, group work has always been intimidating, however if it was facilitated effectively, I never had a problem. The key was in creating a classroom that I wanted to be in, that I felt safe in, and that I had made friends in. Incorporating journaling and self-reflection into simulation activities allowed for me to still use the creative processes while maintaining a group think mentally. I believe that extroverts could be helped through self-reflection and “alone” time, even though it may be radically different then what they are used to. The key is ensuring that both introverts and extroverts feel supported in the ways that they learn best, and are given the opportunity to try new, different strategies of learning that may be outside their comfort zone.user:am_kruse

Cooperative learning has some very interesting strategies that can be incorporated into learning. As a potential social studies teacher, history can be dry at times because most students don't find it essential to connect to; comparing to English, science, and math. In the social studies video on cooperative learning introduced a very creative activity to get students involved in history of farming during the Guilded Age. Having an activity like this, students were able to find a connection between history and themselves and how it impacts them today. Also, when the teacher gave them out loans and had them make their own investments, it also gave them life skills that when taking out loans and making your own choices in what you want to invest in can have negative effects. When some of the groups were making risky investments, most, if not all, lost everything! With those who did lose everything, they had to give up everything including their land. This results in teaching students, not only history, but also life skills, and that itself is the significant outcome that can come out of cooperative learning. user:kevinrenner89

I see cooperative learning as a more evolved form of collaborative learning. Cooperative learning research seems to account for more of the logistics of building groups in the classroom. I like that the cooperative learning research discussed and grappled with the idea of how introverted students fit into this model since this was one of my concerns when studying constructivist theory and collaboration. I am still somewhat skeptical of group work, mostly because my own experiences with it have not often been positive. I think that this is a tool that can work in some classes with specific students and would fall flat in others. The information on building groups and the videos on the varying ways this model can be implemented were extremely helpful though. user:AliciaRosman @http://prezi.com/ymb1fcmgo4bq/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

Cooperative learning is obviously something that is beneficial to students. However, through some of the videos I found myself identifying with the introvert side of the argument. I am curious how others think and feel about this both from an extrovert standpoint and an introvert one. I remember from my time in middle school and high school that group work projects were not fun for me but through this program and in some of my lab classes in college that group work was structured a lot better. I want to involve group work but it is something that is harder for me to envision. I also thought that the balance with classroom management was an interesting topic because there were quite a few teachers that struggled with that. I thought it was good to point out that ideas don't happen all by themselves but I think that it is very important to have space to work on your own as well. Like all the other techniques so far, it will be a matter of balance with everything else. user:Tomas427

One of my most memorable classroom projects was when we were split into groups to construct a bridge out of toothpicks. Everyone was given a job and couldn’t do anything outside of their defined duties. We were given a budget and asked to create the strongest bridge within our resources. There were a lot of fundamental concepts that we discussed as the project was in progress and it has been the only thing that I can vividly recall from this class. The benefits of cooperative learning is clear but it’s the execution of it that makes me nervous. I’m eager to try the methods that were discussed in this PET. user:Ben.Davis7


 * Objectives:**
 * I can describe and observe elements of effective text-based instruction.
 * I can describe critical aspects of effective cooperative learning.

9:00 - 9:15 - Welcome and Review
 * Notetaker: Mo
 * Photographer: user:pcocco9870
 * Reviewer: Alicia
 * Snacks: Mona, TJ

9:15 - 9:40 - Teaching demo #1 - Paul

9:40 - 10:05 - Teaching demo #2 - Jordan

10:05 - 10:30 - Teaching demo #3 - Mona

10:30 - 10:40 - Break

10:40 - 11:10 - Cooperative Learning Discussion
 * [[file:Cooperative Learning Rubric.docx]]
 * [|Notes]

11:10 - 11:35 - Teaching demo #4 - Kevin

11:35 - 12:05 - Teaching demo #5 - Alicia

12:05 - 12:30 - Teaching demo #6 - Krystal

12:30 - 1:00 - Lunch

1:00 - 1:30 - Introduction to Differentiated Instruction

1:30 - 3:00 - Cooperative Learning Stations
 * 1:30 - 1:55 - Group 1
 * 2:00 - 2:25 - Group 2
 * 2:30 - 2:55 - Group 3



Station 1 - **__Video__ -** New Teacher Survival - DI Station 2 - **IC -** Teacher Center -IC on CL Station 3- **Model -** Create a model of Tiering

3:00 - 3:10 - Debrief 3:10 - 3:30 - Lesson Plans


 * Housekeeping:**
 * For tomorrow, CL activity guide - [[file:CooperativeLearningActivityGuide.docx]]
 * CL rubric [[file:Cooperative Learning Rubric.docx]]
 * CL teaching demos -
 * Teaching Demos (partners)
 * 1. Alicia, Mona, Krystal
 * 2. Mo & Abbie
 * 3. Alec & Paul
 * 4. Jordan & Greg


 * P.E.T. - Inquiry-Based Instruction
 * You can start on full lesson plans (forms on 512 home page) if you want -- we'll have some time to work on this in class tomorrow.

Notes 7/29/14

-literacy  -learning to read, reading to learn  -21st century literacies  -multi-modal -pre, during, post -check for understanding -pause for student response -elicit student voice by posing questions to whole class -the “during” activities need to be explicit -whole class discussion  -pay attention to others  -ask questions/ give responses  -respectful challenges  -self-moderate  -challenging, but great learning tool if managed correctly <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> - always engage with students about discussions, keep it an ongoing teaching process <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-Pros -Cons <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -collaboration -grading <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -multiple perspectives -easy to go under radar <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -real world skill -tough to monitor effort <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -bring creativity/interest -mixed abilities <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -inter-disciplinary -different personalities <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -mixed abilities -loss of self-reflection <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -different abilities -social problems <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -more fun/engaging <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -social dynamics <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-Considerations <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -requires careful set up and planning <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -designing CL to include extroverts and introverts <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -understand its limitations <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -reconsider homework <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -requires effective management/monitoring <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -anticipate different finish times for groups <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -reasonable risk <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-Different types of group pairing <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-Burning Questions <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -student sabotage <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -harness competitive energy <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -struggling group <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -under achieving v. over achieving <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-differentiation <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -individualizing learning <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -how? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-station activity <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -tiered learning <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -differentiation <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -tasks meet all 3 learning styles <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -needs to be reasonably timed <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -can these tasks be exhausting? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-choice boards <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -good for introverts <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -hard to assess and establish accountability <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -will students just pick what’s easy <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">-organization <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -count off grouping <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -clear instructions at each station <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -materials need to be organized/prepared <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -teachers should walk around during activities <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -formative assessment <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -interaction <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -monitoring <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -has to have assessment and accountability <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -individual and group <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> -clear and short transitions
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Review **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Teaching Demos Take Away **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Cooperative Learning **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Cooperative Learning Activity **