Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice
“The main purpose of cooperative learning is to actively involve students in the learning process” (Orey, 2001). There are many different strategies that can be used when implementing cooperative learning in the classroom. Along with these strategies, there are also many pieces of technology that support this cooperative learning.
When implementing a cooperative learning activity in my room, I create my groups in a variety of ways. It is recommended that the groups are kept to a manageable size, and are formed based on a “variety of criteria” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, Malenoski, pg 140). The sizes of my groups are based upon the activity that we are completing in class. Sometimes, they consist of only two students, while other times they can consist of five students. When choosing these groups, I have used the strategy of pulling numbered popsicle sticks, heterogeneous ability grouping, and counting off to name a few. Again, depending on the activity will help me in deciding how I am going to group the students.
When reading the resources for this week, I confirmed an idea that I have been thinking about for a couple years. For the past few years, I have wanted my second grade students to have pen pals with students in a different state or country. Some of my students aren’t privileged enough to visit places, so having a pen pal in a different part of the world could give them an idea of how different things are in other parts of the states or world. With sites such as epals, my students could have the opportunity to complete this task.
As far as bookmarking sites, a fellow colleague and I just recently created an account on delicious.com, so that we could share and add to the different sites that we use within our classroom. Not only did we think that our fellow second grade teachers would enjoy and continue contributing to this site, but we also felt that it would be an easier way to quickly access a site for our students to use in class. With the use of this site, we don’t have to bookmark our favorite sites on the different computers we use. Rather, we can just go to delicious.com on any computer to find the site we are looking for.
When students are collaborating and working cooperatively with one another, they are given the opportunity to create their own knowledge. In working together, they are helping and teaching one another, which in turn deepens their understanding of the subject. Cooperative learning helps students to “enhance their learning” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, Malenoski, pg 139).
References:
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Orey, M.(Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/index.php?title=Main_Page
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
I was also very intrigued with epals. I was trying to think of a way to use it in the class. I am thinking of using it for sciece fair projects. I think students would get into it if their partner was in another state or even another country.
ReplyDeleteWhile they are working together I hope they would discuss things about their day-to-day life and even become friends. I feel it will also teach collaboration skills because the two would most definitely have to work together and share task. It would also strengthen their technology skills which is a valuable asset in today's society.
Determining the group size is crucial when working collaboratively. I also have my groups vary in specific skills. Some students who may have difficulties with reading may benefit from others who do as well, but when creating a product that encompasses the target skills that are being focused on, students who excel can serve as great leaders for others who may struggle.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, my school has done group pen pals before, but within the school. We have a global drive on the computer where everyone in the school can read a file. Selected students create a creative write-up of the activities we had done in class that week and students from other teams and grades can read it and discuss. The students find this very exciting because it gives them the chance to express and demonstrate the skills they have recently become proficient in. Also, it incorporates technology, so it is a fairly quick process.
Epals sounds like it could be an amazing website for students to practice reading and writing skills while making a friend in a different area and learning about life in a different part of the country or even the world. As you say, some students are not privilege enough to visit other places, so they can learn about them in an affective manner through their peers from different areas. This is a great activity to that could connect different subjects such as English and Geography.
ReplyDeleteAlso, you do a good job of using different methods and strategies for creating groups for coooperative learning activities in your class. Sometimes, you make groups with a purpose so they will work out better for you. I found some cool software this year that creates groups on the spot. The group creator would be displayed on the SmartBoard and the job that each student would have in the group would also be displayed there. The teacher also has the ability to somewhat manipulate what the groups will be. This was very fun for the students, and it was a change of pace for the normal assigning of groups.