COOPERATIVE LANGUAGE LEARNING

In learning environments there are some basic models i) Competitive ii) Cooperative iii) Individualized An approach for learning based on using cooperation, working together, either in pairs or small groups. General aim is in a socially structured group environment to exchange of information between learners a) who are both accountable of their own learning b) and motivated to increase of the learning of the other group members. WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF COOPERATIVE LANGUAGE LEARNING? Raise the achievements of all students including both gifted ones and handicapped ones . Creates positive relationships among students This positive relationship provides the students with healthy social, psychological and cognitive development . Replace competition with team based organization with cooperation GOALS FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING Language acquisition through interaction Opportunities for learners to develop communication and learning strategies In positive classroom climate increasing motivation and decreasing stress and anxiety of learners THEORETICAL BACKGROUND In the beginning of the 20 th century it was the idea of John Dewey that cooperative classroom environment promotes learning. Later, Piaget and Vygotsky pointed out the important role of SOCIAL INTERACTION in learning. Some people relate Critical Thinking Approach with Learning in Cooperation. (The Question Matrix of Wiederhold is considered to be one of the main tools for Critical Thinking) Based on the interactive / cooperative nature of language acquisition theories. We acquire language in a social environment Acquired language is organized as conversations (in social environments) Conversations take place in a certain set of cooperative rules (which are called MAXIMS). This is called CO-OPERATIVE PRINCIPLE. Grice has defined four maxims for conversations 1-Quantity: In conversation give as much information as it is needed. Not more or less that it is required . 2-Quality: Speak truthfully. Do not say anything that you dont believe or you cannot prove. 3-Relevance: Never say any irrelevant thing. 4-Manner: Avoid ambiguity, be clear. Grice analyzes cooperation as involving four maxims: quantity, quality, relevance, and manner. Speakers give enough and not too much information : quantity. They are genuine and sincere, speaking "truth" or facts: quality. Utterances are relative to the context of the speech : relevance. Speakers try to present meaning clearly and concisely, avoiding ambiguity : manner. FORMING COOPERATIVE LEARNING GROUPS 1

1-Formal (cooperative learning) groups: Groups formed for one class hour or for several weeks. They are formed for a specific task achieved within these time limits. 2-Informal (cooperative learning) groups: These groups are formed for a few minutes or for a class hour. Aim is to focus students attention to a point or to facilitate the learning of something. 3-Cooperative base groups: Long term groups with stable members. Aim is to allow members to support, encourage or assist each other. CHARACTERISTICS OF GROUPS The success of cooperative learning crucially depends on the nature and the organisation of the groups. While forming the groups the following key elements should be taken into consideration; a) Positive interdependence: It is an environment where group members feel that what helps one member helps all the members, and what hurts one member will hurt all members. Spirit of mutual understanding. b) Size, formation and roles: Size of the groups depends on task, age and time. Typical group size varies between 2 to 4. Teacher can select the members or students can form their own groups, or it can be done randomly. There might be different roles for students such as presenter, monitor, summarizer, researcher etc. c) Individual accountability: Each member should feel the responsibility for his and her performance and for the performance of the group as a whole. The member should know that his/her individual performance has contribution to (positively or negatively) group performance. d) Social skills: How students interact with each other as team members requires some skills. Either members should have these skills or these skills should be taught via instruction. e) Structuring: The ways of interaction among students should be determined and known by the students.
HOW MUTUAL BENEFIT OCCURS Group members Gain from each other's efforts. (Your success benefits me and my success benefits you) Recognize that all group members share a common fate. (We all sink or swim together here.) Know that one's performance is mutually caused by oneself and one's team members. (We can not do it without you.) Feel proud and jointly celebrate when a group member is recognized for achievement. (We all congratulate you on your accomplishment !).

SOME ACTIVITY TYPES IN COOPERATIVE LANGUAGE LEARNING Team practice from common input: Teacher gives the topic / material traditionally. All group members work on the same topic or material. Aim is to make sure that every member masters the topic . When teacher asks a question anyone in the group can answer. Evaluation is conducted individually.

Jigsaw: Each member takes a different piece of the information. These members form expert groups and make preparation to teach the topic. Students return home (original) groups to share information with each other. They combine (synthesize) the information through discussion and they produce something, they complete a task, they take a test, or make presentation.
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Circle the Sage is similar to Jigsaw. Teacher finds students who has special knowledge on something and spread them out the classroom. One team member form each group surrounds the sages. All students then return to their teams. Each in turn, explains what they learned Cooperative Projects: Each group receives different topic. Group members analyse the topic and identify sub topics to master. Group members research the parts of the topic, and they synthesise their work and present to the classroom. Studying on sub topics is based on students interest and choice.

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SOME MORE ACTIVITIES Three-step interview: 1) Students are in pairs and they interview. One is interviewer the other is interviewee. 2) They reverse roles 3) Each shares with other team members what s/he has learned form interview.
Roundtable: There is one sheet of paper and a pen. There is a topic /problem / or a matter. One makes contribution and passes the paper and pen to the next one. Each student makes contribution in turn. If done orally then it is called Round Robin. Think-Pair-Share A question is given to group. Students form pairs. Each student thinks of the answer and discusses his/her answer with the partner. Students share their partners response with the class Solve-Pair-Share A problem is given to group. Each student tries to solve individually by using her/his own strategy. Then they explain how they solve either in interview or in round robin Numbered Heads Group members are tagged with numbers. Teacher asks a question. Members together find the solution or answer. Teacher calls a number and group members with that number raise hands to be called by the teacher as in traditional setting.

LEARNER ROLES: Member of a team who must work in collaboration. / Director of their own learning. TEACHER ROLES: Creator of learning environment where cooperative learning will take place ROLE OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS: To create opportunity to learners to work cooperatively. A set of the same materials might be required or needed.

PARTICIPATORY APPROACH
Paulo Freire (1921-1997) was a Brazilian educator who and his family suffered much from poverty and hunger during the Great Depression of 1929. These experiences shaped his concerns for the poor and this formed a particular educational viewpoint for the poor. In the early 1960s, Freire developed a native-language literacy program for people who live in poor parts of the cities in Brazil. During these days, Freire carried on dialogues with these people about the problems in their lives. Freire used these dialogues for two purposes 1-For literacy development 2-To help students to improve their lives (as reflections of their possible actions) The most important point here is INTEGRATION OF THE AIM OF EDUCATION WITH THE EXPECTATION OF THE IMPROVEMENT OF THEIR LIFE STANDARDS. Education is more meaningful when it functions as a means or tool to shape the world around the people in order to improve their prosperity. The goal of the participatory approach is to help students to understand the social, historical, or cultural forces that affect their lives, and to help empower students to take action and make decisions in order to gain control over their lives Education is most effective when it is experience-centered, when it is related to students' real needs. Students should learn to see themselves as social and political beings. What happens in the classroom should be connected with what happens outside that has relevance to the students. In some ways the participatory approach is similar to the content-based approach in that it begins with content that is meaningful to the students and the forms that are worked upon emerge from that content. What is strikingly different is the nature of the content. In participatory approach, the content should be based on the concerns of the students. Students are motivated by their personal involvement. The curriculum is not a predetermined product, but the result of an ongoing context -specific problem-posing process. (The teacher generally poses a common problem that was voiced by group that most students belong to) Students can create their own materials, which, in turn, can become texts for other students. 4

When knowledge is jointly constructed, it becomes a tool to help students find voice and by finding their voices, students can act in the world. Focus on linguistic form occurs within a focus on content. Language skills are taught in service of action for change, rather than in isolation. A goal of the participatory approach is for students to be evaluating their own learning and to increasingly direct it themselves. (The students discuss what they have learned in the class.)