Collaborative learning enhances critical thinking
Jte and other orative learning enhances critical concept of collaborative learning, the grouping and pairing of students for the purpose of achieving an academic goal, has been widely researched and advocated throughout the professional literature. The term "collaborative learning" refers to an instruction method in which students at various performance levels work together in small groups toward a common goal. Thus, the success of one student helps other students to be ents of collaborative learning claim that the active exchange of ideas within small groups not only increases interest among the participants but also promotes critical thinking.
The shared learning gives students an opportunity to engage in discussion, take responsibility for their own learning, and thus become critical thinkers (. Sills, digby, & russ, spite of these advantages, most of the research studies on collaborative learning have been done at the primary and secondary levels. However, the need for noncompetitive, collaborative group work is emphasized in much of the higher education literature.
Also, majority of the research in collaborative learning has been done in non-technical advances in technology and changes in the organizational infrastructure put an increased emphasis on teamwork within the workforce. Therefore, the development and enhancement of critical-thinking skills through collaborative learning is one of the primary goals of technology education. The present research was designed to study the effectiveness of collaborative learning as it relates to learning outcomes at the college level, for students in study examined the effectiveness of individual learning versus collaborative learning in enhancing drill-and-practice skills and critical-thinking skills.
The subject matter was series and parallel dc research questions examined in this study were:Will there be a significant difference in achievement on a test comprised of "drill-and practice" items between students learning individually and students learning collaboratively? There be a significant difference in achievement on a test comprised of "critical-thinking" items between students learning individually and students learning collaboratively? Learning:An instruction method in which students work in groups toward a common academic instruction method in which students work individually at their own level and rate toward an academic al-thinking that involve analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of the -and-practice that pertain to factual knowledge and comprehension of the independent variable in this study was method of instruction, a variable with two categories: individual learning and collaborative learning.
The posttest was made up of "drill-and- practice" items and "critical-thinking" population for this study consisted of undergraduate students in industrial technology, enrolled at western illinois university, macomb, illinois. Next, one section was randomly assigned to the "individual learning group" while the other section was assigned to the "collaborative learning group". When designing the critical- thinking items it was ensured that they would require extensive thinking.
Both sections had the same treatment individual learning, the academic task was first explained to the students. The participants were then given a posttest that comprised of both drill- and- practice items and critical- thinking orative implementing collaborative learning, the first step was to clearly specify the academic task. An instruction sheet that pointed out the key elements of the collaborative process was distributed.
Smaller groups (of three) contain less diversity; and may lack divergent thinking styles and varied expertise that help to animate collective decision making. Posttest was a paper- and- pencil test consisting of 15 "drill- and- practice" items and 15 "critical- thinking" items. The items that belonged to "synthesis," "analysis," and "evaluation" classifications of bloom's taxonomy were categorized as "critical- thinking" items.
The mean of the pretest scores for the participants in the group that studied collaboratively (3. In this approach, the pretest was used as a single covariate in a simple ancova there be a significant difference in achievement on a test comprised of "drill- and- practice" items between students learning individually and students learning collaboratively? There be a significant difference in achievement on a test comprised of "critical- thinking" items between students learning individually and students learning collaboratively?
Of the conducting a statistical analysis on the test scores, it was found that students who participated in collaborative learning had performed significantly better on the critical- thinking test than students who studied individually. This result is in agreement with the learning theories proposed by proponents of collaborative learning. Students are capable of performing at higher intellectual levels when asked to work in collaborative situations than when asked to work individually.
Group diversity in terms of knowledge and experience contributes positively to the learning ds that cooperative learning methods improve problem- solving strategies because the students are confronted with different interpretations of the given situation. The peer support system makes it possible for the learner to internalize both external knowledge and critical thinking skills and to convert them into tools for intellectual the present study, the collaborative learning medium provided students with opportunities to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate ideas cooperatively. The ability to admit that one's initial opinion may have been incorrect or partially flawed was collaborative learning group participants were asked for written comments on their learning experience.
Most of the participants felt that groupwork helped them to better understand the material and stimulated their thinking process. The comments along with the number of participants who made those comments are described in table rical description of students' open-ended responses regarding collaborative learning. For this research study, it can be concluded that collaborative learning fosters the development of critical thinking through discussion, clarification of ideas, and evaluation of others' ideas.
Therefore, if the purpose of instruction is to enhance critical- thinking and problem- solving skills, then collaborative learning is more collaborative learning to be effective, the instructor must view teaching as a process of developing and enhancing students' ability to learn. The instructor's role is not to transmit information, but to serve as a facilitator for learning. This involves creating and managing meaningful learning experiences and stimulating students' thinking through real world research studies need to investigate the effect of different variables in the collaborative learning process.
Group composition: heterogeneous versus homogeneous, group selection and size, structure of ng, amount of teacher intervention in the group learning process, differences in preference for collaborative learning associated with gender and ethnicity, and differences in preference and possibly effectiveness due to different learning styles, all merit investigation. Student interaction and learning in small groups: a research ng to cooperate, cooperating to ha a.