7/5/2009
Many interactions in the classroom all
takes place at once. When teachers are
learning environment engaged in instruction, they also have to
Instructional Program. keep track of time, monitor and react to
Teacher-student relationship students in a variety of contexts, and make
Lecture 18 last minute changes in instructional formats
and presentations, simultaneously pacing
their lessons appropriately and managing
student behaviour.
Another benefit of maintaining consistency is better In competitive learning students usually work
Maintaining consistency also has a positive impact independently and then take competitive
educational practice.
on teachers’ commitment. examinations for their grades.
When consistency is emphasized, greater effort is
This could be the most convincing reason to Generally few students achieve outstanding
given to clarifying principles and applying them
support the application of educational philosophy results.
appropriately.
to the development of curricular.
This scarcity encourages students to look out for
When teachers are committed, they are more their own interests and to avoid helping their
likely to create good educational programs. peers.
1
7/5/2009
In few instances, students sabotage the efforts of one Competition is an unavoidable fact of life. The majority of human activity in all societies is not
another for the sake of grades. competitive but cooperative. Survival demands that
individuals work with each other rather than
Competition motivates us to do our best. We would
against one another
Some must fail and is acceptable cease being productive if we didn’t compete.
Competition is not much of a motivator.
Comparison of results/grades. Contests provide the best, if not the only, way to
Cooperation is a better motivator.
have good time.
Competition builds character and promotes self-
confidence.
But in sport, competition should promote better Some activities have cooperative and competitive Competition builds character and self-
performance levels. The pursuit of victory reduces components.
the level of performance in sport.
confidence.
Some kinds of cooperative learning models (like
team games and tournaments) have both elements.
Competition provides the best way to enjoy (a myth In these team activities, participants are led to Cooperation-pleasing/Competition - ?
at face value). Winners may experience enjoyment, accept the value and naturalness of having
but losers seldom do. Humans are more likely to adversarial relationships.
gain enjoyment out of play than competition.
Competition may lead to cheating.
They conclude that cooperation is used only as a
means to achieve victory.
2
7/5/2009
Cooperative learning makes the success of each Celebration of diversity. Students learn to work Acknowledgment of individual differences. When
student dependent on the achievement of group with all types of people. During small-group questions are raised, different students will have a
members. Group members are encouraged to interactions, they find many opportunities to variety of responses.
cooperate rather than compete. All cooperative reflect upon and reply to the diverse responses
learning encourages group interdependence. In fellow learners bring to the questions raised.
Each of these can help the group create a product
many instances, the learning program is regulated Small groups also allow students to add their that reflects a wide range of perspectives and is thus
so that students can learn what they need to know perspectives to an issue based on their cultural more complete and comprehensive.
only from one of their peers. differences. This exchange inevitably helps
students to better understand other cultures and
points of view.
Interpersonal development. Students learn to relate Actively involving students in learning. Each member More opportunities for personal feedback. Because
to their peers and other learners as they work has opportunities to contribute in small groups. there are more exchanges among students in small
together in group enterprises. Students are apt to take more ownership of their groups, your students receive more personal
material and to think critically about related issues feedback about their ideas and responses. This
This can be especially helpful for students who have when they work as a team. feedback is often not possible in large-group
difficulty with social skills. They can benefit from instruction, in which one or two students exchange
structured interactions with others. ideas and the rest of the class listens.
3
7/5/2009
Cooperative learning promote self-determination At first, when students are given autonomy, they When students start to feel confident about
so that students get more opportunities to learn may feel threatened; which include novelty, themselves and when they are gradually accepted by
how to be responsibly autonomous. When students uncertainty, or lack of familiarity. others, they move to the next stage – the proactive
are controlled, they are more likely to be stage.
rebellious. As students experience more autonomy, they
develop a greater sense of themselves as Learners in the proactive stage see themselves as
In the controlling environment of school most individuals who are capable of acting involved in activities that lead to mutuality,
children learn to depend more on their teachers independently in environments at first regarded as cooperation and negotiation with others.
about what and how. unreliable and unsupportive. This is called the
reactive stage.
When students have learned to reconcile the Required Readings : Edwards, pp. 311-337
perspectives of others with their own, they reach the
final stage –the integrative stage. At this stage
learners have a sense of balance between themselves
and others and between a working group or
individual tasks and maintaining interpersonal
relationships with others.
