Challenges of Cooperative Learning in Taiwan: Strategies for Improving the Effectiveness of Cooperative Laerning Author:Hsiu-Ling Lin, Sheng-Ling Chang, Hsiang-Yi Wu
Research Article
Cooperative learning is one of the most innovative teaching methods developed in the past 20 years. Numerous primary and secondary school teachers in Taiwan use this method, but they face many practical challenges. Of the many teaching methods that have been proposed to increase students’ learning motivation and efficiency, cooperative learning has been relatively successful in Taiwan. Cooperative learning involves asking students to cooperate in a group to achieve one or more specific learning goals (Chang, 2003). Most classrooms in junior and elementary schools in Taiwan follow traditional teaching methods, which involve one-way, teacher–student instruction. By contrast, cooperative learning encourages students to take control in the learning process. Cooperative learning elevates students’ learning interests, willingness, and achievement through group cooperation (Johnson & Johnson, 1994). Thus, numerous studies (Chang, 2005; Wang & Chang, 2003) have demonstrated the positive results of applying cooperative learning in Taiwanese classrooms. Many such studies have focused on demonstrating the strengths and weaknesses of cooperative learning or examining the concept of cooperative learning in a Taiwanese context.
Few studies have proposed methods for successfully applying cooperative learning. Applying cooperative learning is challenging for teachers because of its dynamic and unpredictable nature. Typically, teachers who employ cooperative learning methods must group students according to their strengths and characteristics and design appropriate tasks to achieve the overall learning goal of the lesson.
Moreover, teachers guide students to allocate and share learning responsibilities and instruct group members to communicate and support each other during the learning process. The entire teaching process requires fully understanding each student’s ability and potential, which further requires managing the interactive process and interpersonal conflicts among students. Few Taiwanese teachers have shared experiences of successfully applying cooperative learning by using teaching materials prepared in advance. Cooperative learning is a challenging teaching method that can often be frustrating, which leads teachers to avoid implementing it.
This study explored the most common challenges involved in implementing cooperative learning in classroom settings. In addition, this study identified effective and successful strategies that can help teachers succeed in implementing cooperative learning. Accordingly, this study was divided into two parts. First, the potential challenges of cooperative learning were identified through surveys and interviews with 30 teachers who had experiences using cooperative learning in elementary or junior high schools. Second, practical strategies were determined through surveys and interviews with 12 teachers who had successfully applied cooperative learning in the classroom.
Cooperative learning challenges were defined as challenging situations that occur during the cooperative learning process. All challenging situations were categorized into three stages of learning, namely early, middle, and late. Through calculation of the frequency that challenging situations arose in each stage, situations representing the typical challenges of cooperative learning were identified. First, during the early stage, the typical challenge was that students were unable to conduct a smooth discussion immediately after groups had been formed. For example, team members did not like or did not want to discuss the learning topics, did not want to state their opinions, or could not clearly understand other members’ speech. Second, during the middle stage, the typical challenge was that students were unable to work together when teamwork was required. Specifically, the team could not effectively assign work to each member, or some team members did not agree with how the work was assigned, which caused conflicts among team members. Finally, in the late stage, the typical challenge was that students could not finish their work. For example, team members could not summarize and conclude their work effectively, could not reach a consensus, or did not sufficiently understand the group responsibilities and the importance of sharing credit for the work.
In the second part of the study, the strategies that experienced teachers used to overcome these challenges were examined. Five basic strategies were identified: (1) Teachers demonstrate how team members should trust one other; (2) team members help each other and give positive feedback; (3) team members divide responsibilities; (4) team members communicate efficiently and draw conclusions; and (5) teachers encourage team members to share the results and credit for the work. These strategies can help bypass the typical challenges observed in the three cooperative learning stages. In each stage, all strategies or most of them could be identified. However, only two strategies (which accounted for the majority of the effective solutions developed to overcome the challenges observed in each learning phase) were investigated further in each stage.
The results indicated that in the early stage, teachers must intervene in group discussions and demonstrate how team members should trust one another to overcome challenges during discussions. This strategy is crucial because most students in Taiwanese classrooms are accustomed to the one-way teaching method, which may make them hesitant to participate in discussions. However, when the teacher is actively involved and facilitating the discussion, students feel safer and are more willing to participate in discussions. The other critical strategy in the early stage was teaching team members how to properly help other team members during the discussion, which included giving positive feedback and clarifying discussion topics together.
The results indicated that in the middle stage, solving interpersonal conflicts is essential for overcoming challenges involving teamwork. To successfully implement this strategy, teachers must continue to encourage team members to support each other (as in the aforementioned strategy) and help the group effectively allocate their work responsibilities. Teachers must monitor how tasks are assigned in the group because many unnecessary interpersonal conflicts can arise because of different workloads or because some team members want to avoid taking responsibility.
Finally, the results indicated that in the late stage, teachers required two strategies to overcome the challenges involving concluding work. The first strategy involved helping team members efficiently communicate to reach a consensus and draw a conclusion. Within this strategy, teachers must manage their time effectively because students often waste time on aimless discussions or arguments. In addition, the group is expected to reach a consensus, and their conclusion is a critical index for teachers to evaluate whether the cooperative learning approach was successful. Therefore, the key strategy in the late stage is for teachers to actively facilitate efficient communication among groups. The second strategy is for team members to be encouraged to share credit for the work. Learning to share credit for group results and appreciate being recognized as a team can help students understand the aims of the entire cooperative learning experience, which may promote their participation in the next cooperative learning activity.
Furthermore, the results of the first and second part of the study were combined to create a “cooperative learning challenges and key strategies for practice” flowchart, which illustrates the practical challenges of cooperative learning and the strategies Taiwanese teachers can used to mitigate these challenges.
This study identified the difficult situations and challenges involved in three stages of the cooperative learning process. The results herein can help teachers address these challenges before substantial difficulties arise. In addition, this study provides effective strategies for addressing these challenges. The results, including the flowchart, can serve as a reference for teachers to determine effective strategies for addressing the challenges involved in different stages of cooperative learning. However, this study had two main limitations. The sample size was insufficient, and only teachers were surveyed and interviewed, which may have influenced the cogency of the study. Future studies should include data from more diverse resources to ensure that evaluations of cooperative learning practices are accurate.
Challenges of Cooperative Learning in Taiwan: Strategies for Improving the Effectiveness of Cooperative Laerning
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