Cooperative learning that features a culturally appropriate pedagogy

Abstract

Many recent intercultural studies have shown that people cooperate with each other differently across cultures. We argue that cooperative learning (CL), an educational method originating in the USA and with fundamental psychological assumptions based on Western values, should be adjusted to be culturally appropriate for any non‐Western cultures in which it is applied. In the light of this assertion, this paper reports a series of experiments conducted in Vietnamese upper‐secondary schools. One group was provided with a series of lessons designed according to mainstream CL practice. Another group was provided with similar lessons but these were modified so as to be more culturally appropriate in terms of leadership, reward allocation and group composition. Findings show that (1) the role and the type of leadership, although not a key element of mainstream CL theories and practice, proved to be influential; (2) groupings based upon existing friendships, rather than upon cognitive ability, appeared to be important. A key finding was that the group receiving a culturally modified programme appeared to work harder during, and gain more satisfaction from, collaborative learning activities.

Predicting and enhancing students’ positive emotions: An empirical study from a Taiwanese sociocultural context

“…One possibility, from previous results, is to consider the fostering of a perceived positive social milieu – a social milieu that has cross-campus extracurricular activities (e.g., sports activities) and/or encourages focus group studies, for example, may convey messages of harmony, acceptance of diversity, collective beliefs, etc., which could then result in more social engagement. Teaching pedagogies (e.g., cooperative learning: Phuong-Mai et al., 2009) and/or assessment tasks that emphasize group learning experiences, similarly, may encourage intentional and unintentional academic interactions.…”

Does Cooperative Learning Increase Students’ Motivation in Learning?

“…While discussion and cooperative learning could be a more effective teaching method for teachers to improve student learning outcome, many traditional teaching methods such as lecture-based, demo, and competitive learning tasks are still widely used in schools worldwide (Harman & Nguyen, 2010;Nguyen, Terlouw, Pilot, & Elliott, 2009;Thanh-Pham, 2011;Tran & Lewis, 2012a). Cooperative learning which encourages students' collaboration for shared goal achievement and motivation could be a more beneficial alternative to lecture-based teaching (Johnson & Johnson, 2009;Magnesio & Davis, 2010;Mehra & Thakur, 2008).…”

Students' Attitudes toward a Group Coursework Protocol and Peer Assessment System

“…Although the benefits of group coursework have been widely acknowledged, concerns related to students' negative experiences of summative group assessments have been highlighted by the extant literature (Aggarwal and O'Brien, 2008;Barr et al, 2005;Chapman et al, 2010;Crossuard, 2012;Dommeyer, 2007;Fellenz, 2006;Neu, 2012;Phuang-Mai et al, 2009;Willcoxson, 2006). Such concerns, in turn, have driven marketing educators to devise innovative pedagogic strategies to enhance the benefits and minimise the potentially negative consequences of group work, including peer assessments (van den Berg et al, 2006a;2006b;2006c) linked to group work, group-based assessments (Bicen and Laverie, 2009), as well as encouragement of ownership and self-selection of team members (Wood, 2003;Strong and Anderson, 1990).…”