Enhancing Students' Cooperative Learning in an EFL Classroom through Lesson Study

Abstract

Learning English in an EFL classroom demands the students to learn it as both material and classroom instruction. English for most EFL students is considered difficult especially when they use it as a means of communication. Since English becomes a challenge to discuss, it makes most students feel afraid of cooperating and collaborating in learning processes. A fact showed that a big number of students were reluctant to do group discussion. A five-cycled open lesson has already conducted as an effort to solve the students' problems. During the five cycles of Lesson Study, the students were asked to discuss the material of Teaching English as a Foreign Language and present the result of their discussion in front of other groups. The targets of the LS are: (1) enhancing students' cooperative learning activities during discussion, and (2) making the students accustomed to group discussion and material presentation. Firstly, the students were still confused in conducting group discussion. Most of them did not know what they had to do and felt unmotivated in using English as a medium of communication. As a result, most groups were dominated by particular students. A lesson study -based action was taken, individual works which then support the group discussion result was given to the students. No one in the group was silent and neglected. Each student had the same responsibility to fulfill the task. Consequently, all of the students contributed to the group activity. In short, the students were motivated to do group discussion through cooperative learning.

A Literature Review on Cooperative Learning to Improve EFL Students’ Learning Motivation

“…A grade level is also thought to be a relevant mutable to show whether the benefits of supportive knowledge are more noticeable among first-graders who are just starting a new school year or whether they are similarly obvious between all high school schoolchildren, regardless of grade level. Since, as far as we are aware, no study has taken into account high-school grade level, this investigate will offer some unique conclusions in this respect (Wahyukti, 2017).…”

“…Cooperative learning appears to be beneficial for all children, regardless of academic aptitude, but high school students in particular seem to require it as they make the transition from elementary to high school. The most effective kind of education to help students do this may be collaborative peer learning (Wahyukti, 2017). A grade level is also thought to be a relevant mutable to show whether the benefits of supportive knowledge are more noticeable among first-graders who are just starting a new school year or whether they are similarly obvious between all high school schoolchildren, regardless of grade level.…”

The Effect Group Investigation Method on Language Learning Outcomes

“…Furthermore, Vygotsky (1978, cited in Almula, 2017 stated that learners can exchange ideas and knowledge to achieve shared goals in a CL environment. This CL model is suitable for language classroom as it enhances English language acquisition by decreasing students' learning anxiety, encouraging their active participation, increasing the amount of student talk, and providing a non-threatening classroom environment (Wahyukti, 2017). The efficiency of CL model has been proven by Gonzales and Torres (2016) and Er and Aksu Ataç (2014) who revealed that the majority of students preferred CL to individual learning because CL helped them to better understand study contents and participate in classroom activities.…”