A Bertucci

The Impact of Size of Cooperative Group on Achievement, Social Support, and Self-Esteem

ABSTRACT The effect of cooperative learning in pairs and groups of 4 and in individualistic learning were compared on achievement, social support, and self-esteem. Sixty-two Italian 7th-grade students with no previous experience with cooperative learning were assigned to conditions on a stratified random basis controlling for ability, gender, and self-esteem. Students participated in 1 instructional unit for 90 min for 6 instructional days during a period of about 6 weeks. The results indicate that cooperative learning in pairs and 4s promoted higher achievement and greater academic support from peers than did individualistic learning. Students working in pairs developed a higher level of social self-esteem than did students learning in the other conditions.

The Effects of Task and Resource Interdependence on Achievement and Social Support: An Exploratory Study of Italian Children

ABSTRACT The relative efficacy of positive task interdependence, positive resource interdependence, and individualistic learning were compared with achievement and academic and personal social support. The authors randomly assigned to conditions 66 7th-grade Italian students with no previous experience in cooperative learning. They participated in 6 90-min instructional sessions dealing with the dangers of smoking, alcohol, and drugs. The results indicated that students assigned to the task-interdependence and resource-interdependence conditions achieved higher and perceived greater peer academic support than did students working individually. Students in the resource-interdependence condition showed a higher perception of peer personal support than students assigned to the other conditions.

Influence of group processing on achievement and perception of social and academic support in elementary inexperienced cooperative learning groups

ABSTRACT Sixty-one elementary school students who had never participated in cooperative learning lessons before were included in this study. Students were randomly assigned to the conditions of cooperative learning with and without group processing and participated to 5 instructional sessions during a period of approximately 15 instructional days. Results on achievement show that by the end of the study students assigned to group processing condition achieved higher than did students assigned to no processing condition. Results on perception of peer academic and personal support and teacher academic and personal support do not show significant differences between the experimental groups.

Cooperative learning : soggetti inesperti e numerosità del gruppo : un confronto tra singoli e gruppi

Sessantadue studenti frequentanti la scuola media sono stati coinvolti in questo studio. Nessuno dei soggetti aveva mai lavorato precedentemente con attivita di apprendimento cooperativo. Accertato che non fossero presenti problemi di natura cognitiva, i soggetti sono stati casualmente assegnati alle condizioni di apprendimento individuale (gruppo di controllo), apprendimento cooperativo in coppia e apprendimento cooperativo in gruppo con l’utilizzo del metodo dell’interdipendenza dei ruoli. Durante la prova sperimentale, il compito dei soggetti e stato quello di apprendere, lavorando nella condizione alla quale sono stati inizialmente assegnati, un contenuto inerente l’educazione alla salute e rispondere individualmente ad un test di comprensione sui contenuti appena appresi. E stato inoltre chiesto agli studenti di esprimere il loro grado di accordo con due affermazioni circa la piacevolezza del lavoro svolto e la percezione di aver raggiunto l’obiettivo richiesto. I risultati mostrano come i soggetti assegnati alla condizione di apprendimento cooperativo in coppia abbiano ottenuto risultati significativamente superiori al test di apprendimento, un maggiore gradimento verso il lavoro svolto e una maggiore percezione di aver raggiunto gli obiettivi richiesti.