Collaborative learning and primary education

This post will look to explore differing meanings and definitions of collaborative learning and will examine ways in which collaborative learning is beneficial in primary education. It will also explore ways in which collaborative learning is used and how it could be further encouraged in a primary school setting. 

To begin, in his 2015 report, Donaldson developed twelve pedagogical principles which “teachers should apply when planning their teaching and learning, to ensure that the activities relate directly to the curriculum purposes” (p.71). One of these twelve pedagogical principles is collaboration. Donaldson (2015) suggests that “the ability to function effectively as a member of a team is one of the key skills regularly cited by employers as essential in the modern workplace” (p.70). This clearly demonstrates the importance of collaboration as it is not only used in schools or the workplace, but throughout a person’s life. 

A very broad definition of collaborative learning, produced by Dillenbourg (1999, p.1) is “a situation in which two or more people learn or attempt to learn something together”. To elaborate further, Gokhale (1995) suggests the term collaborative learning refers to an “instruction method in which students at various performance levels work together in small groups toward a common goal. The students are responsible for one another's learning as well as their own. Thus, the success of one student helps other students to be successful”. He also adds that “the active exchange of ideas within small groups not only increases interest among the participants but also promotes critical thinking”. Collaborative learning has become a 21^st Century trend in which the need in society to think and work together has increased (Austin, 2000). In the world of education, the emphasis has shifted from individual efforts to group work from independence to community (Leonard and Leonard, 2001).

As discussed by Reynolds (1994), there are many reasons to use group work and collaboration in a primary school setting. Firstly, collaborative learning in primary education provides motivation for pupils. This is the view that they learn more when they are enjoying themselves, for example, schools use games and simulations to make learning more engaging and more memorable for pupils. 

Secondly, there are clear educational benefits for collaborative learning. According to Vygotsky (1978), students are capable of performing at higher intellectual levels when asked to work in collaborative situations than when asked to work individually. In addition to this, Johnson and Johnson (1986) added that the shared learning gives students an opportunity to engage in discussion, take responsibility for their own learning, and thus become critical thinkers. By setting aside the traditional teaching model, collaborative learning places an “emphasis on horizontal rather than vertical variation in the knowledge and expertise held by the students” (Tolmie et al, 2010). Barnes and Todd argue that learning becomes a social experience by putting pupils into situations where they will be confronted with opposing views requiring negotiation and learning that perhaps others’ viewpoints may be just as valid as their own” (1977, p. 127).  

Finally, there are ideological benefits for collaboration in primary schools as the process of collective enquiry prepares people for a society based on democratic principles. As argued by Linden et al (2000), “we believe that the importance attached to collaborative learning as a teaching method partly mirrors the importance attached to forms of cooperation in society at large”. Collaborative learning helps to develop individuals and prepares them for a society which is built on collaboration. 

In a primary school setting, for collaborative learning to be effective, the instructor must view teaching as a process of developing and enhancing students' ability to learn. The instructor's role is not to transmit information, but to serve as a facilitator for learning. This involves creating and managing meaningful learning experiences and stimulating students' thinking through real world problems (Gokhale, 1995). “Collaborative classroom group work guided by a carefully designed task provides pupils with a particular kind of social context for conversation within a particular kind of community of status equals: peers.” (Bruffee, 1984).

To encourage and facilitate effective collaborative learning in a primary school classroom, a teacher could keep groups midsize so there is enough diversity and every member participates. and pupils should be encouraged to work with other pupils, not just their friendship group. Also, a teacher could encourage pupils to establish group goals to keep the group on task and may include different types of learning scenarios such as presentations, debates, problem solving, writing projects or laboratory work.  

One example of collaborative work in a primary school classroom would be a stop motion animation project, which is also an excellent method of including cross-curricular responsibilities into learning. "Stop motion animation (also called stop frame animation) is animation that is captured one frame at a time, with physical objects that are moved between frames. When you play back the sequence of images rapidly, it creates the illusion of movement" (Dragon Frame, 2017). During this project, it is not vital but it is suitable for group work as there are many different roles such as designing and making the objects to be animated, moving the objects between frames, a person holding the camera, and adding sound and effects. In our seminar we worked in groups of two or more to create our own stop motion animation videos. 

In conclusion, this essay has explored some definitions of collaboration and has identified reasons for the importance of collaboration in a person’s life, both in a primary school classroom and beyond as it prepares them for a society which is based on collaborative work. This essay has also examined many ways in which collaborative learning is beneficial in a primary school classroom. For example, collaborative learning provides pupils with enjoyment and motivation to finish the task set by the teacher as it is a social experience for the children and it provides differing and diverse viewpoints and ideas. Finally, this essay has looked at some ways that collaborative learning can be used and encouraged in a primary school classroom. For example, group work projects such as stop motion animation are an excellent way to encourage collaborative learning. 

References

Austin, J.E. (2000). Strategic collaboration between nonprofits and businesses. Nonprofit and voluntary sector quarterly. pp.69-97.

Bruffee, K.A., (1984). Collaborative learning and the "conversation of mankind". College English, 46(7), pp.635-652.

Dillenbourg, P. (1999) ‘What do you mean by collaborative learning?’ Collaborative Learning: Cognitive and Computational Approaches. pp.1.19. 

Donaldson, G. (2015) Successful Futures: Independent Review of Curriculum

and Assessment Arrangements in Wales. 

Dragon Frame (2017) Introduction to stop motion animation. Available at: http://www.dragonframe.com/introduction-stop-motion-animation/. Accessed: 11/12/17.

Gokhale, A. (1995) Collaborative Learning Enhances Critical Thinking. Journal of Technology Education. Volume 7, https://doi.org/10.21061/jte.v7i1.a.2.

Johnson , R. T., & Johnson, D. W. (1986). Action research: Cooperative learning in the science classroom. Science and Children , 24, 31-32.

Leonard, L. and Leonard, P. (2001). Assessing aspects of professional collaboration in schools: Beliefs versus practices. Alberta Journal of Educational Research, 47(1), p.4.

Linden, J., Erkens, G., Schmidt, H. and Renshaw, P. (2000). Collaborative learning. In New learning (pp. 37-54). Springer, Dordrecht.

Tolmie, A.K., Topping, K.J., Christie, D., Donaldson, C., Howe, C., Jessiman, E., Livingston, K. and Thurston, A. (2010). Social effects of collaborative learning in primary schools. Learning and Instruction, 20(3), pp.177-191.

Totten , S., Sills, T., Digby, A., & Russ, P. (1991). Cooperative learning: A guide to research . New York: Garland.

Vygotsky , L. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes . Cambridge: Harvard University Press.