AtD Cooperative Learning Initiative Student and Faculty Survey Results

1. AtD Cooperative Learning InitiativeStudent and Faculty Survey Results

2. Cooperative Learning Fall 2009 • In the Fall of 2009 some faculty members taught one or more courses using cooperative learning. • A survey of students was conducted in the fall of 2009. • A survey of faculty was conducted in the spring of 2010.

3. Cooperative LearningStudent Survey • 82 students responded to the survey representing about 22% of the total number of students • Survey instrument used a portion of the questions developed by the Johnson brothers.

4. Cooperative LearningStudent Survey • 21 questions • Scale • 5 Completely true • 4 True much of the time • 3 Sometimes true and Sometimes False • 2 False much of the time • 1 Completely False • Results are divided into three components • Top nine responses • Bottom nine responses • Three items had low ratings but were positive

5. Cooperative LearningStudent Survey 5 Completely true, 4 True much of the time, 3 Sometimes true and sometimes false, 2 False much of the time, 1 Completely false

6. Cooperative LearningStudent Survey 5 Completely true, 4 True much of the time, 3 Sometimes true and sometimes false, 2 False much of the time, 1 Completely false

7. Cooperative LearningStudent Survey • Three questions require low ratings to be positive • I would rather work on school work alone 2.83 • I have a lot of questions that do not get answered in class – 2.06 • Sometimes I think the scoring system in this class is not fair – 1.96 5 Completely true, 4 True much of the time, 3 Sometimes true and sometimes false, 2 False much of the time, 1 Completely false

8. Cooperative LearningFaculty Survey • 19 surveys were returned • Some instructors completed more than one survey because they taught different courses • Survey instrument used a portion of the questions developed by the Johnson brothers.

9. Cooperative LearningFaculty Survey • There were 47 questions divided into 15 sections. • There was a sliding rating scale of 1 to 5 • 5 Almost always • 3 Sometimes • 1 Almost never • Results were mixed with some of the responses very positive, some less than positive and some needing further attention

10. Cooperative LearningFaculty Survey General results • 94.8% were very satisfied or satisfied with their cooperative learning experience. • 55% of the instructors spent 52-75% of their class time on cooperative learning groups. • The majority of the respondents used two to three students per group. • Students were assigned randomly to groups with some faculty using the Lori Farr system. • Faculty generally provided all students with materials.

11. Cooperative LearningFaculty Survey Top Ratings • Students were told about how their work would be evaluated. 4.84 • Students involved everyone in the discussion. 4.79 • Students evaluated individually and as a group based on criteria. 4.47 • Faculty consulted with students during the group discussions. 4.24 • Students evaluated individually based on a set of criteria. 3.63 • Each group member was required to meet their goal. 3.56 • Students argued their point and changed their minds only on the basis of fact. 3.56 • Students shared information and agreed on one answer quickly. 3.56 • Bonus points were used when everyone succeeded in the group. 3.53 • Students received feedback based on the teacher’s observations. 3.41 • Tasks were assigned to each group. 3.41 5 Almost always, 3 Sometimes, 1 Almost never

12. Cooperative LearningFaculty Survey Two Areas in Which the Ratings Were Relatively Low • How did you promote the mastery of interpersonal skills? • The social skill was defined and practiced. Groups were observed and feedback given to them. 2.00 • The social skill was defined, practiced and monitored. 2.56 • How was group processing conducted in your classroom? • My students discussed how well they worked with each other. 3.16 • I had several structured ways for students to process in groups. 2.65 • I structured the process as part of the lesson and had students turn in processing assignments with their other work. 2.63 5 Almost always, 3 Sometimes, 1 Almost never

13. Cooperative LearningFaculty Survey Four Areas in Which the Ratings Were Expected to be Low • As an instructor, I assigned students of the same ability to a group. 1.88 • As an instructor, I did not interfere with group work and worked quietly at my desk. 1.31 • Norm-referenced evaluation system where individual students’ performance was compared to the performance of other students. 1.13 • Students competed within the group to do the most work. 1.06 5 Almost always, 3 Sometimes, 1 Almost never

14. Cooperative Learning Summary • Students were very positive about their cooperative learning experience, particularly with the opportunity to succeed if they did their best. • Students may need a bit more prodding on understanding the importance of everyone in their group being familiar with the information. • Faculty clearly wanted students to succeed in the group environment and identified ways to accomplish this success. • Student development of social skills and group processing may need more attention by the faculty in the future.