There are countless ways to incorporate social learning theories into the classroom, and technology can be used with many of these strategies. A more basic strategy for cooperative learning is Think, Pair, Share. This is a strategy that I use on almost a daily basis. If my students seem confused on something, I will have them get with a partner to discuss the question. Or, other times I will just pose a question to get their thoughts on something, and two heads are better than one! Another strategy that I plan to incorporate into my classroom next year is having a base group. I think that having a group of people to serve as a support system will greatly help my students. Many of my students do not like to ask questions or come for extra help. With a base group, they can turn to their group for help or get a group member to give them the support, emotionally or physically, to help them succeed.
Blogging is a cooperative learning strategy. By reading other classmates’ blogs, the thinking juices start flowing. Students will start thinking deeper and more critically about what other people say and even about what their original thoughts were. While you can have the same effect with just a classroom discussion, you will get more people’s thoughts through the non-threatening nature of a blog. Also, kids love using the computer, so they can use the computer and really think through what they want to say before posting it.
Other strategies for cooperative learning are: activities using Multimedia software, PowerPoint presentation, Jigsaw activities, WebQuests, and virtual field trips.
Any social learning theory is beneficial for learners because it actively engages students in conversations and creating artifacts. There are many things that people cannot do on their own, even adults. Therefore, turning to find the knowledge elsewhere, and teaching kids how to do that, is an important life skill.
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Think, Pair, Share is a great strategy that I use often, too. You are also right about adults working together to solve problems. I constantly meet with my colleagues to discuss issues or problems. We need to provide our students with the same opportunities.
ReplyDeleteHi Emma,
ReplyDeleteI like the idea that you mentioned about forming base groups. Is this something that you would form in the beginning of the year and have the same group of students in throughout the entire year? How often would you have you students meet with their base groups? I also agree that blogging is a great way for students to communicate in a non-threatening environment. This year my fifth grade students created a blog and had a class discussion on traveling west. They compared different routes they could take traveling west and I think to be able to communicate with one another through blogging is an innovative way to interact with one another.
Our county always uses the think, pair, share strategy. I really like it because I get to hear what the students come up with! I honestly get some of the best answers when they work together. Have you used blogging in your classroom yet? I just do not have the computers to have blogging yet, but would love to try it some day!
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of blogging. I use it often in my 5th grade classroom. I really think that students take more time to think about what they are writing, knowing that their classmates will be reading their work. It certainly gets the creative juices flowing!
ReplyDeleteWhat do you do when they are not getting it? Think, pair, share works well for me also. I will never forget that first student teaching experience when my great lesson was not getting through. A wise master teacher taught me this method.
ReplyDeleteMeghan, I have not started using base groups yet, but I plan to start it at the beginning of the year. The groups would probably meet once a week or maybe twice a unit, depending on the need. Typically our units only take about 2 weeks, so it would make sense to do once a week.
ReplyDeleteNo, I have no used blogging yet. The kids are not as familiar with it and we don't really have the computers for it. Over the summer I am going to try to work out a system that would work for me.