Research Paper on:
Cooperative Learning

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
many benefits found to be inherent in cooperative learning, it has been observed that students develop a sense of group identity that facilitates students supporting each other in the task  of learning. When children learn cooperatively, they also learn "to give and receive help, share ideas, clarify differences and construct new understandings and learning from actively engaging in discussion with  one another" (Gillies and Boyle, 2006, p. 429). The following literature review examines a variety of sources in order to ascertain an overall understanding of how educators view cooperative learning,  as well as what the latest research on this pedagogical method reveals about its efficacy. Literature review According to experts David Johnson and Roger Johnson, who have conducted extensive  research on the topic of cooperative learning, empirical studies over the last twenty years, which encompasses over 80 such investigations, cooperative learning consistently has been proven to be effective (Cooperative  Learning, 2002). Current research also bears out this assessment. For example, Box and Little (2003) designed their study in order to investigate the utility of the cooperative learning approach in  teaching social studies in the elementary grades. Four experimental third-grade classes received the intervention pedagogy of cooperative learning, while a fifth class served as the control group. While the results  varied, overall, the researchers concluded that the results of this research showed that cooperative learning aided students both academically and psychologically (Box and Little, 2003). Gillies and Boyle (2006)  investigated the role that teachers play in the cooperative learning process. Ten Australian teachers of grades 4-6 were taped during they instructed students in one social science lesson that involved  cooperative learning practices (Gillies and Boyle, 2006). This investigation found that teachers used a broad range of mediated-learning behaviors in interacting with their students, which served to challenge student perspectives