Cooperative/Collaborative Learning

African Americans

The research of University of Austin mathematics professor Uri Treisman done in the late 1980s at University of California, Berkeley, focused on finding a program that would help minorities succeed in math and science. In a study comparing the retention rates of African American students over a five-year period, the retention rate was higher for those involved in collaborative group learning (65 percent) than for those who were not (41 percent). Similarly, cooperative learning has also been found to have a positive effect on the learning of African Americans. A meta-analysis study analyzing 122 individual studies concluded that cooperative learning was much more effective than traditional learning for African American students. One study in particular assessed the learning of African American middle school students. Results showed these students made more progress with cooperative learning than with traditional learning, even to the point of closing the gap between them and white students.

Findings also reveal that cooperative learning is a well-researched approach that might provide a venue in which African Americans and Caucasian groups could move beyond the existing stereotypes to see each other as equals within the classroom setting.

Findings tentatively show that cooperative learning increases the self-esteem of group members. Prejudice is linked to low self-esteem. Consequently, when one's self-esteem increases, the prejudice level decreases, and one might come to accept a person of a different cultural group. Finally, results showed that students who participate in cooperative learning activities are more likely to name students of other races as their best friends or close friends.

Hispanics

Research conducted by the Center for Research Education, Diversity, and Excellence, whose focus is on improving education of students challenged by barriers of language, culture, and poverty, suggests that cooperative/collaborative learning are effective research-based methods for teaching Hispanic students. Conclusions from their research show that Hispanic students benefit from:

• A setting where students have defined roles, and proceed to accomplish tasks
• A setting where students work together to learn concepts
• A setting where students debate, discuss, and defend their ideas; this act improves their verbal skills
• A setting where the learning is student-centered and focused on interdependence among the students and the teachers
• A setting where students develop social skills and relate to other ethnic groups better because they learn to clarify, assist, and challenge the ideas of other group members
• Cooperative learning, helping students become proficient in English, by providing them with opportunities to integrate reading, writing, pronunciation, and listening skills
• Collaborative learning in small groups

Ethnic Group Friendships and Interactions

Findings of Spencer Kagan and Robert Slavin, leading researchers on cooperative learning, have shown that the method has a positive effect on friendships among different ethnic groups. Findings also reveal that the attitude of participants improved toward students of different ethnic groups, and even toward students who were not a part of the same group.

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