Cooperative Learning

Cooperative learning helps develop skills necessary for critical thinking and social skills. Cooperative learning develops practical and group skills for inside and outside the classroom. Cooperative learning provides a setting where learners adapt and develop appropriate social behaviors. In groups we are exposed to others’ opinion that may not necessarily agree with ours. The “tension” created spurs our growth. Taking in others’ ideas makes creating your identity possible. We become introspective of our values as a product of our social interaction; we then discover new things about ourselves and our differences with others. Gradually, these new discoveries and differences unite as interactions become frequent. A united group identity is

The success of this interactive learning process relies on the effective communication of the members’ tasks. If not, the goal of developing higher thought processes is not possible because the interaction in the group is undermined due to the vague performance of tasks. Not everyone is involved in sharing their opinion which is salient to developing each other’s thinking skills and self-concept thus the essential benefits of cooperative learning is not realized. Regardless its outcome, cooperative learning would be meaningless without full cooperation. Motivation animates our behavior with strength and purpose.

Personal and environmental forces. Personal experiences consist of needs, cognition and emotion while environmental forces consist of social and cultural contexts which determine whether you want to engage or avoid the behavior

A person’s motivation is rooted in his/her social context. For example, a child or a student’s motivation is affected by context provided by the parents or the school, respectively. Those who are nurtured in their social context are more motivated and open to growth compared to those who are not. (cited in Reeve,

When we are independent in making decisions to engage or not in an activity, our behavior is considered autonomous.

To subjectively qualify autonomy, there should be perceived locus of causality, volition and perceived choice.

Heider referred to perceived locus of causality as an insight of where your actions are rooted in (cited in Reeve, 2009). It can either be internal or external, which implies that you understand that your action is motivated by yourself alone or by others, respectively. Some refer to it as “origins” and “pawns”.

According to Deci & Ryan, “volition is an unpressed willingness to engage in an activity” (1985). You are not coerced into doing something you don’t want. You feel that there is nothing else but you who influences your decision.

Perceived choice is an understanding that a person has options to choose from and is not limited to choose from those options. Saying that “I have no choice” implies that one is only obligated to do so. Persons who don’t act out of obligation satisfy their need of autonomy. Doing so affirms that the decisions made are intrinsically motivated, innovative and