Pedagogical Approach

Within the context of your phase, explore a pedagogical strategy and its potential on pupil learning.

Pedagogical strategies and approaches used by teachers in the classroom can dictate the learning process. Pedagogy refers to the interactions between teachers, students, and the learning environment and the learning tasks (Murphy 2008). This general definition explains how teachers and students relate to each other as well as the instructional approaches implemented in the classroom. According to Slavin (1996) a variety of pedagogical approaches are common in schools, but some strategies are more effective and appropriate than others. Pedagogical approaches are often placed on a spectrum from teacher-centered to learner-centered pedagogy.

Throughout this paper cooperative learning as one of the most commonly used forms of active pedagogical approach will be explored. According to Bonwell and Eison (1991) active pedagogy is a process involving students not only doing things, but analyzing what they are doing. Students must read, write, discuss, or be engaged in solving problems but most important, to be actively involved, students mast engage in such higher-order thinking tasks as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation (Bonwell and Eison 1991). This learning model is derived from work of Jean Piaget (1896-1980), an influential theorist whose work does continue to contribute very significantly to debates about cognitive development. According to Piaget’s educational theory human beings are, from early childhood, active, independent meaning-makers who construct knowledge rather than receive it (Moore 2012). Cooperative learning is one of the approaches to active learning. According to Keyser (2000) cooperative learning is always active learning, but not all active learning is

There are however a number of researchers who have developed cooperative learning procedures, conducted programs of research and evaluation of their method, and then involved themselves in teacher-training programs that are commonly credited as the creators of modern-day cooperative learning (Johnson et al. 2000). The main cooperative learning methods are: 1) Complex Instruction (Cohen 1994); 2) Academic Controversy (Johnson and Johnson 1979); 3) Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (Stevens et al. 1987); 4) Cooperative Structures (Kagan 1985); 5) Group Investigation (Sharan and Sharan 1976,); 6) Jigsaw (Aronson et al., 1978); 7) Learning Together (Johnson and Johnson 1975); 8) Student Teams Achievement Divisions (Slavin 1978); 9) Teams-Games-Tournaments (DeVries and Edwards 1974); 10) Team Assisted Individualization (Slavin et al.