When it comes to cooperative learning, the goal above all else is collaboration. This method of instruction is one that focuses on students finding academic success through collaborative means and “involves students working together to meet their learning goals in learning teams or groups.” (Foster, 2020) Having students work collaboratively began gaining popularity in the 1940’s and was a major shift from the trusted methods at the time that were centered around students working individually. This shift saw less focus on individual learning goals and instead an understanding of how much students could achieve when they work together. When collaborative learning is done well, students do more than just learn in a group, they guide each other, challenge each other and teach each other. (Foster, 2020) This experience results in more impactful learning and greater success for all the students involved.
For our project my group chose to focus on brain breaks, which do not align heavily with cooperative learning. The theory behind brain breaks focuses on how separating learning into smaller sessions that are broken up by short breaks can help improving learning and student success. While this does not translate to cooperative learning and its focus on group work, brain breaks would be very effective when woven into cooperative learning sessions. These breaks would give students time to refocus their minds and allow them to be more successful in their group work.
