COOPERATIVE LEARNING: WHEN WHAT MATTERS IS NOT INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENTS, BUT TEAMWORK

Project-based learning is the most complete way for the child to work, and where cooperative learning is an essential part. Cooperative learning is a work method that involves a change in the traditional educational paradigm, since it makes the student the protagonist of their own learning.

More and more schools are including this teaching methodology, adapted to the current times and the society in which children will have to function tomorrow. We tell you what is cooperative learning and what benefits it brings to students.

What is cooperative learning?

According to the PISA report, "Collaborative problem solving", published a year ago, only four percent of Spanish students know how to work as a team, a really worrying fact when preparing children for life and future work.

Therefore, more and more parents want to replace the lacks presented by the traditional education system, looking for schools where cooperative learning is part of teaching. And luckily, there are more and more options.

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Cooperative learning is an active methodology that consists of work in small groups in a coordinated way, to solve academic tasks and deepen what has been learned. In this way, the student maintains continuous attention on the topic he is developing, and Learn to interact with your teammates in search of the common good of the group; managing conflicts, developing their social intelligence and improving their relationships with other colleagues.

With cooperative learning, students learn to face any eventuality that may arise, adapting to the circumstances that arise and looking for the various solutions that a problem may have.

Working in a group, the child learns to develop social skills, and accept the way of being and working of other colleagues, as will happen in the future in your work environment. Each student must acquire a role within the team and work for the common good, and not to achieve individual achievements, which is how the traditional educational system is raised.

Benefits provided by this type of learning

The child ceases to be a passive subject sitting in a chair and receiving the lesson taught by the teacher. Now he becomes a person active and involved in their own learning.
By working from motivation and interest, concentration is favored and the lessons learned are better assimilated.
Working as a team, the child develops skills as important as empathy, respect (turn of speech, respect for contrary opinions, respect for the work of others ...) and active listening, learning from what each partner contributes.

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Teamwork also helps you control your emotions, and develop the feeling of belonging to a group, which contributes to improve the classroom environment and to avoid rejections between partners.
The child learns that a well-done individual work contributes positively to the common good of the group, so it is essential to combine the efforts of all team members, be aware of the importance of the work and participation of each member of the group, and help as much as possible to other colleagues.
With group work, each child ends up adopting a different role from the rest of the classmates, depending on your personality and skills. A team formed by several students with different roles, will allow an equitable distribution of work and greater success in the final result.
The critical thinking of the child is encouraged, that is, the autonomous reflection of a subject, the search for different alternatives, the study and analysis of errors, and the final defense of an idea.

In short, cooperative work aims to banish individualism and competitiveness among students, and promote autonomy, respect for opinions and cooperation.

The figure of the teacher in cooperative learning

To establish cooperative work in the classroom, several aspects must be taken into account, the first and foremost being the training and interest of teachers in the field. And there are still educated teachers in a traditional teaching system, where The teacher teaches a master class and the student listens, memorizes and repeats.

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As we read in this research article from the University of Oviedo, conducted by Javier Fernández-Río, in the case of cooperative learning, the teacher becomes a learning activator. In this way, it becomes a guide that accompanies the students during the process, observing their way of working, asking questions and alternatives, answering the students' questions and, finally, evaluating.

Further, the teacher is the one who must establish the working groups, looking for them to be heterogeneous and compensated. Likewise, you must motivate students and ensure that everyone is involved in their own learning.

And, as Benjamin Franklin said, "tell me and I forget it, teach me and I remember it, involve me and I learn it"

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There is no doubt that Knowing how to work in a team is one of the competences that companies value most, so promoting this skill since children is essential. Therefore, it is important that the educational system, as we know it today, is changing in pursuit of this type of teaching, where cooperation, respect, creativity and the promotion of critical and divergent thinking are valued.

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