Synopses & Reviews
Engaging students in active learning is a predominant theme in today?s classrooms. To promote active learning, teachers across the disciplines and in all kinds of colleges are incorporating collaborative learning into their teaching. Collaborative Learning Techniques is a scholarly and well-written handbook that guides teachers through all aspects of group work, providing solid information on what to do, how to do it, and why it is important to student learning. Synthesizing the relevant research and good practice literature, the authors present detailed procedures for thirty collaborative learning techniques (CoLTs) and offer practical suggestions on a wide range of topics, including how to form groups, assign roles, build team spirit, solve problems, and evaluate and grade student participation.
Praise for Collaborative Learning Techniques
"For faculty who are serious about pursuing more powerful forms of student learning, this book is a must. It brings together, as no other resource does, the best that has been thought, said, and done on the topic of collaborative learning. It?s a handbook for teachers who want students to use their heads."
?Pat Hutchings, vice president, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
"Collaborative Learning Techniques is a clear, comprehensive, and practical guide to the what, why, and how of collaborative learning that will benefit all college teachers. Collaborative Learning Techniques will be a well-used reference for years to come."
?Tom Angelo, coauthor with K. Patricia Cross, Classroom Assessment Techniques
"Great for current practitioners and for those wanting to learn how to incorporate collaborative learning into their classrooms. This is a comprehensive guide to what collaborative learning is, why it?s important, and how to implement it."
?Barbara Gross Davis, assistant vice provost for undergraduate education, University of California, Berkeley and author, Tools for Teaching
"Classroom Assessment Techniques became the most implemented innovation of the last two decades. With Collaborative Learning Techniques, Pat Cross and her colleagues have created a handbook that will become the most implemented innovation of the next two decades."
?Terry O?Banion, president emeritus and senior league fellow, League for Innovation in the Community College, and author of A Learning College for the 21st Century
"An indispensable guide to collaborative learning for teachers interested in proven strategies to enhance student learning."
?Barbara Leigh Smith, codirector of The Pew Charitable Trusts? National Learning Communities Project and coauthor of Learning Communities: Reforming Undergraduate Education
Review
"For faculty who are serious about pursuing more powerful forms of student learning, this book is a must. It brings together, as no other resource does, the best that has been thought, said, and done on the topic of collaborative learning. It’s a handbook for teachers who want students to use their
heads."
--Pat Hutchings, vice president, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
"Collaborative Learning Techniques is a clear, comprehensive, and practical guide to the what, why, and how of collaborative learning that will benefit all college teachers. Collaborative Learning Techniques will be a well-used reference for years to come."
--Tom Angelo, coauthor with K. Patricia Cross, Classroom Assessment Techniques
"Classroom Assessment Techniques became the most implemented innovation of the last two decades. With Collaborative Learning Techniques, Elizabeth Barkley and her colleagues have created a handbook that will become the most implemented innovation of the next two decades."
--Terry O’Banion, President Emeritus and Senior League Fellow, League for Innovation in the Community College and author of A Learning College for the 21st Century
"An indispensable guide to collaborative learning for teachers interested in proven strategies to enhance student learning."
--Barbara Leigh Smith, codirector of The Pew Charitable Trusts' National Learning Communities Project and coauthor of Learning Communities: Reforming Undergraduate Education
"Great for current practitioners and for those wanting to learn how to incorporate collaborative learning into their classrooms. This is a comprehensive guide to what collaborative learning is, why it’s important, and how to implement it."
--Barbara Gross Davis, assistant vice provost for undergraduate education, University of California, Berkeley and author, Tools for Teaching
Synopsis
This landmark book introduces the concepts and principles of collaborative learning and then goes on to present specific techniques and exercises organized according to learning objectives. It explains how to form groups, assign roles, build team spirit, deal with problems, and promote and assess participation. Each exercise is carefully described and illustrated through examples, and is accompanied by critical information regarding its complexity, time needed to complete it, variations, appropriate locations, and pointers for effective use.
Synopsis
Engaging students in active learning is a predominant theme in today's classrooms. To promote active learning, teachers across the disciplines and in all kinds of colleges are incorporating collaborative learning into their teaching. Collaborative Learning Techniques is a scholarly and well-written handbook that guides teachers through all aspects of group work, providing solid information on what to do, how to do it, and why it is important to student learning. Synthesizing the relevant research and good practice literature, the authors present detailed procedures for thirty collaborative learning techniques (CoLTs) and offer practical suggestions on a wide range of topics, including how to form groups, assign roles, build team spirit, solve problems, and evaluate and grade student participation.
About the Author
Elizabeth F. Barkley is professor of music at Foothill College in Los Altos, California. She is also is a national Carnegie Scholar and was named California’s 1998 Higher Education Professor of the Year by The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
K. Patricia Cross is professor of higher education, emerita, at the University of California, Berkeley. She is author or coauthor of seven Jossey-Bass books, including Accent on Learning, Adults as Learners, Classroom Assessment Techniques, and Classroom Research.
Claire Howell Major is associate professor of higher education administration at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa instead of University of Alabama in Birmingham.
Table of Contents
Preface.
The Authors.
PART 1: INTRODUCTION.
1. The Case for Collaborative Learning.
PART 2: IMPLEMENTING COLLABORATIVE LEARNING.
2. Orienting Students.
3. Forming Groups.
4. Structuring the Learning Task.
5. Facilitating Student Collaboration.
6. Grading and Evaluating Collaborative Learning.
PART 3: COLLABORATIVE LEARNING TECHNIQUES (CoLTS).
7. Techniques for Discussion.
CoLT 1: Think-Pair-Share.
CoLT 2: Round Robin.
CoLT 3: Buzz Groups.
CoLT 4: Talking Chips.
CoLT 5: Three-Step Interview.
CoLT 6: Critical Debate.
8. Techniques for Reciprocal Teaching.
CoLT 7: Note-Taking Pairs.
CoLT 8: Learning Cell.
CoLT 9: Fishbowl.
CoLT 10: Role Play.
CoLT 11: Jigsaw.
CoLT 12: Test-Taking Teams.
9. Techniques for Problem Solving.
CoLT 13: Think-Aloud Pair Problem Solving TAPPS.
CoLT 14: Send-A-Problem.
CoLT 15: Case Study.
CoLT 16: Structured Problem Solving.
CoLT 17: Analytic Teams.
CoLT 18: Group Investigation.
10. Techniques Using Graphic Information Organizers.
CoLT 19: Affinity Grouping.
CoLT 20: Group Grid.
CoLT 21: Team Matrix.
CoLT 22: Sequence Chains.
CoLT 23: Word Webs.
11. Techniques Focusing on Writing.
CoLT 24: Dialogue Journals.
CoLT 25: Round Table.
CoLT 26: Dyadic Essays.
CoLT 27: Peer Editing.
CoLT 28: Collaborative Writing.
CoLT 29: Team Anthologies.
CoLT 30: Paper Seminar.
Appendix A: Key to Professor Names in CoLT Examples.
Appendix B: Additional Ideas for Integrating the Learning Task into a Curricular Framework.
References.
Index.