Chapter 15 page 348
Mutual Respect
Students are more likely to interact well if they respect each other (Cohen, 1994a; D. Johnson &
Johnson, 1990). Mutual respect is particularly important in reducing negative interactions. Moreover, when
students develop a genuine respect for each other, perceived status differences diminish. Later in the
chapter, you will learn several specific techniques for encouraging mutual respect.
Balanced Participation
Participation by students in a group need not be exactly equal to promote learning. However, it is
desirable to promote substantial participation by each student because the opportunity to explain their ideas
to their peers promotes learning. Balanced participation means that even if participation is not equal, all
students make some meaningful contributions, and no student talks all the time. Balanced participation is,
by definition, counter to unequal interactions; balanced participation can also contribute to mutual respect.
High-quality Strategy Use
Effective groups engage in high-quality strategy use, including both social strategies and cognitive
strategies. Successful group work requires effective social strategies (D. W. Johnson & Johnson, 2004;
Krol, Veenman, & Voeten, 2002). For example, students in effective groups take turns in an orderly
manner, refrain from hogging the floor, offer encouragement to peers, disagree with ideas rather than
attacking people, use I-messages, and ask for the input from students who have not been contributing.
(Arbuthnot & Gordon, 1986; Webb & Farivar, 1994). Students who want to be helpful group members
may not know how to be helpful; these students may need to learn skills for smooth group functioning (cf.
Gibbs, Potter, Barriga, & Liau, 1996).
Students in effective groups also use high-level cognitive strategies. In a series of seminal studies,
Noreen Webb (1982; Webb et al., 2002) investigated middle-school students working collaboratively in
math classes. She found that learning was strongly associated with giving certain types of help. The kinds
of help that students gave in her studies can be classified into three broad levels: explanations, procedural
descriptions, and terminal help (examples from Webb, 1985; Webb et al., 2002; Webb et al., 1995). The
three kinds of help are explained in Table 15.1.
In her research, Webb has found that students benefit both from giving explanations and from giving
more detailed procedural descriptions (Webb, 1982; Webb et al., 2002). In contrast, students who merely
gave terminal help did not benefit from giving help. Moreover, receiving terminal help has strong negative
effects on learning (Webb, 1982, 1985). Thus, terminal help is a singularly unproductive form of discourse
in collaborative groups. Students who give terminal help do not benefit from giving it. Students who receive
only terminal help are hurt by receiving it.
The case analysis at the beginning of the chapter was modeled on Webb’s research with groups
working on mathematics problems. When you look back at those transcripts of the group’s interactions,
you should consider whether students gave explanations, procedural descriptions, or terminal help. You
should also consider which students received terminal help.