Teaching to Learn, Learning to Teach

tivity, so can grading systems. For some activities, students may only receive a group grade.
For others, they may be evaluated based on both individual and group performance.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION—GOALS FOR COOPERATIVE LEARNING

In classrooms using cooperative learning teams, students will learn to do the following:

·Work cooperatively in small groups.

·Work as part of a broader classroom community.

·Work cooperatively with students from other racial, ethnic, and religious back-

grounds, and across differences created by gender, class, interest, and academic

achievement level.

·Give leadership to and accept leadership from others.

·Respect the abilities and contributions of others.

·Understand the roles of cooperation, compromise, and consensus in democratic de-

cision making.

·Participate in group and class activities with greater confidence in their individual

abilities.

·Explain their ideas orally and in writing more effectively.

·Score higher on class and standardized tests.

Questions to Consider:

1. Based on your experience as a student and your knowledge about the way that you
   and other people learn, how do you evaluate cooperative learning as a teaching strat-
   egy?
   2.Many claims are made about the importance of cooperative learning. Which of these
   objectives would you consider most important in your classrooms? Why?

SECTION F: HOW CAN TEACHERS DEVELOP STUDENT LEADERSHIP?

Sean Brown (not his actual name) was a tough young man who returned to class midway
through the semester after 2 weeks in a juvenile detention center. Sean had failed 10th-grade
social studies once before and was assigned to a “repeater” class with about 20 other diffi-
cult students, each with his or her own issues, but with a shared “school phobia.” I cannot
honestly say I missed Sean when he was not there.
On his return to school, Sean asked, in an off-handed way, if there was anything he could
do to make up missed work. The class was about to examine folk dancing as a form of cul-
tural expression and an example of parallel development. I asked him if he could dance. Puz-
zled, he said, “Of course, what do you think I am?”
I offered Sean a proposition. He would have to make up missed assignments, but in addi-
tion, I wanted him to work with me to get students up and teach them dances from South Af-
rica, Romania, Japan, and Israel. Sean looked at me like I was crazy, but I insisted that that
was the deal. Finally, he said, “I have to tell them you are making me.” “Fine,” I replied. “Tell
them I threatened to break you legs.”
We met during a free period and he picked up the folk dances very quickly. The next day,
I announced Sean would be teaching international folk dances and told everyone to get up
and push their chairs to the side and back. No one moved until Sean came to the center of

164 CHAPTER 6