Collaborative Learning: Benefits and Challenges - Literature review Example

Collaborative Learning: Benefits and Challenges Name Course Instructor’s Name 15th April 2010 Introduction Collaborative learning refers to the situation or instance where two or more people learn something together (Roberts, 2004). It is a process in which individualism is not advocated for at all. In the collaborative learning system members or groups actively interact with each other so as to come up with a solution in a learning situation. They share ideas and their individual experiences in these groups concerning the subject matter. In this setting each member is accountable to the other and they are dependent on each other for the completion of the task which they are supposed to do together. It could be students coming together to do it and in other instances the teacher is present (McLaughlin & Talbert, 2006). The teacher whoever comes in only to assist incase of complications. Collaborative learning usually occurs in a classroom situation where the students are grouped together so as to come up with a solution to a particular problem or to improve their understanding on a particular topic. They could involve projects such as debates, problem solving groups or even physical projects often known as practical done together. Some could be computer supported while others are not (Tu, 2004). This has been a common practice in the present day learning. This paper will expose and exploit the benefits as well as the challenges of collaborative learning. Benefits of collaborative This system has some values that are very advantageous as discussed in the following points. First of all it enables students to develop higher skills in their thinking capacity and in their argumentative skills. This is due to the fact that the system exposes the students and tests their ability to engage their minds more (O’Donnell & King, 1999). This is an essential quality as they argue their points and discuss because they have to think critically so as to present their points in the most logical manner. This is contrary to when the teacher directly provides information to students and they are just expected to take it, understand it and give it back in an exam setting. It also increases the retention capacity of the students unlike when they are spoon-fed by the teachers (Ikeda, Ashley, & Chan, 2006). This is because in an argumentative setting the points that one puts across and convinces others to believe can never leave the minds of the students as it sticks. Further it makes the students to have better relationships in their institutions as they directly interact during their group meetings. This way they are able to, learn each others weaknesses and strengths and even form new relations. This makes the learning atmosphere more friendly and easy to dwell in (Roberts, 2004). Another benefit of collaborative learning is to boost the self esteem of students. This normally happens especially in discussions that call the students to make presentations in front of the whole class. Normally there are some shy students who cannot stand in front of others or even pass a point across (Macaro, 1997). Collaborative learning allows them to learn how to address the others in passing on their points and this way their confidence and self esteem goes up. It also improves the attitude of the students towards the subject (Weller, 2002). In a discussion group there are those who are good at the subject matter and there are those students who are poor at it. The brighter students are able to break the load for the relatively poor students and make the subject matter more comprehensible and easier to understand. Through this, those who had a negative attitude towards the subject matter are able to improve it (Langer, Colton & Goff, 2003). Collaborative learning also improves the communication skills of the students involved. When they interact and have to pass on information to each other and sometimes to the whole class they are able to learn communication skills from each other and to improve the way they pass information so as to ensure efficiency. This is also because they also earn points from the teacher from the way they present the final report (McLaughlin & Talbert, 2006). Collaborative learning further improves the responsibility that students have towards understanding the subject matter (Bruffee, 1999). This is because normally each student will be required to understand one particular concept and teach or explain it to the others. Therefore each person is entirely responsible to understand their line and if they do not they will have failed their group. It also allows students who believe in individualism to improve their interactive skills socially (Macaro, 1997). They are able to learn how to treat others and how to behave in a social setting as this is vital for the group to work effectively. These groups especially in a college setting are multiracial, they allow students to interact outside their racial groups, and this improves or teaches multiracial interaction barriers (Iyer, 2002). These barriers are biases that exist in the societal setting and it is possible to break them through collaborative setting. Other benefits include further exploration of subjects more than when teachers teach. This is due to the fact that students will seek for information from a wider range of materials and will tend to specialize and go deeper in it (Khosrow-Pour, 2006). Collaborative learning further allow the students to become more constructive than when they just sit and wait for the teacher to provide all information in form of class notes. This involvement also takes the student’s free time and thus they are prevented from engaging in destructive behaviors. They are also taught some skills and qualities like how to criticize ideas and to avoid criticizing people (Iyer, 2002). Challenges of collaborative learning Just like any good thing that has a bad side it is also faced by some challenges as lined out below. Collaborative learning tends to waste a lot of time compared to when a teacher directly teaches the class. This is because students are supposed to expound the subject matter while the teacher would just have condensed the whole information (Bender, 2003). This then raises the question of whether if this method is used a lot will the syllabus be covered in the appropriate time? Another challenge is those members within a group who are just slackers and they show no seriousness towards the group work (Weller, 2002). These people tend to pull the group backwards and they may end up making the group non effective. The size of the group is also a challenging aspect of the group. There mare larger groups which are challenged by possibility of conflicts in the groups and wastage of time before consensus is reached among he members. Another challenge of a larger group is the great demand which the leader faces in supporting this group. The option of the smaller groups also faces their challenges such as the availability of fewer skills due to less people available to give new ideas (Lipponen, 2001). These smaller groups are also challenged by the fact that there is so great demand on the members thus time constraint may be an issue because they are expected to cover so much within very little time. Incase of conflicts in such small groups sits possible not to cover the whole work load within the set time. This is due to the fact that it may not be possible for the few members remaining to cover up for the conflicting members (Lester, Vicari & Paraguacu, 2004). The faculty also faces the challenge of how to grade the group works. The evaluation thus becomes a challenge sometimes. The reception of the idea of collaborative learning by the students is also a challenge that the faculty might face. This is due to the fact that students who are introverts may be against the idea of interacting and being in groups (Langer, Colton & Goff, 2003). Though they might have no option but to engage in the group works their reception and reaction to the system might interfere with the effectiveness of the system. In the very same point the bright students who think they know it all may see this system as a waste of time. This challenges the faculty due to the fact that it slows down the process of learning. Some lecturers are thus against the whole idea of collaborative learning as they blame the sizes of their classes as well as complaining on the factors such as time (Edin, 2002). Conclusion As discussed above collaborative learning has its set backs as well as its advantages. However the advantages outweigh the disadvantages as it makes the learning system more comprehensive. It makes the poor students in their subject matter to improve their standards and learning and understanding capacity. Further they improve the social skills of the students and improve their interactive and communication skills. The set backs of this system such as time wastage as sighted should be managed appropriately so as to ensure a balance is created. This would be through such things as the teacher or tutor doing some topics and assigning the others to the students so as to capture the skills which accrue from its use. Other challenges encountered like bad reception by students due to their personality differences should be cancelled through counseling and constantly educating the students on the advantages of using the system. References Bender, T. 2003. 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Intelligent tutoring systems: 7th International Conference, ITS 2004, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil, August 30-September 3, 2004 : proceedings. New York: Springer Publishers. Langer, G., Colton, A. & Goff, L. 2003. Collaborative analysis of student work: improving teaching and learning. Chicago: ASCD. Lipponen, T. 2001. Computer-supported collaborative learning: from promises to reality. London: Turun Yliopisto. McLaughlin, M. & Talbert, J. 2006. Building school-based teacher learning communities: professional strategies to improve student achievement. New York: Teachers College Press. Macaro, E. 1997. Target language, collaborative learning and autonomy. London: Multilingual Matters. O’Donnell, A. & King, A. 1999. Cognitive perspectives on peer learning. London: Routledge Publishers. Roberts, T. 2004. Online collaborative learning: theory and practice. New York: Idea Group Inc. Tu, C. 2004. Online collaborative learning communities: twenty-one designs to building an online collaborative learning community. London: Libraries Unlimited Publishers. Weller, M. 2002. Delivering learning on the Net: the why, what & how of online education. London: Routledge Publishers. Read More