Why Was This Website Created?
As a teaching intern from the University of Lethbridge, it is required that students investigate a topic related to education. I was stumped on what to research so I decided to brainstorm topics in which I am passionate about and that could apply to the school in which I am currently teaching at. Therefor, I settled on student collaboration. Twice a week, our students participate in a period that I refer to as "buddy" time. They get together with students from different grade levels to work on skills like math, reading, physical education, and etc. I am passionate about empowering students to be leaders both within school and outside of school. Along with becoming leaders, and working together comes a strong sense of community. Therefor, I titled my project as student collaboration. I want to explore how providing students with time to work with others from different grade levels can positively impact themselves and the school culture.
What is Student Collaboration? Why is it Important?
Student collaboration (also known as collaborative learning) is when two or more individuals work together to learn, create, or complete something. This is often a form of problem solving where students work together to find the best solution to problems both within the classroom and outside of the classroom. They each bring a different set of qualities and skills to the team. Research shows that educational experiences that are active, social, contextual, engaging, and student-owned lead to deeper learning. Some of the benefits of student collaboration include the development of higher order thinking, oral communication, self-management, and leadership skills. It also promotes interaction among students and increases responsibility, understanding, and self-esteem.
How to Implement it?
Student collaboration can be implemented in a variety of ways. It could be done daily in classrooms between students of the same grade level or done school-wide. As I mentioned above, my school has two periods weekly where teachers collaborate and students work with those of other grade levels. Whether you implement it regularly in class or during specific blocks, here are some suggestions worth noting to facilitate the implementation process. First, it is important to set ground rules and expectations. Students need to understand what is required from them in order to successfully complete the directives at hand. At first, they will need to be taught the skills necessary. This could be done through team building activities, stem activities, etc. Building the positive culture is the first step in order to achieve successful student collaboration. Next, assigning group roles or to-do lists can help students to understand the process and the expectations. From there they can divide up the tasks appropriately. It is also important to be flexible. As a teacher, perhaps allow for student choice and keep an open-mind at what they may come up with. We want our students to learn to work together first. Once that has been achieved, teaching the content will become much easier. At the end of the day, each student and each class is very different. It will be a lot of trial-and-error. However, once a routine and expectations are set, it will turn out to be a very beneficial and rewarding form of learning. If you did want to assess student progress to ensure the learning goals are being met, you could administer a pre-test and post-test. That way, any necessary changes can be made to enhance student collaboration.