Thinking Beyond the Classroom

Why?

We make meaning together, by working and talking together and exchanging ideas. Collaborative learning is a critical element in the Cognitive Acceleration through Science Education (CASE) project (Shayer and Adey 2002)

“One of the key pillars in CASE theory is social construction which is rooted in a Vygotskian theoretical framework which emphasises social interaction in cognitive development and learning.”

In addition outdoor learning can at first seem unstructured, chaotic and unpredictable. Teaching pupils to work effectively in groups is a crucial aspect to enable the management of science learning outside.

How?

Effective groups:

are small in size, ideally threes or fours, are mixed ability, have a mix of males and females and contain a number of personalities that all feed into the group’s potential success
are aware of the different roles needed to enable group work have identified rules to enable group learning and can refer back to these if they encounter a problem
are supported by their teacher and others in the class in how to negotiate and delegate
have talked about how to reach a decision when a number of conflicting ideas are suggested

Framework >Collaborative Group Work