Special Education MI Inservice Program
Cooperative Learning
Purposeful group work with clear roles, shared goals, individual accountability, and teacher-supported reflection.
Cooperative learning is more than putting students into groups. A strong structure makes the task, interaction, accountability, and success criteria explicit.
Sample lesson format
| Element | Plan it explicitly |
|---|---|
| Learning goal | What content or skill is the group learning? |
| Groups | How will students be grouped for this particular task? |
| Roles | What responsibilities help students participate? Roles should rotate rather than become labels. |
| Task | What product, problem, discussion, or performance will the group complete? |
| Positive interdependence | Why does each student's contribution matter to the group? |
| Individual accountability | How will each student independently demonstrate understanding? |
| Success criteria | What makes the group's work successful? |
| Teacher monitoring | What will the teacher look and listen for? |
| Reflection | How will students evaluate the quality of their collaboration and learning? |
Example: Create the Twenty-First Century Classroom
Groups: Three students.
Roles: Researcher, designer/artist, and planner. Roles rotate when the activity is repeated.
Task: Design an ideal classroom arrangement and explain how the design supports learning.
Accountability: Each student contributes evidence or an explanation of one design decision.
Example: Florida History
Teams research a selected aspect of early Florida history and produce a presentation using appropriate visual, written, oral, or musical elements. Each student has an individual responsibility and completes an individual check for understanding.