Asia-Pacific Forum on Science Learning and Teaching, Volume 2, Issue 2, Article 9 (Dec., 2001)
Teresa T S WONG
Group work in science learning - international scenarios and implications for teaching and learning in Hong Kong
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Student Skill and Attitude Development Through Group Work

The investigative nature of science provides a unique setting for group work, particularly cooperative learning, to build its framework (Sherman, 1994). This nature of science is an aspect often neglected by science teachers in their normal teaching. It has a profound significance for building science literacy for students and therefore, its implication to the implementation of group work practice and assessment will be addressed. Group work has been proven to provide opportunity for developing important process skills and attitude in science learning and they will be discussed in the following.

Cooperative classrooms can effectively foster discussion, which is so essential for understanding in science, as well as in other subjects. Hands-on science activities are wonderful vehicles for the use and practice of the process skills. The combining of cooperative learning with science is seen as a natural union for many experienced science teachers who have worked extensively with small groups. When cooperative learning is properly implemented, it provides a vehicle for student teams to share materials and equipment, as well as ideas.

The process of science involves a number of skills that are important in scientific research. These process skills fit well into the cooperative framework. However, not every process skill is used in every lesson or activity, but every science learning task needs to focus on one or more of the skills. Teachers who employ a cooperative learning strategy should try to identify the science process skills that will be addressed in the lesson and build these into students' learning. The following is a list of science process skills suggested by Sherman (1994):

Besides the improvement in thinking skills and the use of science process skills when students experience science through cooperative learning, Kyle (1984), Lazarowitz & Karsenty (1990) have observed that attitudes toward science are enhanced when students engage in hands-on science.

In order to successfully implement cooperative learning, Johnson, Johnson & Holubec (1994) have stated the following five key elements for cooperative learning:

Although not all teachers are specifically taught about the above process skills or key elements before they actually start their teaching career, the suggestions in the on-line seminar showed that teachers of some countries are well aware of their existence and importance. The advantages of group work/cooperative and collaborative learning are generally divided into two areas-- the improvement in attitude and skill abilities, which are reflected in their comments that follow:

The United States Collaboration Team believed that accountability of students and interdependence are the two major components that make group work effective. Teachers are responsible for making it clear to students that they will expect them to be accountable for all of their work, regardless of its possibility for success. Often students think that they can disappear when working in groups, or one student may take over the work while the others sit back. Structuring the lesson to make all students equally accountable "forces" all of the students to demonstrate their skills. Regarding promoting interdependence in group work, students need to know that they cannot work independently to achieve the required result. Their product must be more than the "sum of their parts". In working together, students often come up with better ideas than they would independently.

Several teachers from the Czech Collaboration Team have noticed that cooperative learning is a vehicle for nurturing various interpersonal skills in students. They observed that students who have done group work display their growth in tolerance, their ability to listen to others and respect each others' views; improvement in self-reliability, independence in dealing with others and their ability in making decisions; and in becoming considerate and helpful towards others. They also noted that better communication, logical thinking and presentational skills are the trainable outcomes for group work. They concluded that group work is an effective way for providing opportunities for children with learning or behavioural difficulties to benefit in developing their interpersonal skills.

Face-to-face promotive interaction is another key cooperative learning element verified by French teachers. Although group work introduces a higher possibility of conflicts arising, the French Collaboration Team said that group work not only creates situations for students to develop skills of argumentation and tolerance; it can also promote opportunities for confronting different ideas, training ways of thinking that require the daring of individuals to express one's point of view, the capacity of listening and understanding others, the ability of making oneself understandable by others, and lastly, the capacity of being involved actively in discussions and accepting criticism.

Some Czech teachers have stated that it is mainly the best talented students who have difficulties in cooperating in group work. Other Czech teachers challenged this by saying that cooperative learning can actually be of better benefit for students with better learning skills or knowledge. When they each assume a new and different role during group work, they must interact with others who have different abilities, and therefore must be able to learn how to help, lead, organize, and become a resource person. Due to the fact that students need to rely on each other to complete all tasks, as well as that any task can be perceived at different difficulty levels for different students, a heterogeneous classroom environment for group work promotes positive interaction among students.

With regard to the processing element, cooperative learning should provide opportunities for both the teacher and students to reflect on how well the groups are functioning or how to function even better. A Hong Kong SAW teacher has expressed this opinion: " I think teachers should encourage students to share experiences after completing the activity. I believe students enjoy the process of the activity as well as the final sharing session. Unfortunately, many teachers just pay attention to the activity itself, but do not spend enough time for the sharing session." Despite the constraints stated in the above section for Hong Kong in implementing group work, the responses from Hong Kong teachers regarding assessment method show that, they have gradually become aware that group work should be treated as a process, but not as an independent activity for the students. Many Hong Kong teachers are familiar with the concepts of peer and self-evaluations. They have used these assessment instruments to assess the following during students' learning:

Some Hong Kong teachers suggested some interesting alternative assessment strategies. For example, teachers can videotape group learning process and develop evaluation form to assess the videotaped group work. The suggested assessment criteria are group interaction, students' response and involvement, individual student's questioning skills, answering skills, problem-solving skills, communication skills and presentational skills.

Copyright (C) 2001 HKIEd APFSLT. Volume 2, Issue 2, Article 9 (Dec., 2001)