Essential Features of a Teacher Education Programme for Cooperative Learning

Abstract

What are the main features of a successful programme for preparing teachers to use cooperative learning methods in their classrooms? In seeking an answer to this question, many researchers and educators focus on cooperation as the primary concept

1. (a) Cooperation among faculty members in university or college teacher education programmes to ensure consistency, continuity and a common set of goals for pre‐service teacher education. Some programmes have begun to emphasise the acquisition of competence in the use of cooperative learning methods.

2. (b) Cooperation between universities and schools to enable novice and experienced teachers to practise cooperative learning in the classroom.

3. (c) Cooperation among teachers in given schools to provide mutual support and assistance to maintain the long‐term use of cooperative learning.

Various programmes and projects reported in the relevant literature that have implemented these ideas are surveyed and discussed in this paper.