Improvement in Low Achievers’ Performance through Whole-Class Cooperative Learning in Elementary School Science Experiments

Abstract

This study examined the learning processes of low achievers and the effects on their performance in whole-class learning as compared to that of the small-group cooperation method. We focused on science experiments in elementary school, in which each student was assigned an individual task that could be accomplished by cooperating with others. Two classes in the Fourth Grade, each including thirty students, participated in this study. The students attended science lessons taught by the same teacher. In one class, the teacher used the whole-class cooperation method, whereas in the other class the teacher adopted the small-group method. We analyzed pre- and post-test performance, the number of standing events in the classroom, and the amount of talking among the students. The results of our analysis showed that the performance of low achievers improved significantly in the whole-class cooperation scenario as compared to that of the small-group one. Additionally, the students walked around more often and had more, higher-quality discourse in the former than in the latter. These results, in addition to qualitative analyses of the contents of the communication among students and their post-hoc interviews, suggest that the whole-class cooperation method effectively promotes low achievers’ cooperative learning and enhances their performance in elementary school science experiments.