Structuring cooperative learning in a class

The lack of space for dialogue and students’ creative expression in Indian classrooms; as also remarked by the National Curriculum Framework, 2005; does not provide fair chances of knowledge construction to the students. As a solution, the curriculum framework further suggests that the structure of a class should be interactive. It says that in a class, interaction with teachers, with other peers of the same age group as well as those who are older and younger can open up many more rich learning possibilities. Cooperative learning approach is a right and suitable alternative to the traditional teaching approach which fits in to the needs of a classroom, as stated in NCF, 2005. It is an approach to instruction in which students work in small groups to help one another learn. They work together to achieve common successes and the members of the group swim and sink together. Various researches in different countries all over the world support that cooperative learning enhances achievement in many subjects along with significant positive contribution in development or enhancement of various psychological attributes like interpersonal relations among peers, social acceptability among peers, interest, motivation etc. Various methods of cooperative learning have been developed and researched in different parts of the world. Present paper discusses structuring of STAD, a method of cooperative learning, in a class and explains the theoretical background of its effectiveness.