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The objective in cooperative learning is for people to work with their peers to complete a set goal. It is through reliance on one another that the objective is carried out. Each person is responsible for the outcome of the agenda. There are certain elements that are important for this to occur. A sense of positive independence has to be present. The group needs to be able to rely on each other to finish a set task. Without any one member of the group, the task cannot be completed.

There also has to be face-to-face interaction. This can be enhanced by the members praising, encouraging, supporting, or assisting each other. Individual accountability should be utilized as well. Every group member is responsible for his or her work. The use of cooperative learning helps students learn social skills, which are of benefit to them. They also gain such skills as leadership, decision-making, trust building, and communication. There is also the element of group processing whereby the behavior of the group is looked at and how they relate and carry out tasks. This provides a good forum to point out any ill-advised group behaviors as well as to point out the positive aspects.

There are a number of reasons why cooperative learning should be employed. One is that the students tend to achieve more highly than with conventional methods. There is no single winner as all are part of a group; this enables competition between the groups. All members of the group work towards the set goals from the low achievers to the high achievers to ensure everyone is on par.

There is the added benefit of the social skills that are learned by the students. They learn to take risks and are praised for their contributions. Students work with classmates who have different learning skills, cultural backgrounds, attitudes, and personalities. Heterogeneous groups promote student learning. The differences that may be present are worked through for the good of the group. These skills will help them in the workplace where more and more companies are placing their workers in an interdisciplinary force where they are trained to work together.

Economically cooperative learning makes sense as less material is needed. This also teaches the students the elements of time, division of lab, and sharing. In the end less equipment is necessary therefore money is saved without sacrificing the quality of education. When it comes to cooperative learning the focus is on how students should interact with each other as they learn and the skills needed to interact effectively. Their training will include instructors from pre-school through college in all subject areas.

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