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“Structuring
the Classroom for Performance:
Cooperative
Learning with Instructor-Assigned Teams”
Gary D. Koppenhaver
Iowa
State University
gkoppy@iastate.edu
Charles
B. Shrader
Iowa
State University
cshrader@iastate.edu
The main concern is a longstanding one in classroom
instruction – the determinants of effective team performance.
This paper explicitly examines the effect of teacher-controlled
factors on the use and functioning of student teams.
From a sample of five hundred undergraduate students, data are
obtained on aptitude, diversity, instability, motivation, personality
style, size and performance. The
regression results suggest that team motivation and instability, which
are both party controlled by the instructor, are particularly important
in determining a team’s performance.
An implication is that instructor decisions about team make-up
and incentives can have a significant impact on student achievement
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