Effects of a Cooperative Learning Strategy on Academic Achievement and Personal and Social Attributes in an Introductory College Computer Course.

This study was designed to assess the effects of a specific cooperative learning strategy in an introductory college business information systems course. The cooperative approach's impact on student achievement and on a number of personal and social attributes was examined. A total of 117 college sophomores and freshmen enrolled in 3 sections of an introductory business information systems course at a state university comprised the sample of 51 females and 76 males. All of the students completed three course examinations and a battery of eight measures focusing on personal characteristics. The groups differed in when cooperative learning was implemented--week 1, week 5, or week 10. The cooperative learning strategy required students to write a list of the 15 key points for each assigned chapter and consult with 3 other students who comprised their working groups followed by comparison with another group. A multivariate analysis of examination scores revealed that the cooperative learning strategy appeared to facilitate performance on course examinations. However, comparison of time of administering the personal characteristics measures and course section suggested that exposure to cooperative learning worked to discourage rather than encourage students to try to resolve controversies through thorough analysis of the disagreement. (Contains 11 references.) (CK)