depend on the social structured exchange of information between learners in groups and which each learner is accountable for his or her own learning and
others.
3
It can be inferred that cooperative learning is a group-centered and students-centered approach in classroom of teaching and learning. By learning
in-group, students can increase their motivation in achieving their goal in learning. It also can encourage them to be more responsible to their
teammates, because team score depends on each member’s score. Therefore, each member has to assure that his or her friends understand the lesson which
teacher presents. In addition, cooperative learning gives some positive effects for the
student, such as: increasing the students’ confidence and enjoyment, making the students to be greater and more rapid achievement, more respect for the
teacher, the school, and the subject, using of higher-level cognitive strategies, decreasing prejudice, and increasing enthusiasm in learning.
4
Therefore, the advantages of using cooperative learning strategies as stated above are
stronger languages learning motivation, more language practice opportunities, and more feedback about language errors.
Based on all statements above, the writer summarizes that cooperative learning is a learning model that provides opportunity for the students to
interact and communicate with each other. Cooperative learning is different from traditional group activity. Cooperative learning is not just putting
students into group but they also should learn social skill. The cooperative learning makes the students to be active in the group, and achieve the main
goal of every member in the group.
2. The Principle of Cooperative Learning
Cooperative learning principles are tools, which teacher uses to encourage mutual helpfulness in the groups and the active participation of all
3
Jack C. Richards and Theodore S. Rodgers, Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching, Second Edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001, p. 192.
4
Rebecca L. Oxford, Language Learning Strategies, Boston: Heinle Heinle Publishers, p. 146.
members. There are some basic principles that should be noticed for successful cooperative learning. Those are:
a. Positive Interdependence
Students are encouraged to think of positive interdependence. It means
that the students are not thinking competitively and
individualistically in terms of the group. It occurs when group members feel that what helps one member helps all and what hurts one member
hurts all. It is also a sense of working together for a common goal and caring about each other in learning. It is all created by the structure of
cooperative learning tasks and by building a spirit of mutual support within the group.
b. Individual accountability
Individual accountability is encouraged through the assignment of specific role or tasks, and individuals are held accountable for the success
of each of the other members. Each member of a group has to make a significant contribution to achieving the group’s goal. A primary way to
ensure accountability is through testing by calling on a student at random to share with the whole class or with group members.
c. Face to face interaction
Students are encouraged to explain, argue, elaborate and link current material with what they have learned previously. So students can
express the lesson by themselves in meaningful tasks and students have authentic reasons for listening to one another, asking questions, clarifying
issues and restating points of view.
d. Appropriate use of collaborative skills
Determine the way students interact with each other as teammates. In this factor, students can learn leadership, decision making, trust
building, clear communication, and conflict management so that their team can function effectively.
