By Fazni Mohamad Fadzillah and Azura Mohd Noor, Faculty of Accountancy, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Cawangan Perlis
A journey of learning has no end. Lifelong is important for our existence. Social Development Theory makes it clear that socialization has a direct influence on an individual’s learning process (McLeod, 2023). The theory emphasis on the importance of social interaction for the development of learning and cognition. By socializing with someone who has more knowledge about the subject to be learned, we transfer knowledge and begin the learning process. Collaborative learning is a learning style that encourages teamwork and social interaction. Through collaborative learning, individuals can learn to be more tolerant of each other, and through cooperation and encouragement, all members can successfully learn to share ideas.
Collaborative learning is an educational approach in education where students enhance learning by working together. Frequently it is called the peer learning process, and, in this process, students work in groups to discuss various activities, find results to different education-related problems, complete tasks, or learn new ideas. Collaborative learning is essential in the modern learning process, and it is effective to develop a higher level of thinking, self-management, and oral communication by this learning approach (Rao, 2019).
This is an approach to education that embraces working in groups to accomplish shared learning goals. All members of a group are actively involved in processing and integrating information and ideas. Unlike the traditional way of learning where students work and learn individually. Smith and MacGregor (1992) also mentioned that collaborative learning is an umbrella term for a variety of educational approaches that comprise joint intellectual efforts by students, or students and teachers. Collaborative learning represents a significant departure from the typical lecture-centred classroom environment.
There is a very wide range of approaches to collaborative learning. The four common approaches of collaborative learning are explained as follow (Smith & MacGregor, 1992). The first is the “think-pair-share” approach, where students are given a short problem, a question to prompt discussion, or a topic to discuss (Davidson & Major, 2014). This is the most common type of collaborative learning where students must independently and communicate their ideas to peers. The next approach is ‘problem-based-learning’ (PBL), which is a student-centred approach. This is where students usually learn a topic in groups to solve an open-ended problem within a time frame. This will develop problem solving abilities and decision-making capabilities.
In addition, the “case study” approach provides students with example problems from real life situation. Case study require students to observe and analyse the problems. The next approach is the “peer teaching” approach, where students teach other students. Tutoring is an example of peer teaching where an older student guides and teaches a younger student how to learn. When students work and learn together, they create a better learning experience and have a positive impact on their performance. Furthermore, this will give them space to explore new areas (Chandra, 2015).
Collaborative learning enables students to think creatively and inventively. Moreover, collaborative learning has been shown to not only enhance students’ higher-level thinking skills, but also boost their confidence and self-esteem (Chandra, 2015). Thus, group projects can maximize the educational experience by developing skills that enables students to tackle more complex problems, delegate roles and responsibilities and at the same time improving social and interpersonal skills. Students learn how to work with different types of learners and develop their leadership skills (Davidson & Major, 2014). When students work together, they create a better learning experience and lead to an understanding of different perspectives. Several studies found that collaborative learning has numerous benefits compared to competitive and individualistic efforts, and frequently leads to higher achievement and greater productivity, supportive and committed relationships, better mental health, and social competence (Laal & Ghodsi, 2012; Haataja et al., 2022; Alharbi et al., 2022). Moreover, a study done by Warsah, et al. (2021) also revealed that collaborative learning had a positive and significant impact on learners’ critical thinking skills, supported the retention of their critical thinking skills and learners perceived that collaborative learning also contributed to their emotional awareness, learning motivation, cognitive development, and broad-mindedness.
Recent development has seen an adaptation of collaborative learning techniques being used to teach students online in the form of collaborative learning. According to Harasim (2006), Online Collaborative Learning can be defined as learning model in which students are encouraged and supported to work together to create knowledge. Moreover, they learn to ascertain, to discover ways to innovate, and by so doing, to seek the conceptual knowledge required to solve difficulties instead of reciting what they think is the correct solution. This is supported by Alharbi et al. (2022) that use the term e-collaborative learning, which defined as a communicative shared-knowledge building technique that uses networked electronic devices to achieve shared-knowledge building aims. It highlights the positive interaction importance among learners via encouraged them to ask questions, exchange arguments, give elaborate explanations, problem solutions and formulate new ideas.
Collaborative learning has proven to be effective in face-to-face classrooms. In recent times, digital transformation has formed many more and new methods of learning and teaching. New technology and the internet have allowed for the adaption of collaborative learning across distance and time barriers. These technologies can also serve as a collaboration in learning by engaging learners with new thoughts, accelerating knowledge sharing, enhancing students’ reflective thinking and analytical skills, and helps the development of critical thinking with the capacity for “self-learning” (Aldoayan et al., 2019; Alharbi et al., 2022). Furthermore, Online Collaborative Learning created innovation in learning environment for student within a digital space. Technology advancements can facilitate collaborative learning effectively by making it convenient to communicate and gather information among group members working remotely.
In summary, collaborative learning encourages members of a group to have interdependence competencies in skill, expertise, abilities, and knowledge. They are also accountable for their group’s performance and are committed to completing task together. Working through a problem as a group can benefit students develop their own problem-solving skills in discovering new ways to overcome different types of circumstances at work. Collaborative learning between people is what makes for effective work. Any classroom or workplace that encourages collaboration creates an environment that facilitate success. Learning collaboratively required responsibility, persistence, cooperation and commitment from all parties.
References
Aldoayan, M., Sahandi, R., John, D., & Cetinkaya, D. (2019). Collaborative cloud-based online courses: Issues and challenges. Paper presented at the Proceedings of the 2019 8th International Conference on Educational and Information Technology.
Alharbi, S. M., Elfeky, A. I., & Ahmed, E. S. (2022). The effect of e-collaborative learning environment on development of critical thinking and higher order thinking skills. Journal of Positive School Psychology, 6(6), 6848-6854.
Chandra, R. (2015). Collaborative learning for educational achievement. IOSR Journal of Research & Method in Education (IOSR-JRME), 5(3), 2320-7388.
Davidson, N., & Major, C. H. (2014). Boundary crossings: Cooperative learning, collaborative learning, and problem-based learning. Journal on Excellence in College Teaching, 25(3&4), 7-55.
Haataja, E., Dindar, M., Malmberg, J., & Järvelä, S. (2022). Individuals in a group: Metacognitive and regulatory predictors of learning achievement in collaborative learning. Learning and Individual Differences, 96, 102146.
Harasim, L. (2006). A History of E-learning: Shift Happened. In: Weiss, J., Nolan, J., Hunsinger, J., Trifonas, P. (eds) The International Handbook of Virtual Learning Environments. Springer, Dordrecht.
McLeod, S. (2023, June 2). Lev Vygotsky's sociocultural theory of cognitive development. Retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/vygotsky.html?ezoic_amp=1&fb_comment_id=500779888714_15217241
Rao, P. S. (2019). Collaborative Learning in English language learning environment. Research Journal of English Language and Literature, 7(1), 330-339.
Smith, B.L., & MacGregor, J. (1992). Collaborative learning: a sourcebook for higher education. University Park, PA: National Centre on Postsecondary Teaching, Learning, and Assessment (NCTLA). 9-22.
Warsah, I., Morganna, R., Uyun, M., Afandi, M., & Hamengkubuwono, H. (2021). The impact of collaborative learning on learners’ critical thinking skills. International Journal of Instruction, 14(2), 443-460.
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