An Experimental Study Of Task-Based Cooperative Learning In Groups

Through formal classroom instruction to promote language teaching and learning is still the most recognized way in practice. Researchers and teachers have attempted to find the most effective teaching methods. Cooperative learning sprang up in America in the early 1970s and received attentions from educators in the west. Many scholars carried out in-depth researches and obtained remarkable achievements at both the theoretical and practical levels. The appropriate application of cooperative learning theory will contribute to the command of the basic knowledge, the perfection of the cognitive structure, the cultivation of the creative ability and the optimization of thinking quality in the process of teaching. In recent years this theory is also a popular topic in the education reform in our country.Based on the former researches, the present research aims at studying the application of cooperative learning theory in college English classroom instruction, with the emphasis on three elements of "task", "group", and "cooperation". The subjects are 247 students in grade 2008 from Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications. The two experimental classes are from the School of Information and Communication and School of Automation, and the two control classes are from the School of Information and Communication and School of Economics and Management. The experimental classes are assigned to use cooperative learning approach in their learning process, while the control classes stick to the traditional approach. Except for the difference in their teaching approaches, all the classes were under the similar learning circumstances, and they were supposed to take part in the College English Achievement Test Band 4 at the end of the fourth semester.According to the analysis of the data collected from the proficiency tests, questionnaires, and interviews, the author finds that task-based cooperative learning in groups does have positive effects on learners' academic achievements and attitudes toward learning. However, in the implementation of the experiment, the author encountered some difficulties that call for further researches. It is hoped that the present study could be reference for teachers who are interested in the application of cooperative learning theory in their classroom organization.