Algebra -area notes
Survivor Algebra:
An Adventure in Cooperative Learning
It was Piaget’s theory that a child develops different abilities at strictly defined age levels. (Klinger, 1999) If this were the case, all students would take Algebra in the 9th grade. But, they don’t. Many students still need to conquer Algebra while in college.
In the old and traditional classroom, the teacher would say, “I will dictate, and you will listen. I will repeat, and you will recite. I will test, and you will either pass or fail. This is how it has always been done.” (Ryan and Klinger, 2002, pg. W11) Somewhere along the way, my students turned off to this approach. Their confidence is weak and their study skills are weaker. Bandura believed that a student’s self perception will influence their performance, determination, and what they are willing to tackle in the learning arena. (Klinger, 1999) Grabe and Grabe state that students frequently use a single study approach, even when course material and evaluation procedures very considerably. (2001) Clearly a different teaching and learning approach is needed.
It is Bandura’s theory that interactive, collaborative projects help build self-efficacy and introduce new patterns of behavior. (Klinger, 1999) Thinking and learning are interactive. (Grabe and Grabe, 2001, pg. 49) Thus, my cooperative learning method of Survivor Algebra was born. Based on the TV show, Survivor, students are put into tribes where they can learn together. They still take individual exams (which we call “challenges”), but, in order to motivate optimal interaction, the tribe with the highest average wins bonus points. (Students can also win bonus points if each member of their tribe passes a challenge with a 70% or better.) In an effort to maximize their tribal average (and win the sought-after bonus points), most students get involved with their “tribemate’s” learning. Vygotsky believed that verbalizing ideas and learning to explain concepts to
An Adventure in Cooperative Learning
It was Piaget’s theory that a child develops different abilities at strictly defined age levels. (Klinger, 1999) If this were the case, all students would take Algebra in the 9th grade. But, they don’t. Many students still need to conquer Algebra while in college.
In the old and traditional classroom, the teacher would say, “I will dictate, and you will listen. I will repeat, and you will recite. I will test, and you will either pass or fail. This is how it has always been done.” (Ryan and Klinger, 2002, pg. W11) Somewhere along the way, my students turned off to this approach. Their confidence is weak and their study skills are weaker. Bandura believed that a student’s self perception will influence their performance, determination, and what they are willing to tackle in the learning arena. (Klinger, 1999) Grabe and Grabe state that students frequently use a single study approach, even when course material and evaluation procedures very considerably. (2001) Clearly a different teaching and learning approach is needed.
It is Bandura’s theory that interactive, collaborative projects help build self-efficacy and introduce new patterns of behavior. (Klinger, 1999) Thinking and learning are interactive. (Grabe and Grabe, 2001, pg. 49) Thus, my cooperative learning method of Survivor Algebra was born. Based on the TV show, Survivor, students are put into tribes where they can learn together. They still take individual exams (which we call “challenges”), but, in order to motivate optimal interaction, the tribe with the highest average wins bonus points. (Students can also win bonus points if each member of their tribe passes a challenge with a 70% or better.) In an effort to maximize their tribal average (and win the sought-after bonus points), most students get involved with their “tribemate’s” learning. Vygotsky believed that verbalizing ideas and learning to explain concepts to