Implementing Kagan Structures in Cooperative Learning Classrooms 正興國小 許儷齡

Common Teacher Practices/Thoughts In the class, do you ask a question, let one child answer then move on? Agree or Disagree with these statements (using Timed Pair Share): A good class is a quiet class. Keep your eyes on your own paper. Sit quietly. Talking is cheating.

Timed Pair Share Shoulder partners = person next to you Face partners = person across from you Timed Pair Share can be done with shoulder or face partners. Teacher asks a question (put on board) Teacher decides who will go first Teacher gives think time to all First student responds for a given amount of time (student must talk for whole time) Second student paraphrases their answer and adds something to it/praises Reverse roles.

What is Kagan’s cooperative learning? A method of classroom instruction in which students work together in structured interactions (in teams - typically groups of four) that are based on four basic principles – PIES Learning involves healthy noise It’s OK to help your partner solve something It’s OK to get up and see what others do Most students learn things by verbalizing them and teaching them to others, not by writing them over and over.

Why Cooperative Learning? If you are simply giving out a task and hoping that all students participate equally and get all of the work done, you are using group work, not cooperative learning. Ensuring that you are structuring their interactions so that everyone is participating, relying on each other, working together and helping each other ensures that ALL students are gaining access to a great education. If students are told “ok, you guys have 10 minutes to create this project. Go!” You cannot assure that each student is contributing or learning anything, nor can you make sure that all are being positively affected.

Kagan Structure

What are structures? Structures are content-free, repeatable sequence of steps designed to give structure to the interaction of students with each other, the curriculum and/or the teacher. Structures are designed with many purposes in mind – some are for teambuilding, some are for classbuilding and others are for mastery, guided practice, communication and thinking skills.

Simultaneous Interaction Use frequent pair and team work Have students share with a partner instead of calling on them one at a time Have teams present to each other instead of one at a time Use response boards or cards so that all students can show their answers “What percent are overtly active at once?”

The simultaneous advantage Teacher’s Goal Sequential Structure Simultaneous Structure Distribute Supplies Teacher or student gives out one at a time Materials Monitor from each team distributes materials to teammates Discuss Topic One student at a time states their opinion All students discuss their opinions in pairs Form Teams Teacher reads names and which team in order Students find names on cards on team tables or stand up hand up pair up Share Answers Teacher calls one at a time All students respond in Choral Response or on Answer Boards Receive Help Students raise hands and wait for teacher’s help Student asks a teammate and receives immediate help

Things to Consider Simultaneous Interaction works best if students are grouped heterogeneously by ability level Try using the THREE BEFORE ME rule Students must ask the three other people at their table for the answer before asking me. If no one knows it, all hands at the table go up.

Building your Classroom Team building and Class building are the most important things to do before you try any structures!! (more about that at a different time)

SLANT

SLANT

Team Seating Options

Team Seating Arrangement

Working with a Partner

Examples of Kagan Structures

Round Robin

Rally Robin

Round Robin and Rally Robin RallyRobin (mastery, thinking, communication) In pairs, students alternate generating oral responses. 1. Teacher poses a problem to which there are multiple possible responses or solutions. 2. In pairs, students take turns stating responses or solutions orally. Round Robin – same steps are followed with group of four.

Timed Pair Share

Fan & Pick

Fan N Pick Fan-N-Pick (teambuilding, mastery, thinking, communication) Students play a card game to respond to questions. 1. Student 1 holds question cards in a fan and says, “Pick a card, any card!” 2. Student 2 picks a card, reads the question out loud and allows five seconds of think time. 3. Student 3 answers the question. 4. Student 4 restates the answer. a. For right or wrong answers, Student 4 checks and then either praises or coaches. b. For higher-level thinking questions which have no right or wrong answer, Student 4 does not check for correctness, but praises and paraphrases the thinking that went into the answer. 5. Students rotate roles one clockwise for each new round.

Quiz, Quiz, Trade

Quiz Quiz Trade Quiz/Quiz/Trade 1. Each student gets one card 2. Stand up, hand up, pair up 3. Partner A quizzes 4. Partner B answers 5. Partner A praises/coaches 6. Reverse roles and follow steps 3-5 7. Partners switch cards 8. Find a new partner - Come up with fun ways to decide who goes first. Examples: hair color, birthday, shirt length, most traveled, biggest shoe size, most siblings, earliest bed time, etc.

Numbered Heads Together

Stand Up, Hand UP, Pair up

Find Someone Who…

Inside Outside Circle Inside-Outside Circle (classbuilding, mastery, thinking, information sharing) In concentric circles, students rotate to face new partners and answer questions. 1. Students stand in two concentric circles, facing a partner. The inside circle faces out; the outside circle faces in. 2. Students use flash cards to ask questions of their partner, or they may take turns responding to a teacher question(s).

Inside Outside Circle 3. Partners switch roles: outside circle students ask, listen, then praise or coach. 4. After each question or set of questions, students in the outer or inner circle rotate to the next partner. (Teacher may call rotation numbers: “Rotate three ahead.”)

Round Table RoundTable (teambuilding, mastery, thinking, communication, information sharing) In teams, students take turns generating written responses, solving problems, or making a contribution to the team project. 1. Students sit in teams of four. 2. Each student takes a turn drawing, pasting, or writing one answer to a query, as a paper and pencil are passed around the group. **Works well for assessing prior knowledge, practicing skills, recalling information, and creating cooperative art. *Rotating recorder: Students take turns recording each student’s response. Continuous Round Table – keep going until teacher calls time

Showdown Showdown (teambuilding, mastery) This activity can be used to check for mastery of concepts and skills, as a review before a quiz or test, or to assess student skills. 1. The teacher distributes materials to each group: a deck of question cards, one small basket and thinkpad slips (small slips of colored paper) for each team member to each group. 2. The teacher selects one student in each group to be the Showdown Captain for the fist round and asks him/her to turn the question cards facedown in the center of the group’s table and pass the thinkpad slips to each team member. 3. The teacher explains that the Showdown Captain will turn over the card with the first question (cards can be numbered on back) and read it aloud for all team members. Then each team member will answer the question individually on their thinkpad slips and turn their answers facedown on the table in front of them.

Showdown 4. When the teacher gives the Showdown signal, all team members will reveal their responses at once as they stand up. If not all answers are correct, the team will coach their team members until a consensus is reached. 5. Team members will celebrate and sit back down. 6. The student to the left of the Showdown Captain will become Showdown Captain for the next round.