Reviews

Pioneering Perspectives in Cooperative Learning - Theory, Research, and Classroom Practice for Diverse Approach to CL. (Davidson, N. ed., Routledge, 2021, 267 pages)

  Pioneering Perspectives in Cooperative Learning offers the reader the theories and practice of leading pioneers of cooperative learning (CL). For the past five decades they have had a fundamental role in creating the basic science of the CL discourse. The number of research studies and the models of cooperative learning included in this book present a proven basis for this discourse.  

  Promoting Academic Talk in Schools. Global Practices and Perspectives. (Gillies, R. M. ed., Routledge 2019.)

 Promoting Academic Talk in Schools brings together a rich array of recent research to explore how academic talk helps transform student experience across a variety of learning environments. Drawing on conceptual frameworks and evidence-based strategies, each chapter analyses the implications for practice in both formal and informal classroom settings. The book covers topics from collaborative and productive talk to increasing student participation and parent-student talk outside of the classroom. With contributions from academics in Australia, the UK, the United States, and Spain, it provides a comprehensive Western perspective of academic talk in schools.  

 Special Issue on Cooperative Learning. Journal of Community Guidance & Research. 2020 November Vol. 37 No. 3 (Sharan, Y - Agashe, L. eds) 

 All the authors included in this issue are veteran researchers and practitioners of CL, who have contributed to the steady progress of our understanding of cooperative learning and its multiple applications.Several of the research studies presented in this issue confirm the adaptability of the basic features of CL in programs for elementary schools, in diverse countries. (...) Today, the Indian cultural ethos of inclusive cooperative practices is evident in the vibrant co-curricular and extracurricular activities in schools and colleges, but classes are generally teacher-centric. Therefore, although the spirit of cooperative learning is close to the Indian heart, the change in mindset and careful preparation needed to implement it in the classroom is a challenge.  

Gillies, Robyn M. Inquiry-based science education (CRC Press, Taylor and Francis, 2020, 115 pages)

Why structure inquiry-based science education following the cooperative learning discourse? 

Book Review by Ferenc Arató

This book is the sixth volume of the Global Science Education series, edited by Ali Eftekhari. Robyn M. Gillies’s Inquiry-based science education is a critical contribution to the intended “encyclopedia of science education”.   This volume approaches learning interactions from inquiry-based science education, scientific literacy, and knowledge dissemination. The author's creative strategy, which is extremely rich, complex, and offers connections in a thousand threads, can also be tracked in this volume. The logical arc of the book consists of the most important scientific insights along which one can link step by step the theoretical approaches of inquiry-based science education with the actual practice of implementation.

 Jacobs, M. G., Lie, A. & Tama, S. M.  Cooperative Learning through a Reflective Lens (Bristol CT: Equinox Publishing, 2023)   

 “Hurray for Reflection!” – A Handbook for Connecting Reflective Practice and Cooperative Learning 

Book Review by Kata Oláh

 The book consists of seven interwoven chapters that can guide readers along the implementation path.  In my interpretation,  these seven chapters can be divided into three distinct parts. The first four chapters introduce the reader to the discourse of cooperative learning, starting from the theoretical foundations, moving through the cooperative principles, practical strategies, and exploring alternative assessment practices within cooperative learning. The next section of the book focuses on reflective practice, as promised by the title. In the fifth chapter, two models are used to connect reflective approaches with cooperative learning. While the sixth chapter provides guidance for creating a reflective practice centered on teacher collaboration to facilitate the implementation of cooperative learn-

diary96ing. The final part, the concluding seventh chapter, offers a synthesis of the book’s content with the help of five lesson plans that bolster practical implementation.

 Gillies, R.M., Millis, B., & Davidson, N. (Eds.). Contemporary Global Perspectives on Cooperative Learning: Applications Across Educational Contexts (1st ed.). Routledge. 

 Multiperspectivity of Contemporary 

Approaches of CL – Review a book chapter by chapter

Book Review by Ferenc Arató

Since this volume was created with the contributions of numerous members of the NICLEE network, and we have long owed our readers a review on the website, we have decided to present the book section by section, offering a slightly more detailed overview of each chapter. This volume serves as a fitting continuation of Pioneering Perspectives in Cooperative Learning: Theory, Research, and Classroom Practice for Diverse Approaches to CL (New York, Routledge, 2021), edited by Neil Davidson, in which leading scholars who laid the foundations of the cooperative learning discourse reflect on the most significant insights and developments of the past five decades. The volume is framed by an introductory chapter (Cooperative Learning and the State of the Field – An Introduction) and a concluding chapter (Bringing It All Together: Some Concluding Remarks). The book comprises a total of 18 chapters, organized into four sections. As we are planning to publish slightly more detailed reviews of each chapter on the NICLEE website, these will be presented individually, chapter by chapter. 

 Duran, D., & Topping, K. J. (2017). Learning by teaching: Evidence-based strategies to enhance learning in the classroom. Routledge. 

 This book, based on the previous Aprensenyar (Duran, 2014, 2016), provides an essential overview of learning by teaching, unpacking the underpinning theory, research evidence, and practical implications for peer learning in a variety of classroom contexts. It locates this phenomenon in current conceptions of learning and teaching, far removed from traditional ideas of one-way transmission of knowledge. It explores how learning by teaching happens and how to promote it. Examples of learning by teaching are discussed. It is noted that it can take place at school, university, and the workplace, as well as through the Internet. Finally, the book helps the reader reflect on how not only students but also teachers can learn by teaching. 

 Topping, K., Buchs, C., Duran, D., & Van Keer, H. (2017). Effective peer learning: From principles to practical implementation. Routledge.  

This book aims to help practitioners establish well-structured and effective peer learning projects using a variety of methods. It introduces and defines cooperative learning (i.e., mutual peer interaction) and peer tutoring (i.e., directional peer interaction)—outlining general organizational principles that will help practitioners implement peer learning in either of these forms. The authors consider how to prepare and train learners to undertake their roles effectively, and how to organize and monitor the process of interaction as it is happening. They then look at how these systems operate in the classroom, exploring how the organizational principles work in practice and giving many practical examples. 

 Duran, D., Flores, M., Oller, M., Thomson-Garay, L., & Vera, I. (2016). Reading in pairs: Peer tutoring for reading and speaking in English as a foreign language. Horsori.

The book describes the program Reading in Pairs, which is based on peer tutoring and promotes family involvement to improve English as a foreign language. The theoretical bases of the program are described, as well as the guidelines for its implementation and assessment, and the analysis of the competencies to be developed. The book also includes a chapter with initial research findings. The last chapters provide educational resources for teachers, students, and families, such as Activity Sheets (including texts, before-reading questions, and reading comprehension questions) with Language Support (ideas for words and sentences to enrich the conversation) and Audio Files (recordings to provide models of good pronunciation and intonation).