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The cooperative learning strategy of group investigation has been used extensively in elementary and high school classrooms. Whereas this learning strategy seems to benefit low- and middle-achieving students, the performance of high-achieving students seems to change little. This article examines the literature on group investigation as a cooperative learning strategy and offers suggestions for areas of future investigation and research.
La stratégie d'apprentissage coopératif qu'est l'enquête collective a été largement utilisée dans les classes à l'élémentaire et au secondaire. Alors que cette stratégie semble porter fruits auprès des élèves dont le rendement est médiocre ou moyen, elle ne semble pas influencer le rendement des élèves très performants. Nous nous penchons sur la littérature portant sur l'enquête collective comme stratégie d'apprentissage coopératif, et offrons des suggestions de domaines pour la recherche à l'avenir.
Since learning is something that the pupil has to do himself and for himself, the initiative lies with the learner. The teacher is a guide and director; he steers the boat but the energy that propels it must come from those who are learning. (Dewey in Simpson, Jackson, & Aycock, 2005, p. 59)
Group investigation is a successful and extensively researched cooperative learning strategy that involves task specialization (Slavin, 1995). Working in small cooperative groups, students investigate a specific topic. They decide how to study the topic and divide the work among themselves. The information collected is then compiled into a whole and presented to the entire class (Sharan & Sharan, 1990). To comprehend fully the complexities of group investigation, "it is imperative to examine the intellectual, pedagogical, and psychological foundations upon which this method is based" (Sharan & Sharan, 1992, p. 1). This learning method has many advantages that are made clear below.
Group investigation allows students to be directly involved in how they obtain knowledge; they are not mere recipients. It is a democratic approach in a classroom setting. This approach can be traced back to Ancient Greece. In their writings, Plato and Aristotle espoused the notion of an "ideal" society involving a democratic educational system. Since that time, educators such as Augustine, Sir Thomas More, and John Locke have produced educational models with a democratic theme; however, it has been difficult until now to implement democratic methods in...