Talk:Assistant teacher course/Collaborative action research

Analysis of Former Learning Assistants’ Views on Cooperative Learning

"Broadly speaking, by this he meant that we teach the way we are taught. The data presented here suggests that the former LAs were apprenticed under a different model of teaching than the non-LAs. For example, the LAs discussed the value of argumentation, building a learning community, and coaching their own students in assisting other students in the process of learning. Based on the data presented here, the other teachers in the study (non-LAs) tended to put students in groups to solve logistical problems (such as not having enough equipment) rather than as a mechanism for facilitating learning and argumentation. The LA program is, by design, an experiential learning program in which content is learned through the practice (or experience) of helping others learn. Argumentation and learning communities are explicitly valued and promoted throughout the Learning Assistant experience. The LAs experienced a non-traditional way of learning leading them to teach their students in a non-traditional way. If classroom practice is to become more student-centered and aligned with contemporary research, the way our future teachers are taught truly matters." (Source: Analysis of Former Learning Assistants’ Views on Cooperative Learning)