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Absent and Accounted For: Absenteeism and Cooperative Learning *
Author(s) -
Koppenhaver G. D.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
decision sciences journal of innovative education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 19
eISSN - 1540-4609
pISSN - 1540-4595
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-4609.2006.00100.x
Subject(s) - absenteeism , attendance , psychology , experiential learning , cooperative learning , work (physics) , collaborative learning , class (philosophy) , team learning , medical education , mathematics education , social psychology , teaching method , computer science , open learning , political science , engineering , medicine , mechanical engineering , artificial intelligence , law
In a small section collaborative learning environment where student work teams promote mutual learning about investments, students limit the opportunity to learn from other students if they are absent from class. Absenteeism not only denies the student the opportunity to learn from others but also denies other members of the student's work team the opportunity to learn from the absent student. Other team members' absenteeism should be costly for individual performance if collaborative learning fosters learning and retention. The research finds that while absenteeism is detrimental to the student's own performance, absenteeism of other team members from team activities has a significant negative effect on both individual exam and homework scores. The conclusions validate the benefits of active learning and of encouraging attendance in collaborative learning environments in all disciplines.