Cooperative Problem Solving: an experience of high-school teaching updating

TL;DR

This paper reports on an experience of teaching Cooperative Problem Solving to Italian high-school physics teachers, highlighting its benefits for student learning and problem-solving skills, while also analyzing gender and academic differences.

Contribution

It introduces a practical application of Cooperative Problem Solving in high-school physics education and evaluates its impact on teachers and students.

Findings

Positive evaluation of cooperation and information exchange

Need for improving students' critical analysis skills

Gender and academic performance differences identified

Abstract

We present the results of an experience of teaching updating dispensed to Italian high-school physics teachers to promote the application of the Cooperative Problem Solving method as an useful strategy to improve physics learning at high-school level and to foster the development of problem solving skills. Beside analysing the method and discussing the ways to propose and apply it in a high-school context, the teachers experienced the method acting both as learners and as tutors of student group learners. Students and teachers evaluated as positive the experience, mainly focusing on cooperation within the group by information exchange and the application of a solution scheme. The ex-post analysis of the students' performance in applying the method to solve some rich context text showed the need of improving critical sense with respect to achieved results to fully exploit the strategy and develop their problem solving skills. Finally, an analysis on gender differences and scholar distribution of students is presented.