Cooperative learning is a generic classroom technique that requires students to work and talk together about academic material while learning effective interpersonal skills. This packet, prepared in conjunction with the Minnesota School Effectiveness Program, describes the benefits of cooperative learning and defines its critical attributes,…

Four dimensions that must be present for a group to function effectively are elaborated in this guide: (1) commitment of members to a common purpose; (2) leadership that facilitates organization and structuring to accomplish these purposes; (3) open communication among members; and (4) a climate of acceptance and trust. Defining a group as any…

The paper discusses the meaning and significance of ethnicity, with emphasis on the political role of ethnicity in groups. Information is presented from a review of literature regarding groups from four viewpoints--subjective/behavioral strategies, social science research, ethnographic interpretations, and the culture-population-group frame of…

The purposes of this study were to describe the use of creative dramatics within an average ninth grade arts class and to document the behavior changes in verbal and nonverbal communications, creative thinking and behavior, feeling of group closeness, self-confidence, and attitude toward the course. A teacher inexperienced in drama conducted the…

A review of the research literature concerning the effects of cooperation and competition on small-group productivity suggests that results have been conflicting and inconclusive. From a methodological standpoint, the inconsistent finings result from the use of experimental tasks which create systematic bias in favor of either the cooperative or…

Counseling in small groups was planned for a sample of youth from the Neighborhood Youth Corps (NYC). Five models were involved: (1) Interpersonal, (2) Intropersonal, (3) Problem Identification, (4) Perceptual Modification, and (5) Relationship. Each model, designed to elicit specified behavior, utilized task prescriptions, selective responding,…

"Pacification" as a technique of social control has a negative effect because of its destructive or disintegrative impact on behaviors of individuals in social or problem-solving situations. "Pacification" uses communication techniques which discount some aspect of the problem-solving process: the problem itself, its…

Those who wish to bring about positive communication between two groups with strongly polarized attitudes cannot do so merely by bringing the groups together for interaction. A study of inmates and officers at a women's prison revealed the potential of perception training for changing initially polarized conceptions. Analyses of subjects'…

An "ad hoc" questionnaire was administered to 10 students from each of 10 student groups. Each group's behavior was rated according to its degree of deviation from the established code of conduct for organized campus groups. Demographic and sociometric data was collected, as well as a measurement of the respondents' knowledge about the campus, and…

Relationships among behaviors, defined within each of several observation systems, were determined and relationships across systems were examined to empirically derive dimensions of classroom behavior. These four observation systems were selected to include as broad a range of categories as possible: Fuller Affective Interaction Records (FAIR),…

Three studies were carried out to explore and evaluate alternative methods of meeting the objectives of a bilingual education project. The first study explored children's book usage behaviors and how these behaviors were influenced by the requirement to fill out book reports and a reward reinforcement. It was found (1) that fewer children sampled…

This study compares the differential effectiveness of two experiential approaches, direct and vicarious, to the induction of change in self-reports of attitudes toward personal growth groups. University undergraduate volunteers were assigned and exposed to one of three treatment conditions: 1) a structured, direct experience in a micro-laboratory…

This study was an attempt to build upon the prior work in the area of the diffusion of innovations and innovativeness. Broadly stated, the study attempted to answer the question: What is the relationship between selected characteristics of intact groups and their innovativeness? The sample consisted of six elementary schools in Massachusetts which…

The black community is considered as an economy where the consumption and investment behavior of black families have no significant impact on the growth rate of family income. This is seen to be a problem. The thrust of the argument that follows is that in the absence of a closer relationship between aggregate black family consumption spending,…