Perceptions of low ability students on group project work and cooperative learning

The benefits of cooperative learning strategies, such as group project work, have been advocated in a wide range of educational contexts. There is however, scant information on the outcome of such programs on students of low academic ability. In this study, interviews were conducted with four groups of low-ability students, with the aim of investigating their perceptions on the effectiveness of group project work in promoting their social and cognitive skills. Our findings show that although the students recognized that the program improved their competence in interacting with others, there are problematic organizational and instructional issues that have to be ironed out before students can profit fully from cooperative learning programs.