What is Cooperative Learning?
Cooperative or collaborative learning is a team process where members support and rely on each other to achieve an agreed-upon goal. The classroom is an excellent place to develop team-building skills you will need later in life. Cooperative learning is a successful teaching strategy in which small teams, each with students of different levels of ability, use a variety of learning activities to improve their understanding of a subject. Each member of a team is responsible not only for learning what is taught but also for helping teammates learn, thus creating an atmosphere of achievement. Students work through the assignment until all group members successfully understand and complete it. Cooperative / collaborative learning is interactive; as a team member, the student teacher : Develops and shares a common goal Contributes his/her understanding of the problem: questions; insights and solutions Responds to, and works to understand, others' questions, insights and solutions Empowers the other to speak and contribute, and to consider their contributions Is accountable to others, and they are accountable to him/her Is dependent on others, and they depend on him/her .

Elements of Cooperative Learning : The conditions/elements that will ensure more productive than competitive and individualistic efforts are:
1. Positive Interdependence
 Each group member's efforts are required and indispensable for group success
Each group member has a unique contribution to make to the joint effort because of his or her resources and/or role and task responsibilities

multimedia

Multimedia
Multimedia is a term frequently heard and discussed among educational technologists today. Unless clearly defined, the term can alternately mean .a judicious mix of various mass media such as print, audio and video or it may mean the development of computer-based hardware and software packages produced on a mass scale and yet allow individualized use and learning. In essence, multimedia merges multiple levels of learning into an educational tool that allows for diversity in curricula presentation.
According Fenrich, 1997 Multimedia is the exciting combination of computer hardware and software that allows you to integrate video, animation, audio, graphics, and test resources to develop effective presentations on an affordable desktop computer.
Multimedia is characterized by the presence of text, pictures, sound, animation and video; some or all of which are organized into some coherent program. (Phillips, 1997).
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the concept of multimedia took on a new meaning, as the capabilities of satellites, computers, audio and video converged to create new media with enormous potential. Combined with the advances in hardware and software, these technologies were able to provide enhanced learning facility and with attention to the specific needs of individual users. A primary application of the interactive multimedia for instruction is in an instructional situation where the learner is given control so that he/she may review the material at his or her own pace and in keeping with his/her own individual interests, needs, and cognitive processes. The basic objective of interactive multimedia material is not s much to replace the teacher as to change the teacher’s role entirely. As such multimedia must be extremely well designed and sophisticated enough to mimic the best teacher, by combining in its design the various elements of the cognitive processes and the best quality of the technology. With today’s multimedia courseware, once a programme has been designed and built in with the appropriate responses, it should be flexible and permit change and alteration.
Today’s multimedia is a carefully woven combination of text, graphic art, sound, animation, and video elements. When you allow an end user, i.e. the viewer of a multimedia project, to control ‘what’ and ‘when’ and ‘how’ of the elements that are delivered and presented, it becomes interactive multimedia.

Benefits to Learners
● Work at own pace and control their learning path
● Learn from an infinitely patient tutor
● Actively pursue learning and receive feedback
Benefits to Teachers
● Allows for creative work
● Saves time for more challenging topics
● Replaces ineffective learning activities
● Increases student contact time for discussion
Specific uses of multimedia include:
● Drill and practice to master basic skills
● The development of writing skills
● Problem solving
● Understanding abstract mathematics and science concepts
● Simulation in science and mathematics
● Manipulation of data
● Acquisition of computer Skills for general
● Purposes, and for business and vocational training
● Access and communication to understand populations and students
● Access for teachers and students in remote locations
● Individualized and cooperative learning
● Management and administration of classroom activities

Classroom management

Successful classroom management is defined as producing a high rate of work involvement with a low rate of deviancy in academic settings.
 To some extent teachers control their instructional effectiveness in the classroom. A passive teacher simply relies on the same old teaching techniques. As compare to him an active teacher plans different teaching strategic and techniques in order to motivate the students and to achieve more success in teaching.
 Different teaching techniques provide change for the teachers and minimize disturbances and make sure that instruction can proceed efficiently; they set up their rooms according to the following principles:
1) Teachers should be able to see all students at all times.
 2) Teaching materials and supplies are readily available.
 3) High – traffic areas should be free of congestion.
 4) Students should be able to see instructional presentations.
5) Procedures and routines should be actively taught in the same way that academic content is taught.

 Time Management Skill

 Academic learning time in the classroom is an important factor in keeping the classroom discipline. A teacher’s quick and efficient calls/instructions can vary the time allotted to all classroom activities. The time spent on taking start, handle digressions, off-task behaviour, discipline have an ultimate effect on student learning. Student who spends more time on academic content learns more and receives higher achievement scores. It is important to allocate adequate time to academic content. Making time schedules is not enough, but the proper use of this allocated time leads towards student achievement. In order to study the use of classroom times, researchers have developed the following terms to allocated time, engaged time, and academic learning time.

- Allocated time is the amount of time a teacher scheduled for a subject for example, 30 minutes a day for mathematics. The more time allocated for a subject, the higher student achievement in that subject is likely to be. - Engaged time is that part of allocated time in which students are actively involved with academic subject matter (really listening to a lecture, participating in the class discussion, writing a composition, and working on mathematics problems). - Academic learning time is engaged time with a high success rate. Many researchers suggest that students should get 70 to 80 percent of the answers right when working with a teacher. Teachers who effectively provide and manage academic learning time in their classrooms can determine student achievement. Effective classroom managers are nearly always good planners. They do not become late; handle the situation after noise and disruption. They teach the rules about appropriate student behaviour.
Seating arrangement
Arrangements of space and furniture that cluster students together or hinder the teacher’s view make teaching more difficult. Seating arrangement must depend on type of lesson to be taught, and the type of classroom furniture.
Each teacher needs to know the appropriate seats of all students. A seating plan helps the teacher to learn names easily.
Proper arrangement of furniture also contributes to the smooth running of classrooms functions. According to Anderson (1991) desks, chairs and tables can be arranged in a variety of ways; light and temperature can be increased or decreased. Paint wall coverings, art work and plants can be used to enhance or detract from the attractiveness of the physical classroom environment.
Discipline in the classroom
Discipline in the classroom involves using guidance and teaching techniques. Discipline creates an atmosphere conducive to learning and encourages students to become self directive.
The teacher must fairly examine the reasons of individual student behavior, and then he can plan intelligently how to prevent disciplinary violations before they occur. If violations occurs, appropriate steps can be taken so that as little injury as possible is done to the learning process. Discipline rules should be posted in the classroom for all to see in order to create a classroom environment with maximum productive time utilization.

ROLE OF TEACHER FOR CONDUCIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

Teaching is a multifaceted profession. The teachers have to perform many roles other than the process of teaching and imparting information to the students. They take up vital places in the lives of the students in their classrooms. Mainly they set the tone of their classrooms, build a warm environment, and take care of students by looking for any sign of trouble. They become role models for the students.
The role of a teacher in the classroom as a leader is to lead students, and families. The classroom teacher is responsible for creating a positive and disciplined learning environment:
– in the classroom
– in co-curricular activities
– in interacting informally with students
In this way, each student is challenged to grow in knowledge and maturity, according to his potential, in all aspects of his life.

The classroom teacher is responsible for:
- Promoting the mission and philosophy of the School/College through structured classroom prayer, participation in the educational life of the College, and modelling of appropriate standards of behaviour.
- Maintaining a positive and effective learning environment through well prepared lessons, which cater a wide range of student abilities and interests.
- Setting of realistic and challenging academic standards of student performance.
- A challenging and realistic program of student homework.
- A comprehensive attention to students work submitted for marking and supervision.
- Demonstrating knowledge, competence and confidence in the relevant subject discipline.
- Demonstrating high levels of professionalism in all activities.
Let us have a detailed look on teacher’s roles as teachers serve many other roles in the classroom:


The most common role of the teacher in the classroom is to teach knowledge to children. Teachers are given a curriculum they must follow that meets state guidelines. This curriculum is followed by the teacher so that complete knowledge is conveyed to the students in the given time (academic year). Teachers teach in many ways, such as lectures, small group activities and hands-on learning activities.

Teachers play an important role in making the classroom environment either positive or negative. Students often imitate a teacher's actions. If the teacher prepares a warm, happy environment, then students will also be happy. The teachers are responsible for the social behavior in their classrooms. This behavior is primarily a reflection of the teacher's actions and the environment she/he sets.

Students spend a great deal of time with their teacher and their teacher becomes a role model to them. This can be a positive or negative effect depending on the teacher. Teachers not only teach the children, but also love and take care for them. Therefore teachers are respected by the community and become a role model to students and parents.


Mentoring is a natural role played by the teachers. Mentoring is a way by which a teacher encourages students to do the best they can. This also includes encouraging students to enjoy learning. Listening to students carefully is the part of mentoring. By taking time to listen to what students say, teachers impart to students a sense of ownership in the classroom. This helps build their confidence and helps them want to be successful.

As a protector, teacher looks for signs of trouble in the students. When students' behaviors change and any sign of physical abuse are noticed, teachers are required to look into the problem and solve it as per rules.