To cope with an unpredictable future, higher education in mathematics and science (MS) needs to educate a knowledgeable and skilled workforce. Co-operative learning (CL) is a teaching method associated with increased academic achievement and development of generic skills. Thus, the purposes of this scoping review are to assess the evidence base of CL in undergraduate MS education to inform teaching practices and to identify potential knowledge gaps to inform future research. The review covers 24 empirical studies conducted from 2010 to 2020 on the prevalence, uses, and outcomes of CL elements in undergraduate MS education. The results show that there are few such studies, and these are rarely conducted outside the US or in disciplines other than chemistry. The most frequently implemented CL elements in the included studies are heterogeneous group formation, the use of roles, and different CL structures. The most prevalent student outcome of implemented CL elements in the reviewed studies is enhanced academic success, followed by student attitudes, generic skills, and psychological health. The results have implications for future implementation of and research on CL in international MS higher education.
The development of sense of belonging and generic skills may be considered important to succeed in higher education and in life and may be enhanced through student group work. For group work to succeed, Social Interdependence Theory and Cooperative Learning suggest that group members need to be positively interdependent. In the present study we conducted a cross-sectional survey in a sample of 401 students in undergraduate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics education in Norway mapping the students’ perceptions of cooperative learning, sense of belonging and generic skills. By means of Pearson bivariate correlation analyses and standard multiple regression analyses, we found that 1) Cooperative Learning was positively associated with the development of both sense of belonging and generic skills, 2) Sense of belonging and generic skills were positively interrelated, and 3) Interaction was the cooperative learning principle contributing most to the association with both sense of belonging and generic skills.
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