Academic Classroom Community Project
Our interest in classroom community was borne out of data collected from the Hewlett Project, a series of studies designed to measure the effects of cooperative learning. Specifically, we hypothesized that students who took classes that incorporated cooperative learning methods would have more positive feelings of campus connectedness and openness to diversity than students who took regular lecture classes, thus confirming statements previously made in education literature. Surprisingly, we found that UT students in the cooperative learning classes did not benefit more than students who took non-cooperative learning classes.
We began to think about things that instructors and students do to create a successful cooperative learning experience, when we stumbled on the concept of academic classroom community. As we see it, classroom community is created by the instructor and by the students in the class and though it may be highly related to cooperative learning, it is not the same thing. It is possible for instructors to use cooperative learning techniques effectively (i.e. reach the learning objectives for the course) but without academic classroom community occuring. Recent studies have offered interesting information about student and instructor beliefs regarding the importance of classroom community.