Abstract

Cooperative learning originated in the early 1970s in America, and evolved into an effective and innovative teaching theory and approach by the middle of 1980s.Practice has proved that cooperative learning method has played a great role in improving the social and psychological atmosphere in the classroom, students’ academic performance, as well as in promoting students to form a good non-cognitive quality. Based on a small-scale survey on cooperative learning in oral English teaching, this paper mainly explores its possible positive and negative effects on the development of students, and also provides some specific suggestions for the rational application of cooperative learning.

Key words: cooperative learning, oral English, survey, effects

摘要

合作学习是20世纪70年代初兴起于美国，并在80年代中期取得实质性进展的一种富有创意和实效的教学理论与策略。实践证明，合作学习法在改善课堂内的社会心理气氛，大面积提高学生的学业成绩，促进学生形成良好非认知品质等方面实效显著，很快引起了国内外的关注，本文将通过对合作学习在英语口语教学运用效果的小型调查来探讨其对大学生的发展所产生的积极与消极影响，并为合理运用合作学习教学策略提供一些具体的建议。

关键词：合作学习，英语口语，调查，影响

1. Introduction
     With the increase in the international economic and technical exchanges，the teaching of oral English has obtained great achievements. However, it can not be ignored that the teaching of oral English has always been facing the problem of large scale of the class, which is contradicted with the emphasis on contact and interaction in language teaching. At the same time, most students lack initiative while learning. Although they can learn some important language features, the understanding and expression ability can’t get enough improvement. Cooperative learning method has played a great role in improving the social and psychological atmosphere in the classroom, students’ academic performance, as well as in promoting students to form a good non-cognitive quality. Since 1980s it has attracted the attention from all over the world and has become one of the mainstream contemporary teaching theories and strategies. Although domestic research on cooperative learning is rich, and has got fruitful achievements, there are still not enough studies aiming at college students. Domestic research tends to put primary and secondary students as the research object while neglect the group of college students. Therefore, the research and development of cooperative learning model aimed at college students has far-reaching theoretical and practical significance. This paper conducts a small survey on cooperative learning in oral English teaching in universities, and explores its possible positive and negative effects on the development of students, and also provides some specific suggestions for the rational application of cooperative learning.