The effectiveness of the cooperative learning in Western music theory and practice course

On the contrary of teacher-centered and result-oriented traditional teaching approaches, contemporary education approaches are generally student-centered and process-oriented. The cooperative learning method is also a method of constructivist approach, which is one of the contemporary educational approaches. In this study, it was investigated the functioning of the student teams-achievement divisions technique, the effectuation of the learning outcomes of the Western Music Theory and Practice course and the opinions of the students regarding the cooperative learning process by using the cooperative learning method in the Western Music Theory and Practice course. The research was carried out during the 4 lessons with 36 students in Trakya University Music Teaching Undergraduate 1 class in the fall semester of the 2019-2020 academic year. These 36 students were divided into 9 groups of 4 students, according to the grades they received from the exam, which were held before the application and the basic scores were determined. In the study, in which the "Student Teams- Achievement Divisions" technique of cooperative learning method was used, after the students worked in groups they had individual exam and they tried to contribute to the group score according to the exam result. The group or groups that achieved the highest score received a group award. In the research, 5E teaching model, which belongs to the constructivist approach and consists of engage, explore, explain, elobrate and evaluate, was used. In this study which contains of two units named as "Dominant Seventh Chord and Polyphonic Solfege Practices in One Flat Major and Minor Scales" and "Artificial [Major, Minor, Diminished, Half Diminished (Sensible) and Augmented] Seventh Chords and Polyphonic Solfege Practices in Two Sharp Major and Minor Scales", these two units were classified as cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains according to Bloom's taxonomy. The action research pattern, which is one of the qualitative research methods, was used in the research. As the data collection tools, the students were given an interview form consisting of 16 questions at the end of the last lesson and a self-assessment form at the end of each lesson. In addition, the worksheets that the students solved with groups, including activities regarding to the learning outcomes of the units, the researcher observation form that includes the researcher evaluations about the unit achievements and the application process, and the Western Music Theory and Practice course exams had at the beginning of the application and at the end of each unit are other data collection tools. With the Western Music Theory and Practice course exams administered to students individually, scores such as the basic exam score, individual development score, and group development score were determined, and the functioning of the student teams-achievement divisions technique of the cooperative learning method was examined. Besides, it was determined to what extent the achievements in the units' learning outcomes according to the scores of the students in the Western Music Theory and Practice course exams, the answers they gave to the self-assessment form, the evaluations in the researcher observation form and the answers given by the students to the worksheets. The answers given by students in self-assessment and interview forms and the opinions of which were taken note to the researcher observation form were classified according to cooperative learning principles. As the results of the study, it is seen that the functioning of the student teams-achievement divisions technique of the cooperative learning method was successfully carried out and the learning outcomes in the units were mostly carried out in the Western Music Theory and Practice course. In addition, it is another result of the research that the principles of the cooperative learning method are internalized by most of the students.