Teachers' views on the use of the cooperative learning method in secondary school science course

This study investigated teachers' views on the use of cooperative learning in secondary school science classes. The study population consisted of all teachers at secondary schools affiliated to the Turkish Ministry of Education in Arıcak, Alacakaya, and Kovancılar districts of Elazig, Turkey. The sample consisted of 30 science teachers in the 2020-2021 academic year. Participants were recruited using maximum variation sampling, which is a purposive sampling method. The paper adopted a qualitative case study research design to explore what teachers thought about using cooperative learning in science class. Data were collected using a questionnaire consisting of open-ended questions. The data were analyzed using content analysis, which was consistent with the research design. Most participants defined cooperative learning correctly. They had adequate knowledge of teachers' and students' duties and necessary conditions for cooperative learning. They stated that they used cooperative learning in their lectures because they thought that the science course content was suitable for it. However, they were of the opinion that cooperative learning was not equally applicable to all learning areas and units of the science course. Some participants stated that they did not use cooperative learning in their lectures. Most participants who did not use cooperative learning in their lectures stated that they had never received training in or attended seminars on cooperative learning. This result indicated that participants did not know enough about the structure of cooperative learning. The results also showed that participants evaluated the teaching environment in terms of the capacity of the school and the characteristics of students and teachers. Participants believed that cooperative learning helped students develop positive behavior. They addressed the advantages and disadvantages of cooperative learning from different perspectives, such as academic, social, and psychological. They also talked about the challenges of cooperative learning and made suggestions for overcoming those challenges. Key Words: Secondary School Science Course, Cooperative Learning, Teachers' Views