COOPERATIVE LEARNING VS. DIRECT INSTRUCTION IN YOUTH SPORT: EFFECTS ON CHILDREN’S MOTOR LEARNING

Abstract

Cooperative Learning promotes peer teaching that fosters active learner engagement and better retention and usefulness of knowledge. Research has shown that Cooperative Learning has a positive impact on motor learning in PE students. The aim of this study was to investigate whether Cooperative Learning is a more appropriate teaching approach for use in youth competitive athletics to improve children’s motor learning, compared to the Direct Instruction used so far. Using cluster random assignment, twelve Slovenian track and field groups (140 young athletes) were divided into an experimental group that completed three Cooperative Learning units (30 training sessions) and a control group. The children’s performances in four track and field skills were recorded and rated by three qualified assessors. A pretest-posttest research design was used. Nested analyses of covariance were conducted to examine whether the model (Cooperative Learning vs. Direct Instruction) affected posttest scores, adjusting for the average age of children and their track and field proficiency at baseline. Significant differences in favour of Cooperative Learning were found for three variables: track and field skills, low skipping, and crouch start. We found that Cooperative Learning is very effective in improving motor learning in youth competitive athletics and even more effective than Direct Instruction. The cooperative nature of the studied pedagogical model promotes peer teaching, giving feedback and taking responsibility, which has a more positive effect on the young athletes’ sports skills than the traditional teaching method.