Influence of Collaborative Learning on the Conceptualization of Ideas, Application of Acquired Ideas, and Academic Performance of Undergraduates

Abstract

An active engagement involving undergraduates working together to solve problems is unrestrained nowadays. This study presents the influence of collaborative learning on the first two cognitive components of critical thinking (i.e. conceptualization of ideas and application of acquired ideas) and the academic performance of undergraduates in three Departments at the Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA), Nigeria. A reliable and valid instrument was developed and presented in this report to measure the first two cognitive components of critical thinking (CT), a major innovation agent. A random selection of 318 students from the Departments of Mathematical Sciences, Computer Science and Statistics were considered to respond to the instrument. Kruskal-Wallis H test, Independent t-test, and One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were adopted to analyse information extracted from the questionnaires. It is worth concluding that male students applied acquired ideas/knowledge more than their female counterparts. In contrast, their ability to conceptualize ideas and academic performance is the same. Better ability to apply acquired ideas and improvement in the academic performance of the undergraduates are guaranteed at average participation in collaborative learning.