Effects of introducing the cooperative learning approach in Kosovo’s secondary school physics

Naser Shala; Jerneja Pavlin

doi:10.29333/ejmste/16716

Full Text (PDF)

Naser Shala ¹ , Jerneja Pavlin ¹ ^*

More Detail

¹ Faculty of Education, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, SLOVENIA^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

Kosovo ranks among the lowest in PISA science assessments. This may be due to the dominance of frontal work (FW) in secondary school science subjects, which leads to low student interest in these subjects. The cooperative learning (CL) approach, however, is a widely recognized pedagogical method that fosters engagement and enhances learning. This study aimed to examine the effects of CL on secondary school students’ achievements in physics lessons, particularly in thermodynamics. Key factors such as interest, social skills, and logical thinking were considered in understanding students’ achievements. A quasi-experimental pre-post design was employed, with data collected through paper-and-pencil tests assessing knowledge and logical thinking, as well as questionnaires on student interest and social skills. The study included 135 15-year-old students, divided into two groups: experimental (CL) and control (FW). The results revealed that the CL group significantly outperformed the FW group on the knowledge test, with notable improvements in students’ interest in physics and social skills. The study suggests that physics teachers adopt CL strategies to achieve multiple educational objectives.

Keywords

cooperative learning
physics education
secondary school
social skills
student achievements
student interest

License

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, Volume 21, Issue 8, August 2025, Article No: em2682

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/16716

Publication date: 01 Aug 2025

Article Views: 546

Article Downloads: 208

Open Access References How to cite this article

References

Altun, S. (2015). The effect of cooperative learning on students’ achievement and views on the science and technology course. International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education, 7(3), 451-468.
Aryanti, Y., & Widodo, E. (2020). The effectiveness of student team achievement divisions (STAD) cooperative learning in science learning on analysis skills and social skills. Journal of Science Education Research, 4(1), 22-27. https://doi.org/10.21831jser.v4i1.34237
Astalini, A. K. (2021). Description of student response on the implementation of cooperative learning models of jigsaw and role playing on the physics learning. Jurnal Pendidikan Fisika Indonesia, 17(1), 77-85. https://doi.org/10.15294/jpfi.v17i1.24315
Beka, A. (2014). Partial or comprehensive reform of the education system in Kosovo: Overcoming students difficulties in learning through new teaching strategies. Journal of Educational and Social Research, 4(4), 509-514. https://doi.org/10.21831/jser.v4i1.34237
Berisha, F. (2020). Chemistry education in Kosovo: Issues, challenges, and time for action. CEPS Journal, 10(1), 125-144. https://doi.org/10.26529/cepsj.728
Bilgin, I. (2006). The effects of hands-on activities incorporating a cooperative learning approach on eighth grade students’ science process skills and attitudes toward science. Journal of Baltic Science Education, 5(1), 27-37. https://www.scientiasocialis.lt/jbse/files/pdf/vol5/27-37.Bilgin_JBSE_Vol.5_No.1.pdf
Blajvaz, B. K., Bogdanović, I. Z., Jovanović, T. S., Stanisavljević, J. D., & Pavkov-Hrvojević, M. V. (2022). The jigsaw technique in lower secondary physics education: Students’ achievement, metacognition and motivation. Journal of Baltic Science Education, 21(4), 545-557. https://doi.org/10.33225/jbse/22.21.545
Burgess, A., & Matar, E. (2020). Team-based learning (TBL): Theory, planning, practice, and implementation. In D. Nestel, G. Reedy, L. McKenna, & S. Gough (Eds.), Clinical education for the health professions (pp. 1-29). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6106-7_128-1
Cámara-Zapata, J., & Morales, D. (2020). Cooperative learning, student characteristics, and persistence: An experimental study in an engineering physics course. European Journal of Engineering Education, 45(4), 565-577. https://doi.org/10.1080/03043797.2019.1569593
Coca, D. M. (2013). The influence of teaching methodologies in the learning of thermodynamics in secondary education. Journal of Baltic Science Education, 12(1), 59-72. https://doi.org/10.33225/jbse/13.12.59
Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychological Bulletin, 112(1), 155-159. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.112.1.155
Devetak, I., & Glažar, S. A. (2010). The influence of 16-year-old students’ gender, mental abilities, and motivation on their reading and drawing submicrorepresentations achievements. International Journal of Science Education, 32(12), 1561-1593. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500690903150609
Eshetu, F., Gebeyehu, D., & Alemu, M. (2017). Effects of cooperative learning method on secondary school students’ physics achievement. International Journal of Multidisciplinary and Current research, 5, 669-676.
Estébanez, R. P. (2017). An approachment to cooperative learning in higher education: Comparative study of teaching methods in engineering. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 13(5), 1331-1340. https://doi.org/10.12973/eurasia.2017.00673a
Fischer, H. E., & Kauertz, A. (2022). Professional competencies for teaching physics. In H. E. Fischer, & R. Girwidz (Eds.), Physics education (pp. 25-53). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87391-2_2
Furtak, M. E., Seidel, T., Iverson, H., & Briggs, D. C. (2012). Experimental and quasi-experimental studies of inquiry-based science teaching: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 82(3), 300-329. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654312457206
Gillies, R. M. (2016). Cooperative learning: Review of research and practice. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 41(3), 39-54. https://doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2016v41n3.3
Hake, R. R. (1998). Interactive-engagement versus traditional methods: A six-thousand-student survey of mechanics test data for introductory physics courses. American Journal of Physics, 66(1), 64-74. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.18809
Hassidov, D. (2019). How the teaching method (alternative/frontal) affects the achievement in mathematics for boys and girls from the fourth to the sixth grade, learning in a computer-supported environment. Creative Education, 10(7), 1425-1443.
https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2019.107105
Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. T. (1993). Implementing cooperative learning. Education Digest, 58(8), 62-66.
Johnson, D. W., Maruyama, G., Johnson, N. R., & Skon, L. (1981). Effects of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic goal structures on achievement: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 89(1), 47-62. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.89.1.47
Johnson, S. M., & Smith, J. A. (2020). Enhancing social skills in adolescents: A practical guide for educators. Journal of Applied Education, 23(2), 87-102.
Jugović, I. (2017). Students’ gender-related choices and achievement in physics. CEPS Journal, 7(2), 71-95. https://doi.org/10.26529/cepsj.170
Kagan, S. (1999). Cooperative learning: Seventeen pros and seventeen cons plus ten tips for success. Kagan Publishing.
Karacop, A. (2017). The effects of using jigsaw method based on cooperative learning model in the undergraduate science laboratory practices. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 5(3), 420-434. https://doi.org/10.13189/ujer.2017.050314
Karanezi, X. (2014). Primary and lower secondary school teachers: Teachers’ attitudes and perceptions about traditional teaching methodologies and modern teaching methodologies according to RWCT. Creative Education, 5(16), Article 1567. https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2014.516173
Kibirige, I., & Lehong, M. J. (2016). The effect of cooperative learning on grade 12 learners’ performance in projectile motions, South Africa. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 12(9), 2543-2556. https://doi.org/10.12973/eurasia.2016.1250a
Kilpeläinen-Pettersson, J., Koskinen, P., Lehtinen, A., & et al. (2025). Cooperative learning in higher education physics–A systematic literature review. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10763-024-10538-3
Lavonen, J., Ávalos, B., Upadyaya, K., Araneda, S., Juuti, K., Cumsille, P., Inkinen, J., & Aro, K. S. (2021). Upper secondary students’ situational interest in physics learning in Finland and Chile. International Journal of Science Education, 43(16), 2577-2596. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2021.1978011
Lee, M. C., & Sulejman, F. (2018). The effectiveness of practical work on students’ interest towards learning physics. In Proceedings of the 9^th International Conference on Business, Management, Law and Education (pp. 244-249).
Lestari, F., Saryantono, B., Syazali, M., Saregar, A., Madiyo, M., Jauhariyah, D., & Rofiqul, U. (2019). Cooperative learning application with the method of “network tree concept map”: Based on Japanese learning system approach. Journal for the Education of Gifted Young Scientists, 7(1), 15-32. https://doi.org/10.17478/jegys.548350
Li, R., Cao, Y., Tang, H., & Kaiser, G. (2024). Teachers’ scaffolding behavior and visual perception during cooperative learning. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 22(2), 333-352. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10763-023-10379-6
Macpherson, A. (2015). Cooperative learning group activities for college courses. Kwantlen Polytechnic University.
Manolas, E., & Leal Filho, W. (2011). The use of cooperative learning in dispelling student misconceptions on climate change. Journal of Baltic Science Education, 10(3), 168-182.
Mendo-Lázaro, S., León-del-Barco, B., Felipe-Castaño, E., Polo-del-Río, M.-I., & Iglesias-Gallego, D. (2018). Cooperative team learning and the development of social skills in higher education: The variables involved. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01536
MEST. (2016). Core curriculum for upper secondary education in Kosovo (grades X, XI, and XII). Ministry of Education Science and Technology. https://masht.rks-gov.net/uploads/2017/03/korniza-berthame-3-final.pdf
MEST. (2019). June term test. Ministry of Education Science and Technology. https://masht.rks-gov.net/testet-e-afatit-te-qershorit/
Meulenbroeks, R., van Rijn, R., & Reijerkerk, M. (2024). Fostering secondary school science students’ intrinsic motivation by inquiry-based learning. Research in Science Education, 54(3), 339-358. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-023-10139-0
Nugroho, S. E. (2020). Physics experiment activities to stimulate interest in learning physics and reasoning in high school students. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1567(2), Article 022069. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1567/2/022069
Nunnally, J. C., & Bernstein, I. H. (1994). Psychometric theory (3rd ed.). McGraw-Hill.
OECD. (2023). PISA 2022. OECD. https://www.oecd.org/publication/pisa-2022-results/country-notes/kosovo-1f99d575/
Olabiyi, S. O., & Awofala, O. A. (2019). Effect of cooperative learning strategy on senior secondary school students’ achievement in woodwork technology. Acta Didactica Napocensia, 12(2), 171-182. https://doi.org/10.24193/adn.12.2.13
Omeodu, M. D., & Utuh, B. N. (2018). Effects of cooperative learning strategy on secondary school physics students’ understanding of the concept of radioactivity. International Journal of Education and Evaluation, 4(4), 37-58.
Pallant, J. (2020). SPSS survival manual: A step by step guide to data analysis using IBM SPSS (7th ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003117452
Pupovci, D. (2019). Kosovo. Institute for Education Policy. http://jhir.library.jhu.edu/handle/1774.2/63030
Raviv, A., Cohen, S., & Aflalo, E. (2019). How should students learn in the school science laboratory? The benefits of cooperative learning. Research in Science Education, 49, 331-345. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-017-9618-2
Rizkia, A., Anfa, Q., & Meng, H. (2021). Meta-analysis of various collaborative learning background in natural science teaching and learning process. INSECTA: Integrative Science Education and Teaching Activity Journal, 2(2), 181-190. https://doi.org/10.21154/insecta.v2i2.3474
Saidi, S. S. (2019). Investigating the validity and reliability of survey attitude towards statistics instrument among rural secondary school students. International Journal of Educational Methodology, 5(4), 651-661. https://doi.org/10.12973/ijem.5.4.651
Shaby, N., Assaraf, O. B. Z., & Koch, N. P. (2024). Students’ interactions during laboratory group activity in a science museum. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 22(4), 703-720. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10763-023-10404-8
Sharan, S. (2002). Differentiating methods of cooperative learning in research and practice. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 22(1), 106-116. https://doi.org/10.1080/0218879020220111
Taber, K. S. (2014). Constructing active learning in chemistry: Concepts, cognition and conceptions. I. Inevetak, & S. Glažar (Eds.), Learning with understanding in the chemistry classroom (pp. 5-23). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4366-3_1
Tobin, K., & Capie, W. (1981). The development and validation of a group test of logical thinking. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 41(2), 413-423. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316448104100220
Tobin, K., & Capie, W. (1984). The test of logical thinking. Journal of Science and Mathematics Education in Southeast Asia, 7(1), 5-9.
Ugwuanyi, C. S., Chukwuebuka, C. N., Ugochukwu, C. E., & Ngozi, E. O. (2020). Effect of flipped classroom and think pair share strategy on achievement and retention among senior secondary school physics students. International Journal of Sciences: Basic and Applied Research, 52(2), 136-148.
Uslu, E. M., & Salih, G. Z. (2021). Social skills scale development study. Educational Policy Analysis and Strategic Research, 16(4), 110-126. https://doi.org/10.29329/epasr.2021.383.6
Valanides, N. (1997). Formal reasoning abilities and school achievement. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 23(2), 169-185. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-491X(97)00011-4
Yavuz, O., & Arslan, A. (2018). Cooperative learning in acquisition of the English language skills. European Journal of Educational Research, 7(3), 591-600. https://doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.7.3.591
Yuliani, H., Normilawati, Adani, T., & Aulia, M. (2021). Advantages and disadvantages of applying the NHT type cooperative learning model physics learning in school. Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan Fisika, 5(1), 55-61. https://doi.org/10.20527/jipf.v5i1.2822
Zarei, A. A., & Layeq, H. (2016). EFL learners’ use of direct strategies in competitive and cooperative learning contexts. European Journal of Educational Research, 5(1), 19-225. https://doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.5.1.19
Zhai, Y., & Liu, X. (2024). Science career expectation and science-related motivation: A latent profile analysis using PISA 2015 data. International Journal of Science Education, 47(11), 1401-1427. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2024.2366045
Zhou, Y., Jiang, Z., Chiang, F. K., & Leng, C. (2024). Impact of school-enterprise cooperative informal STEM learning on the STEM career intention of female high school students. Research in Science Education, 55, 231-250. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-024-10205-1

How to cite this article

APA

Shala, N., & Pavlin, J. (2025). Effects of introducing the cooperative learning approach in Kosovo’s secondary school physics. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 21(8), em2682. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/16716

Vancouver

Shala N, Pavlin J. Effects of introducing the cooperative learning approach in Kosovo’s secondary school physics. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2025;21(8):em2682. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/16716

AMA

Shala N, Pavlin J. Effects of introducing the cooperative learning approach in Kosovo’s secondary school physics. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2025;21(8), em2682. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/16716

Chicago

Shala, Naser, and Jerneja Pavlin. "Effects of introducing the cooperative learning approach in Kosovo’s secondary school physics". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 2025 21 no. 8 (2025): em2682. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/16716

Harvard

Shala, N., and Pavlin, J. (2025). Effects of introducing the cooperative learning approach in Kosovo’s secondary school physics. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 21(8), em2682. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/16716

MLA

Shala, Naser et al. "Effects of introducing the cooperative learning approach in Kosovo’s secondary school physics". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, vol. 21, no. 8, 2025, em2682. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/16716