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accompanied by a large supply of sample lessons, models, and other materials
to help students prepare to collect their data, even including board games,
e.g., one focusing on interview skills.
One of the most difficult aspects of projects concerns the final product
that students produce, in written, graphic, and/or oral form. Chapter
5 opens with a cartoon of two students doing a project presentation on
the theme of sleep while, as is too often the case, their classmates snore
in accompaniment. The chapter then offers prescriptions for creating clear
and lively final products, including an instrument for peer evaluation
of presentations.
Chapter 6 is by far the book's longest chapter. The chapter displays four
projects that have been successfully trailed in Hong Kong schools. In
these projects, students: (1) prepare an orientation for first-year students;
(2) take part in an exchange of information with students at a neighboring
school; (3) interview people in the street - tourists, in this case; and
(4) learn about different cultures. The bulk of each project description
is a rich array of sample materials that can be used in carrying out the
project.
When I pick up a book or a journal article related to group activities,
I often turn first to the reference section, as this may provide a preview
of the ideas I will find in the book or article. In particular, I look
to see if any of the familiar cooperative learning (CL) references show
up or if there are some new works I should know more about. In this book's
reference section, I didn't find any of the usual CL suspects, such as
Expanding Cooperative Learning Through Group Investigationor Learning
Together and Alone, even though many of the book's ideas resonate
with those of CL. Perhaps this represents another example of the saying
that "Great minds think alike".
In conclusion, this book certainly lives up to its subtitle "Practical
guidelines", as the majority of its pages provide readers with field-testedmaterials.
Not only should teachers find the book useful, but so should teacher educators
who wish to present pre-service and in-service teachers with models of
projects as a springboard to thought and discussion. Those of us familiar
with CL may find fresh ideas for organizing projects and will see ways
that the good ideas presented in this book can be enhanced via the application
of CL concepts and techniques. To purchase the book, contact Caves Bookstore
(at Hong Kong Institute of Education). Fax: (852) 2948-0268 Caveswh@netvigator.com.
Cornell, J. (1998). Sharing nature with children (20thanniversary
ed.). Nevada
City, CA: Dawn Publications. ISBN 1-8832220-73-4 Pp. 173.
Cornell, J. (1989). Sharing nature with children II. Nevada
City, CA: Dawn
Publications. ISBN 1-8832220-87-4 Pp. 165.
The IASCE newsletter is the successor of sorts to IASCE's Cooperative
Learning magazine. The theme of Volume 15, No. 2, 1995, of that magazine
is "Cooperative learning beyond the classroom". This issue, guest edited
by Clifford E. Knapp, has many articles about combining cooperative learning
and environmental education.
Interdependence is a key concept in cooperative learning. Roger and David
Johnson call positive interdependence "the heart of cooperative learning".
Nowhere is interdependence more obvious (unfortunately, often painfully
obvious) than in the relationship of humans with the rest of the environment.
Thus, environmental education provides fertile ground for cooperative
learning.
These two books by environmental educator Joseph Cornell offer many ways
for us and our students to appreciate nature and enhance our feeling of
interconnectedness with nature. Not surprisingly, one of Knapp's books
[Knapp, C., & Goodman, J. (1981). Humanizing environmental education.
Martinsville, IN: American Camping Association] is cited by Cornell.
 
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