Building intercultural competences through cooperative learning Action research as a tool for teachers’ training

Abstract

The article describes the theoretical framework, the methodology and the results of an educational research in the field of intercultural education.
The aims of this research are to understand how teachers define intercultural competence and the possibility of planning curricula that contribute to develop it within mainstream teaching activities, focusing on the use of cooperative learning methods (in the approach of the Group Investigation) in the classroom. The question that arises is whether CL is an effective methodology to acquire intercultural competence. The research involves 18 self-selected teachers and eight classes for a total of 175 students. The specific aim of this article is to explore how action-research
can enhance teachers’ practices, in particular toward diversity, by
applying the theory to the daily pedagogical practice and by using selfobservation and other-observation in their work. Actually, using cooperative learning methods, the teachers are required to a systematic and continuous reflection on the experience and on group dynamics in the classroom. Furthermore, they become more sensitive about specific tensions and situations within the classroom. Secondly, cooperative learning methods emphasise the differences in the classroom because the students are encouraged to work together and to discover new aspects – not necessarily positive ones – concerning each other.