Students' attitudes toward the cognitive, social and motivational aspects of cooperative learning in Nature and Society teaching

Abstract

This research paper examines the attitudes of fourth-grade elementary school students toward the cognitive, social, and motivational aspects of cooperative learning within the framework of Nature and Society teaching. The study is non-experimental, descriptive, and mixed-methods in design. A sample of 85 students (41 boys and 44 girls) completed a dual-component instrument consisting of an eight-item Likert-type rating scale and one open-ended question designed to capture students' personal experiences of cooperative group work. Data were analyzed using the SPSS statistical package (version 32.0), employing descriptive statistics, a one-sample t-test, Pearson correlation analysis, and thematic analysis of qualitative responses. The results confirm positive student attitudes toward the cooperative model across all three aspects. Within the cognitive dimension, the majority of students recognized peer interaction as a meaningful support in understanding new content, with 74.1% and 77.7% of students expressing positive attitudes toward the first and second item respectively. The social dimension yielded the highest overall score on the item measuring equal opportunity for every group member to express their opinion (M=4.45), while the item concerning task distribution without conflict recorded the lowest score within this subscale (M=3.75). A significant positive correlation was established between the cognitive and motivational dimensions: students who find it easier to understand the curriculum through peer interaction are simultaneously more motivated to participate in cooperative activities. The greatest variability in responses was observed for the item measuring tolerance toward passive group members (M=3.64, SD=1.44), with 21.2% of students expressing no negative reaction to peer passivity during group work. Thematic analysis of the open-ended responses identified four categories: peer support and social assistance (42.5%), enjoyment and motivation (30.0%), cognitive advantage (26.2%), and preference for individual work (20.0%). Peer support emerged as the most frequently cited advantage of cooperative learning. Although awareness of personal responsibility is well developed, collective responsibility remains in a formative stage, which is interpreted as a developmental characteristic of this age group. The findings point to the potential of cooperative learning to enhance both Nature and Society teaching and the social climate of the classroom, with particular emphasis on the need to strengthen positive interdependence through clearer task distribution and shared group goals.