Is collaborative learning the same as cooperative learning?

Applying cooperative and collaborative learning techniques helps children and adolescents to achieve the didactic objectives corresponding to the different subjects in a different and more participatory way than the traditional educational model.

And not only this, these active methodologies also help them to develop a series of competencies. Some of the most outstanding ones are:

• Adaptation and application of the theory learned to everyday situations.

• Autonomy in time planning and task management.

• Responsibility and commitment when carrying out the work assigned to them.

• Creativity.

• Search, evaluation and selection of information.

• Ability to summarize and synthesize.

• Oral and written communication.

• Conflict resolution based on negotiation, respect for other people and their opinions, proposal of improvements, etc.

If you thought that cooperative and collaborative learning were the same, I am sorry to tell you that you are wrong! A priori, they seem to be two very similar learning processes, but you can find some significant differences that, however, do not exclude one from the other, but rather complement each other, being able to be used in an active way depending on various aspects that may surround the specific educational practice. In the following table I will show you the main differences between the two in order to make them as clear as possible.

	COLLABORATIVE LEARNING	COOPERATIVE LEARNING
Educational stages	It is more associated with Higher Education.	It is most associated with Primary and Secondary Education.
Teacher's role	Facilitator. The teacher fosters problem solving and critical thinking among his students, encourages them to be more independent in their learning.	Observer. The teacher proposes, distributes and supervises tasks.
Leadership and responsibilities	Teacher and students share both leadership and responsibilities.	Leadership is centered on the teacher and responsibilities are distributed between the teacher and the students.
Goals	The learning process itself is more important than the outcome of the task, which represents a symbolic action.	It focuses more on the outcome and the achievement of the task objective.

Now that you know the differences between collaborative and cooperative learning, you can choose the most appropriate one for each situation or combine both.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Aprender colaborando. (2016) Aprendizaje Colaborativo vs. Aprendizaje Cooperativo. <https://www.aprendercolaborando.com/aprendizaje-colaborativo-vs-aprendizaje-cooperativo/>

ResourcEd. A Promethean blog. (2017) Collaborative vs. cooperative learning. <https://resourced.prometheanworld.com/collaborative-cooperative-learning/>