Similarity and difference: Student cooperation in Taiwanese and Australianscience classrooms

In this study, we examine the way in which students cooperate in Taiwanese and Australian science classrooms. We adopt the position that student coope ration is best understood by examining the patterns of variation within and between countries rather than trying to describe similarities and differen ces in essential terms. A critical analysis of large-scale learning environ ment questionnaire data combined with in-depth interview and observational data leads to several findings about the nature of student cooperation in t he two countries. We conclude that students from Taiwan and Australia have a range of understandings and interpretations about what it means to cooper ate in science classrooms. There are complex connections between cooperativ e behavior, student academic ability, sex, and nationality, which are best understood in socio-cultural terms. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sci Ed 85:694- 711. 2001.