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More targeted needs being met!

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Students feel more comfortable talking with their peers and asking for clarification on a subject

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Students retain information better when working in small groups.

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Allows the students to be more comfortable.  It is also a good break away from traditional direct teach instruction.

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Allows the students to be more comfortable.  It is also a good break away from traditional direct teach instruction.

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Students are able to give and receive feedback from their peers.

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Students are more willing to listen to each other than to a teacher. Sometimes the students teach each other better than we do.

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Dr. Spencer Kagan

To cite this article: Kagan, S. The "P" and "I" of PIES: Powerful Principles for Success. San Clemente, CA: Kagan Publishing. Kagan Online Magazine, Fall/Winter 2011. www.KaganOnline.com

Positive interdependence and individual accountability are two of the four basic principles of cooperative learning. We use the acronym PIES to stand for the four principles: Positive Interdependence, Individual Accountability, Equal Participation, and Simultaneous Interaction. Here, we will focus only on the P and I of PIES. We examine three questions: How do these two principles relate to each other? What are the primary ways to put the principles in place? How do different cooperative learning structures include the P and I of PIES?

By deepening our understanding of the basic principles-how to ensure they are in place, how they relate to each other, and how they are built into Kagan Structures-we can more consistently provide successful cooperative learning experiences for our students and will understand ways we can and cannot modify structures without compromising their integrity. The PIES principles are built into each Kagan Structure. If we leave out a step, we can leave out a basic principle, increasing tremendously the probability that not all students will support each other, become motivated, become fully engaged, and learn. An understanding of the principles is critical if we are to consistently provide successful activities for our students.

Before examining the relationship of positive interdependence and individual accountability to each other and to structures, let's take some time to carefully define the two concepts.

I. Definitions

Individual Accountability

Let's start with the simpler principle-individual accountability. Robert Slavin at Johns Hopkins University examined cooperative learning studies and discovered that gains were dependent on the presence of positive interdependence and individual accountability. That is, when individual accountability was present along with positive interdependence, almost without exception cooperative learning produced achievement gains. If individual accountability was not present, results were mixed, often with no positive results. On the basis of this research, individual accountability became accepted as a basic principle of cooperative learning.

What do we mean by individual accountability? Individual accountability is present if three conditions are present: 1) a student performs on his/her own; 2) the performance or the product of the performance must be seen by someone else; and 3) the individual performance is required. To summarize these conditions we define individual accountability as "An individual, public performance is required."

When we tell students "This will be on the test," they perk up and take better notes. Why? They know they will be held accountable for that content. On their own, they will take a required test. If we told them during the test they can ask others for help, they would be less motivated to master the content. We would have left out the individual performance component. If we told them the test is for them alone to grade and evaluate, they would be less motivated to master the content. We would have left out the public component. If we told them the test was optional, they would be less motivated to master the content. We would have left out the required component. For individual accountability to be in place, all three components must be present: An individual, public performance is required.

Individual accountability drives achievement. When we know we will be held accountable for an individual performance we are more motivated and try harder than when we know no one will see how much we have learned or how well we can perform.

Positive Interdependence

There are two main components of positive interdependence, one corresponding to the word positive and the other corresponding to the word interdependence.

Positive. The word positive in the term positive interdependence is based on extensive research demonstrating that cooperation almost always results when there is a positive correlation among outcomes. There are numerous ways to structure interaction in the classroom so there is a positive correlation among outcomes. For example, if we tell students they will all get an ice cream treat if every student scores above 90 on a quiz, students will encourage, tutor, and hope for the success of their classmates. They will feel they are on the same side. Why? The outcomes of students are linked; they are positively correlated. As the quiz score of each student goes up, it increases the probability all students will get the treat. A positive correlation among outcomes is created also by team projects. For example, if students create a team mind map, they feel they are on the same side, hoping for positive contributions from each teammate. Why? The outcomes of students are linked; the better the contribution of any teammate, the better their team mind map.

"Interdependence occurs when help is necessary."

Interdependence. The word interdependence in the term positive interdependence refers literally to situations in which students must depend on each other. My favorite example comes from my own childhood. When I was a child, back in the day of metal skates, the skates were designed to slide open or shut to fit foot size. It was possible to take off the nut so the front and back of the skate could be separated. When we wanted to make a skateboard, often one kid would have a board and another a skate. We would nail the front of the skate on the front of the board and the back of the skate on the back of the board to complete our skateboard. This is a perfect example of interdependence: If a child had a skate but no board, she/he could not ride a skateboard; if a child had a board but no skate, she/he could not ride a skateboard. Only if we pooled our resources could we get the ride we wanted. Success depended on the contribution of each. No one alone could complete the task. Thus we say, "Interdependence occurs when help is necessary."

In the classroom, if we set up a task where one or two students can do it without the contributions of the others on the team, the students are not fully interdependent. Interdependence occurs when a contribution of each is necessary for success.

Positive interdependence drives cooperation. When our outcomes are linked, we hope for and support the success of others; when we cannot do a task alone, we work with others.

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kagan publishing teaching catalog teacher resources school supplies music games cooperative learning differentiated instruction educational products esl ell foreign language posters multiple intelligences textbooks math books science literature social studies

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Dr. Spencer Kagan To cite this article: Kagan, S. The "P" and "I" of PIES: Powerful Principles for Success. San Clemente, CA: Kagan Publishing. Kagan Online Magazine, Fall/Winter 2011. www.KaganOnline.com Positive interdependence and individual accountability are two of the four basic principles of cooperative learning.

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Students feel more comfortable in asking questions in a small group.

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Students feel more comfortable in asking questions in a small group.

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kids learn when they are talking about the subject

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kids learn when they are talking about the subject

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You have the opportunity to meet your students needs.

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Quickly see what needs correcting, where the misconception is happening

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Quickly see what needs correcting, where the misconception is happening

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Students can work collaboratively and can make connections with one another. They learn from each other. 

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Students can work collaboratively and can make connections with one another. They learn from each other. 

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Small group instruction allows students to understand targeted instruction  and it is easier for teachers to monitor and adjust instruction.

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More focused, easier to check for understanding, higher engagement,

# data[].attributes.headline
Match students with similar abilities for strategies

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Match students with similar abilities for strategies

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Easy to check for understanding and help identify struggling learns and those who may be understanding the content, you can then create groups with both struggling learners and those  who understand the topic

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Instruction can be more focused and targeted.

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Students have the opportunity to learn new ideas, which are pitched around by different bodies of students.

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Students can receive more personalized instruction.

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Builds collaboration in class, makes students want to finish the assignment on time as a group.

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Helps my students gain different views and teach.

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Ability to address misconceptions immediately

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Ability to address misconceptions immediately

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Social skills building.

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Small group allows you to target students having issues.

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collaboration, high level thinking, higher retention rate of info. Kids who can teach the info truly understand it. Helps ELL students.

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Meets the needs of all students.  You get to know where each child is.  Can be done easily if classroom is set up in stations.

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You can easily differentiate to any level a student is at: low, high, and everything in between. You can use different styles of learning at different stations. You also get more done in a shorter amount of time.

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Meets the needs of individual students.
Greate amount of face time with students

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Qui students have the opportunity to respond, and increase comprehension.

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Qui students have the opportunity to respond, and increase comprehension.

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Students are more comfortable partici

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Reteaching and Peer teaching

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You can target misconceptions and correct them immediately.

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It allows them to think about the topic and creates interest

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It allows them to think about the topic and creates interest

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differentiation
one on one (almost)
focused

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Small group purposeful talk allows for differentiation and peer tutoring. Many students learn better from peers, and this allows for other students to demonstrate their comprehension having to describe a concept to others.

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If you can talk about it, it enhances understanding. All questions do not have to be directed at teacher; the group can reteach, direct, and help with minor things. Frees up the teacher for major issues/questions.

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Provides opportunities for small group purposeful talk, peer tutoring

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-differentiation for students
-all students have an opportunity to talk
-students receive more 1 on 1 instruction