From Individualism and Competition to Cooperation and Solidarity: Can School Change This Paradigm?

• In Event: AERA Research in Progress Roundtable Session Three
  In Invited Roundtable: Research-in-Progress RT076 (Friday)

Abstract

This study examines the potential of Cooperative and Solidarity Learning (CSL) to transform schooling from a paradigm of individualism and competition to one of cooperation and solidarity. Rooted in Social Interdependence Theory and Freire’s pedagogy of liberation, CSL integrates cooperative learning structures with grassroots practices of community solidarity developed in northeastern Brazil. This one-year mixed-methods study followed first-year high school students through surveys, interviews, and observations to explore how CSL shaped their perceptions of learning, relationships, and agency. Preliminary findings suggest that CSL fosters students’ sense of belonging and agency in the classroom. However, conflict plays a central role in its implementation, requiring patience and skills that must be continuously taught and supported for students to fully engage and thrive.

Author

• Virginia Gomes, University of Maryland