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Changing, Evolving and Improving Together Alka Gupta* Cooperative learning is an educational concept that really took of in the early 1990s, and it has evolved ever since. Tis teaching approach involves placing students in small groups or teams to complete work tasks, projects or tests. Working together in a group or teamwork is a soft skill that is highly valued in the job market. Technology tasks provide an opportunity where teamwork could be encouraged, not merely for completing a project with pre-determined goals but also for learning to work and operate as a team. Today’s schools and educational institutions are charged with preparing students for future job markets and empowering them with a wide range of skills and knowledge. To prepare students for today’s digital world and global economy, teachers must deliver information in varied and innovative ways to enrich their teaching. Humans naturally have a tendency to work in groups and in our social interactions with others, we communicate ± attempt to transmit our ideas, thoughts and emotions to others through verbal and non-verbal ways. Goal-oriented activities are important for learning. Despite the demonstrated importance of communication, socialization and teamwork for all-round development, there is limited appreciation for skills needed for collaboration which need to be deliberately fostered in the context of classroom activities. Tere have been few studies done in the classroom environment that focus on communication and collaboration aspects (Edwards, 2005) and hence there is a need for research in classroom contexts with students engaged collaboratively in meaningful tasks. By its very nature, Design and Technology (D and T) is a social and collaborative endeavour and this aspect needs to be refected in D and T education. Te need for technical skills combined with soft skills such as, skills of communication, negotiation, teamwork, social-esteem and self-management is being increasingly stressed by modern organizations. On the other hand, collaborative learning is a process meant to facilitate the accomplishment of a specifc end product or goal through people working together in groups. In the collaborative learning, the teacher still controls most of what is going on in the class, even if the students are working in groups. Collaborative learning is aimed at getting the students to take almost full responsibility for working together, building knowledge together, changing and evolving together and of course, improving together. Gender also infuences the processes involved in collaborations and the transition from observing to doing a task, as perceptions of teamwork may difer between boys and girls. Te benefts of collaborative learning According to proponents of collaborative learning, the fact that students are actively exchanging, debating and negotiating ideas within their groups increases students’ interest in learning. Importantly, by engaging in discussion and taking responsibility for their learning, students are encouraged to become critical thinkers. Many researchers have reported that students working in small groups tend to learn more of what is being taught. Moreover, they retain the information longer and also appear more satisfed with their classes. * Principal, Smt. Brahmadevi Saraswati Balika Vidya Mandir, Senior Secondary School, Hapur, Uttar Pradesh 20 Collaborative Learning