Social Interdependence and Perceived Academic and Personal Support in the Classroom

Summary Responses to a classroom climate instrument made by 859 students in grades 5 through 9 in three urban and suburban Midwestern school districts were submitted to correlational analyses of relationships between scales measuring attitudes toward social interdependence and attitudes towards relationships with peers and teachers. Students who participated frequently in cooperative learning experiences were compared with students who had only infrequently experienced cooperative learning. Cooperativeness and frequently participating in cooperative learning situations were positively related to perceptions of support, help, and friendship from teachers and peers.