The use of a cooperative approach to enhance learner performance in life orientation

Education in the 21st century has had an evolutionary impact on teachers’ teaching approaches in South African schools. Teachers are continuously faced with challenges in improving teaching and learning approaches in response to addressing the particular needs of a diverse group of learners. With this article we aimed to explore life orientation teachers’ use of a cooperative teaching and learning approach to enhance learners’ performance in secondary schools. A qualitative research design was employed with an interpretivist-constructivist paradigm to obtain the views of the secondary teachers who responded via face-to-face interviews. We employed purposive convenient sampling of seven (N = 7) teachers from the Northern Cape province in South Africa. Data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis and supported by the literature review and the theory underpinning this study. Findings of this study reveal that some teachers were favourably implementing cooperative teaching methods, despite the lack of resources and many other challenges they faced. School managers must infuse cooperative learning in their daily teaching praxis to ensure that teachers become confident and continuously employ this approach.