Students learn with and from each other. Groups are structured so every member contributes, thinking is shared, and collaboration produces something no one could reach alone.
The arc has two movements. Collaboration becomes more interdependent. And ownership shifts, from the teacher structuring groups to students managing their own. A practice reaches Sustaining when every student contributes and collaboration is genuinely interdependent.
Evidence base: cooperative learning research, collaborative learning and accountable talk, and the social construction of knowledge.
Start with the goal
Know group roles and the talk moves of productive collaboration.
Understand that interdependence produces thinking no one reaches alone.
Do contribute accountably and build knowledge with peers.
Equity and BelongingGroup work can hide inequity when a few do the thinking. Equitable collaboration builds in individual accountability and structures so every voice carries weight.
Technology and AIAI enhances learning only through critical use and evaluation. Each practice names what that looks like. Treat outputs as drafts, check for accuracy, bias, and false agreement, decide when not to use the tool, protect your own thinking, and disclose how you used it.
Paired practices
1Group structures
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Groups students with no clear task purpose.
Groups students with a loose task.
Structures groups to support the objective.
Designs group tasks that cannot be done alone.
Student
Sit together without collaborating.
Collaborate loosely.
Collaborate toward the objective.
Depend on each other to finish.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to design a collaborative task that requires interdependence, then verify it.
- Ask AI to structure roles for a group task, then judge the fit.
Student
- Use AI to clarify a shared task, then collaborate on the thinking.
- Ask AI for the task framing, then do the group work together.
How to measureJudge whether the task can be done alone; a task that requires the group is Sustaining.
2Individual accountability
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Lets one or two students carry the group.
Holds some members accountable.
Assigns each member an accountable part.
Builds in checks that surface each member's contribution.
Student
Let others do the work.
Contribute part of the work.
Own a clear part.
Show their individual contribution.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to build individual-accountability checks into a group task, then verify them.
- Ask AI for ways to surface each member's contribution.
Student
- Use AI to prepare their own part, then bring it to the group themselves.
- Use AI to check their contribution, not to do a peer's share.
How to measureLook for evidence of each member's contribution; checks that surface every contribution are Sustaining.
3Positive interdependence
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Designs tasks doable alone.
Designs tasks done side by side.
Designs tasks that reward working together.
Designs tasks where the group succeeds or fails together.
Student
Could finish alone.
Work in parallel.
Need peers to do well.
Succeed only through teamwork.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to design tasks with interdependent parts, then verify no one can skip the group.
- Ask AI for jigsaw-style structures, then judge them.
Student
- Use AI to understand their piece of a jigsaw, then teach it to the group.
- Verify their part with AI, then rely on peers for the rest.
How to measureNote whether the task rewards working together or could be done solo; group-success-or-fail design is Sustaining.
4Quality of academic talk
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Allows off-task or one-word talk.
Prompts on-task talk.
Provides stems so talk uses evidence.
Has students press each other's reasoning.
Student
Talk off-task or in single words.
Talk about the task.
Use evidence and build on peers' ideas.
Challenge and extend each other's reasoning.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to generate accountable-talk stems, then verify they prompt reasoning.
- Ask AI for discussion protocols, then judge their value.
Student
- Use AI to prepare a point before discussing, then reason live with peers.
- Use AI to test an argument, then debate it with the group.
How to measureSample group talk for evidence and reasoning; off-task or one-word talk is lower, pressing each other's reasoning is Sustaining.
5Roles and responsibilities
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Assigns no roles.
Assigns roles that are loosely held.
Assigns rotating roles that support the work.
Has students define and adapt roles.
Student
Work without roles.
Hold a loose role.
Carry out a rotating role.
Shape roles to fit the task.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to suggest task-aligned roles, then verify they distribute thinking.
- Ask AI to balance roles across a project, then judge it.
Student
- Use AI to understand their role, then perform it with the group.
- Adjust roles with peers, using AI only to organize.
How to measureNote whether roles exist, rotate, and are student-shaped; student-defined roles are Sustaining.
6Equitable participation
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Lets a few voices dominate.
Distributes participation to about half.
Uses structures so most participate.
Uses structures so every student contributes.
Student
A few do the talking.
About half participate.
Most participate through structures.
All contribute real thinking.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to design turn-taking structures, then verify they include everyone.
- Ask AI for ways to draw in quiet members.
Student
- Rehearse with AI privately, then contribute to the group.
- Multilingual learners draft with AI in their home language, then share.
How to measureTrack the share of students contributing; a few dominating is lower, all contributing is Sustaining.
7Collaborative problem-solving
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Has groups split and recombine work.
Has groups merge parts at the end.
Has groups solve a problem together.
Has groups reach consensus through reasoned debate.
Student
Divide and recombine.
Merge parts late.
Solve the problem together.
Debate to a shared solution.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to design a problem with multiple valid paths, then verify it invites debate.
- Ask AI for consensus protocols, then judge them.
Student
- Use AI to surface options, then decide together as a group.
- Use AI to test a group solution, then judge it collectively.
How to measureNote whether groups split work or reason to consensus; debate to a shared solution is Sustaining.
8Peer teaching and feedback
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Includes no peer teaching.
Allows occasional peer help.
Builds in peer teaching and feedback.
Makes skilled peer teaching and critique routine.
Student
Work in isolation.
Help a peer sometimes.
Teach and give feedback to peers.
Routinely teach and critique each other.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to model strong peer feedback, then verify it is specific and kind.
- Ask AI for protocols, then judge their fit.
Student
- Use AI to sharpen feedback for a peer, then ensure it is honest.
- Compare AI feedback to their own, then weigh both.
How to measureObserve peer teaching and critique and how routine; skilled, routine peer teaching is Sustaining.
9Self-managed groups
Emerging
Developing
Embedded
Sustaining
Teacher
Manages all group logistics.
Has students manage with heavy guidance.
Has students manage within a structure.
Has students form and run groups independently.
Student
Rely on the teacher to run the group.
Manage with support.
Run the group within a frame.
Self-organize effective groups.
AI in practice critical use and evaluation
Teacher
- Use AI to give groups a self-management checklist, then verify it builds independence.
- Ask AI for group-norm templates, then judge them.
Student
- Use AI to plan group logistics, then run the meeting themselves.
- Use AI to organize, not to replace the group's decisions.
How to measureNote how much the teacher runs the logistics; students forming and running groups is Sustaining.
Planning and setting
Design moves that set up the practices above.
Clarity of the learning goal
Every lesson opens from a clear goal. Emerging: the objective is implicit. Developing: the objective is stated. Embedded: a clear know, understand, and do is shared with success criteria. Sustaining: students can state the goal and criteria in their own words.
Designing for interdependence
Plans tasks and roles so collaboration is required and individual accountability is built in.
Teaching collaboration skills
Plans to teach and practice talk moves, roles, and protocols rather than assuming students can collaborate.
Evidence and measurement
Each practice above carries its own measure. These are the primary evidence sources for the component as a whole.
Evidence for this component
- Group task design showing interdependence and roles.
- Observation of participation and the quality of academic talk.
- Individual-accountability artifacts and student peer feedback.