Introduction

One of the principal goals of educational systems is to create conditions under which students can acquire academic concepts in a deep, meaningful, and enduring manner and apply what they have learned across a variety of contexts. Mathematics, in particular, poses considerable challenges for many elementary school students because of its abstract, hierarchical, and conceptually demanding nature. The use of traditional, teacher-centered instructional methods, in which students primarily assume the role of passive recipients of information, may lead to superficial learning, reduced academic engagement, and limited retention and recall of mathematical concepts.Explicit instruction is a structured instructional strategy in which learning objectives are clearly articulated, instructional content is divided into small and manageable units, and the teacher systematically guides students’ learning through direct explanation, modeling, guided practice, continuous feedback, and formative assessment. By contrast, cooperative learning emphasizes purposeful interaction among students, individual and group accountability, the exchange of ideas, collaborative problem-solving, and active participation in the learning process. The integration of explicit instruction with cooperative learning may therefore combine the clarity and systematic organization of teacher-guided instruction with the cognitive and social benefits of active student participation. Accordingly, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of explicit instruction integrated with a cooperative learning approach on sixth-grade elementary school students’ learning and retention of mathematical concepts.
Method
This study was applied in purpose and employed a quasi-experimental research design. More specifically, a pretest–posttest design with an experimental group and a control group was used. The statistical population consisted of sixth-grade elementary school students. From this population, 50 students were selected through convenience sampling and were subsequently assigned randomly to the experimental and control groups. Efforts were made to ensure that the two groups were as comparable as possible with respect to variables relevant to the study.
Data were collected
using a mathematics learning achievement test designed to assess students’ learning at the pretest and posttest stages. In addition, students’ performance was assessed in terms of retention in order to determine the extent to which the acquired knowledge was maintained over time. Prior to the implementation of the instructional intervention, both groups completed the pretest.Students in the experimental group received instruction through an explicit instruction strategy integrated with cooperative learning over 12 instructional sessions. In contrast, students in the control group were taught the same content through the conventional instructional method. In the control condition, the teacher assumed the primary role in presenting the instructional content, while opportunities for structured student participation were more limited than in the experimental group. Upon completion of the instructional sessions, both groups completed the posttest, and their performance was compared.
Data analysis:
was conducted at both descriptive and inferential levels. At the descriptive level, indices such as the mean and standard deviation were calculated. At the inferential level, analysis of covariance was employed to compare the performance of the experimental and control groups in learning and retention while controlling for the effect of pretest scores.
Findings
The findings indicated that, after controlling for pretest scores, there was a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups in their posttest mean scores for both learning and retention. In other words, students who were taught through explicit instruction integrated with cooperative learning demonstrated superior performance in learning mathematical concepts compared with students who received conventional instruction. Moreover, the experimental group exhibited higher levels of retention and recall than the control group.These findings suggest that the systematic organization of instructional content, the clear communication of learning objectives, the step-by-step presentation of concepts, guided practice, and immediate feedback, when combined with students’ active participation in cooperative group activities, can foster deeper understanding and more effective consolidation of learning. Interaction among students may also have enabled them to examine concepts from multiple perspectives, articulate and justify their answers and solution strategies, and identify and correct errors with the support of their peers and teacher. Such processes may enhance cognitive processing, improve attention and concentration, and facilitate the transfer of information into long-term memory.
Conclusion
Based on the findings of the present study, the integration of explicit instruction with cooperative learning can be regarded as an effective instructional model for improving elementary school students’ learning and retention of mathematical concepts. By establishing a balance between direct teacher guidance and active learner participation, this approach provides the structure required for conceptual understanding while simultaneously engaging students more actively in the learning process.Within this instructional framework, the teacher is not merely a transmitter of information but serves as a guide, facilitator, and provider of constructive feedback. Students, in turn, move beyond a passive role and actively participate in the construction and consolidation of knowledge through collaboration, dialogue, problem-solving, and shared responsibility. It is therefore recommended that elementary school teachers, particularly those involved in mathematics instruction, implement this strategy in a planned and systematic manner and adapt it to students’ cognitive and academic characteristics. Curriculum planners and educational authorities are also encouraged to provide professional development opportunities through which teachers can become familiar with the principles and practical stages of explicit instruction and cooperative learning. The informed and purposeful application of this integrated approach may substantially contribute to improving instructional quality, enhancing student engagement, deepening learning, and promoting the long-term retention of academic content.