The Role of Cooperative Play in Enhancing Social Skills: A Study on Elementary School Students in Indonesia

Abstract

The research aims to analyze the role of cooperative play intervention in enhancing elementary school students' social skills. It was conducted using a mixed method with an explanatory sequential design. The research participants comprised 24 students (12 in the experimental group and 12 in the control group) from one elementary school in Bandung-Indonesia. Both groups were given group-guidance services, but the experimental group received cooperative play and the control group received information services. The research instrument uses a rating scale of students' social skills, referring to the theory of Gresham & Elliot (1990), social skills observation, and social skills interviews. Data analysis uses Microsoft Excel and SPSS version 24 to calculate descriptive and inferential statistics. Qualitative methods (data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion) are also used in analyze the observations and interviews. The research results show that the social skills of students who received group-guidance interventions using cooperative play are more significant and optimal in enhancing social skills than those of students who only received informational services. The results from the Mann-Whitney test have a significance of 0.012. The experimental group experienced a medium increase, while the control group experienced a low increase. The cooperative play program in elementary school is important in enhancing social skills and even impacts students' overall social development.