This paper discusses the challenges and lessons learned from conducting observations to measure the quality of classroom practice for a large-scale study of elementary teachers' mathematics instruction. Specifically, this paper shares our process for obtaining valid data for quality of elementary mathematics instruction; what we learned can inform…

Two years after participating in a replication of the Stallings Effective Use of Time (EUOT) Program, ten teachers were re-observed and interviewed to determine the extent to which they had maintained the measured changes in their behavior patterns. Subjects were selected for the follow-up from a 27 EUOT teacher sample based on having exhibited…

This paper compares the effectiveness of two interventions aimed to improve teaching quality and student achievement in Indonesia. The first intervention was the use of education standards, while the second one was the combination of education standards with a teacher improvement program. The study involved 50 schools, 52 teachers, and 1660…

This study compared classroom interactive behaviors of science pre-service teachers and pre-service teachers of other subjects. Participants included pre-service teachers enrolled in a general methods course for secondary educators and its school-based fieldwork counterpart. Statistical tests found that science pre-service teachers had fewer…

It is suggested that the low reliability of five low-inference and two high-inference classroom observation systems are due not to lack of agreement among rates, but to apparent variation in teacher behavior across occasions. (Author/MJB)

The reasoning practices employed by students in the classroom are examined to display how they "know" something. Focus is placed on the interactional practices by which learning tasks are accomplished during classroom lessons. (JMF)

Problems in studying teacher effectiveness through the use of classroom observation are discussed. Four assumptions in the observation of classroom process are offered and ways in which these assumptions can be dealt with in designing an observation study are suggested. (DF)

Macroanalysis is a technique by which behavior patterns can be identified from any observational data are collected in a manner that preserves the sequence of the individual codes. (MM)

The problem of obtaining reliable descriptions of classroom events is examined. Using sampling theory, the amount of classroom time to be sampled and observed to obtain precise descriptions is analyzed. Results suggest that previous studies of classrooms have used inadequate samples to estimate the behaviors of teachers and students. (JN)

The potential of two-way television as an instructional medium was examined through observations of presentations by medical faculty. The study found that similar teaching strategies were used in conventional classrooms and in two-way television mediated lessons. Detailed study results are offered. (Author/DF)

The concept of instructional improvement is used as a framework to synthesize research concerning systematic observation of instruction. A self-help model for improving classroom instruction is proposed that illustrates the concepts of instructional effectiveness, systematic observation of instruction, and assistance as a personalized,…

This article describes two types of classroom process research (process-product and descriptive) which are being funded by the National Institute of Education, and it analyzes the trend toward a greater emphasis on descriptive research. (MM)

Findings from this project suggest that (1) effective teaching can be predicted from observation in natural classroom settings and (2) a teacher can be trained in the use of observation instruments in order to assess another teacher's performance. (MM)

The history and utility of category observation instruments are briefly traced; category observation instruments are defined and their essential properties stated; and a sequential strategy for their construction is discussed. (MM)

Results of this study indicate that programs designed to break down the barriers to cross-sex and cross-race association could be a powerful approach to increasing positive social interaction in the classroom. (MM)