Ways to promote the evaluation of teaching performance by peers are considered. It is suggested that the evaluator's task be extended to include counseling and coaching the instructor being evaluated in order to help him/her overcome deficiencies in classroom performance. The counselor/evaluator should start by scheduling a short meeting with the…

Surveys of teachers' use of writing in the classroom indicate that many teachers continue to use writing in a limited capacity, primarily for drill, notetaking, and evaluation. However, while these studies suggest attitudes teachers might hold, they say little about the beliefs that might underlie those attitudes. For example, the observation of…

This report explains the development of an experimental project that is one of five such projects making up the Dakota State Teacher's Assistant Series (Dakota State College, Madison, South Dakota). The projects use interactive computer-controlled video programs and involve the social sciences. The project highlighted here involves educational…

Naturalistic inquiry (based on the ethnographic research paradigm) has the potential to supplement, or possibly to replace, quantitative experimental research in education. For years most reading researchers have used the experimental research design. This design fails to tap self-concept, value systems, purpose of and attitude toward reading,…

Intended for early childhood teachers and supervisors, this booklet describes and illustrates a comprehensive recordkeeping system that is based on written observations. The full recordkeeping system includes daily classroom observational notes, monthly cumulative summaries, checklists, monthly plans, and bi-yearly progress reports. Daily notes…

This booklet focuses upon ways in which a teacher can increase the amount of time students apply themselves to learning. Methods are presented for observing how much time students actually spend learning, for identifying which students are off-task, and for selecting teaching methods to increase students' learning time. Contents include…

An observational instrument for physics instruction was developed and used in 126 class periods in courses taught by the lecture method and by an audio-tutorial method. Results indicate higher examination performance correlated positively with time spent stating and rephrasing problems, drawing diagrams on blackboards, and questioning or…

The author focuses on various types of nonverbal communication, reactions of both students and teachers to nonverbal communication, and techniques of developing improved communication to support openness in the classroom. An extensive literature review is presented to support the thesis that the essence of communication is nonverbal; if someone…

The purpose of this investigation was to respond to two deficiencies in past consultation research. It described the consultee-centered consultation techniques which were used, and it attempted to demonstrate the effectiveness of consultee-centered consultation in changing observable teacher behavior. (Author)

Structural characteristics of classroom activities and student and teacher engagement behaviors were investigated. Observer teams collected data on the structure of activities, student engagement behaviors, and teacher behaviors in arithmetic and reading lessons in six elementary classrooms in a middle class, suburban school district. The…

This document contains six modules designed for use in a training program for the improvement of teachers' classroom observation skills. Module One, "Introduction to Module on Improving Observation Skills," consists of line drawings used by the workshop leader to illustrate his explication of the intervention process. Module Two, "Improving Basic…

Written for classroom teachers, the manual describes a model for analyzing interaction between teachers and mainstreamed special education students. The introduction stresses that the model's observation approach emphasizes professional growth rather than institutional regulation. Seven steps of the model are discussed: determining teacher goals,…

The paper describes a method of observation and data recording for use with the acting-out child in the classroom. The form is explained to provide a record of behavior, measure rate, and note consequent social responses to the child's behavior from the environment, while also monitoring the behavior of the child's peers during observation…

The author argues here that progress toward greater validity in description through increasingly specifiable standards for quality control is crucial for the advancement of theory as well as for the improvement of method in descriptive studies of classroom life. Some standards for judging the validity of descriptions of classroom action are…