A two-year study investigated writing in the elementary school. Data collected included field notes from observation of a second/third grade classroom, videotapes of selected classroom activities, weekly journals kept by the teacher reflecting her thoughts on teaching in general and on writing in particular, interviews with the teacher about the…

This paper describes attempts to evaluate whether teachers who had participated in a staff development program could apply what they had learned in a controlled, specific situation significantly better than teachers who had not had the training. The program under evaluation provided training in peer supervision and evaluation. Test results…

Focusing on the use of category systems in classroom observation, this report summarizes factors that may significantly affect the validity of cross-national and cross-cultural comparisons of classroom behaviors. Category systems measure well-defined behaviors by recording events observed at specific intervals or as they begin and end. Areas of…

The Evaluations of Classroom Observations Project had three major purposes, all related to direct observation of classroom behavior. First, the project was meant to assess the effectiveness of a behavioral treatment program in furthering the acquisition of appropriate classroom participation skills by disruptive students. Second, the project was…

The multiple use of several classroom observation instruments was investigated to determine its influence upon the way an observer records behavior, since such an influence may cause discrepancies in findings between studies. Twenty-four volunteer students were divided into three groups and trained to use one or more of three classroom observation…

Using behavioral rating forms, college professors were covertly rated each day by pairs of students ostensibly enrolled in their classes. On specified days pairs of faculty observers introduced themselves to the instructor and rated him using the same forms. The purpose was to determine whether changes occurred in the instructor's behavior as a…

This study examined the proportion of time children in the Kamehameha Early Education Program schools spend at actual school work in learning centers. Systematic time-sampled observations using multiple observers were conducted in December-January and again in March-April. The subjects, 12 children (6 kindergarteners and 6 first graders) were…

The study examined whether there were differences in the quality of classroom time spent by 79 mainstreamed learning disabled fifth grade students and 141 regular fifth grade students; and also whether differences in qualtiy of time related to student, instructional, and classroom variables. Trained observers coded learner moves, content area, and…

More than 100 classroom communication observation instruments are surveyed and assessed from a communication-based perspective in this paper. In an overview, a schema designating three main types of approaches is established; they include behavioral descriptive, message functional, and cognitive/affective inferential observational categories.…

Classroom observation of 28 third-grade teachers illustrated the management and planning strategies that differentiate effective teachers from less effective teachers. Effective managers communicated a workable system of rules and procedures, monitored students carefully, and were consistent in treating inappropriate behavior. Less effective…

The feasibility of evaluating the performance of student teachers by observing the academic achievement of pupils was explored. The following questions were posed: Do expectancies of learners held by student teachers influence pupil achievement on a single instructional unit when prior achievement of pupils is held constant? Does the amount of…

This report describes the naturally occurring variations in time allocated to reading instruction in eight grade-five classes selected as part of the Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study. Students completed a set of reading tests in early and late fall and teachers maintained records of instructional time allocated, setting, and content covered.…

This report describes a field study of the relationship between instructional time and student achievement in nine grade-two classrooms. Amounts of time allocated to reading and to instructional settings are described for a 40-day instructional period. Student "engaged time" was also measured for a 10-day period. Relationships between…

The training manual provides self-instructional materials for the Oral Reading Observation System (OROS) designed to teach accurate coding of teacher/pupil verbal interactions during oral reading instruction. The nine sections focus on specific aspects of the OROS system, include self-evaluation exercises, and have the following titles: (1)…

This study reports an attempt to measure implementation of Head Start Planned Variation, a national experiment designed to compare the relative effectiveness of 12 education models. The report first gives the background of the experiment, describes the problem of attempting to assess effectiveness without first measuring implementation, and…