A pilot study investigated the effect of gender on student evaluations of teachers in the field of mass communication, gauging any effects and interactions between instructor gender and student gender; whether female instructors are at a disadvantage; and whether type of course has an impact. Sixty-seven students in four upper-level mass…

A study addressed the question of how young children's spontaneous use of private speech in the kindergarten classroom varies as a function of contextual variables, such as type of activity, immediate presence of others, degree of teacher-given structure, and classroom age composition. Twenty children from two classrooms (one mixed-age, one…

In an effort to investigate the effects of a teaching strategy that helps students to identify concept conflicts through experimentation and guided investigation on students' conceptual changes and learning outcomes, 596 students (393 junior high school, 170 senior high school, and 33 college students) were administered two solution tests…

This 24-item annotated bibliography discusses factors affecting reading achievement, including classroom management techniques, reading instruction, reading comprehension, teacher behavior, and beginning reading. The books, journal articles, and research reports in the annotated bibliography were published between 1963 and 1977. (RS)

A study used aesthetic criteria and artistic criticism to find meaning in one part of the kindergarten and first grade curriculum, "Writing To Read," a computer-based program for beginning reading. Subjects, students in a kindergarten class, were observed several days a week from the day in April when they began the program until the day…

A 5-step methodology is presented for developing a teaching effectiveness rating instrument: (1) development of an item pool, (2) screening of the item pool, (3) survey assessment of the screened items for importance and for student ability to rate, (4) response analysis, (5) development of the evaluation instrument options. (Editor/JT)

Comprehension instruction must engage students in strategic behaviors over an extended period of time. These extended encounters are necessary to allow students to internalize the strategy and gain sufficient efficiency with the new procedure to justify its continued use. Unfortunately, teacher training programs often reinforce a notion of…

The primary intention of this study was to compare private speech profiles of young children classified as analogical reasoners (AR) with young children classified as nonanalogical reasoners (NAR). The secondary purpose was to investigate Berk's (1986) research methodology and categorical scheme for the collection and coding of private speech…

Seven features of valid classroom observations procedures, a five-step measurement schemata, and a systematic classroom observation procedure designed to reduce measurement error are presented. The following features are addressed: (1) the inference of the observation is established a priori and confirmed post hoc; (2) craft knowledge and…

The effectiveness of the verbal plan and review training (VPRT) program in enhancing the reflectivity of 115 economically disadvantaged preschoolers who qualified for a Head Start program but were enrolled at the University of Southern California School for Early Childhood Education was evaluated. Adapted from the curriculum model of Weikart,…

Six desegregated first grade classrooms in predominantly white working-class communities near a large Midwestern city were observed in order to explore ways in which black males' school experiences differ from those of other students. Twenty percent of the 139 students in the classrooms were black males. Of the six teachers, all of whom were…

This naturalistic study provides a description and analysis of the processes through which 26 kindergarten students and a particular male student, called Lester, defined rules of social acceptability which stigmatized Lester as an "outsider." Findings are primarily based on 112 hours of recorded peer interaction and interviews conducted…

In a study of how primary teachers assign and monitor independent reading seatwork (workbook) activities, 12 first, second, and third grade teachers were observed during their scheduled reading periods. The seven major observation categories were (1) to whom assigned, (2) when assigned, (3) materials, (4) material focus, (5) instructions for…

Literature relating to evaluation processes in schools and classrooms is reviewed to develop a conceptual framework for integrating research on such evaluation processes. This report was prepared by the Middle School program. Commentary and research on elements of the evaluation process are examined in this framework, and the ways in which formal…

Understanding the literacy process and using the child as the informant will ensure a better learning experience. Two fundamental assumptions of language learning provide a base for understanding the literacy process. Firstly, the decisions a child makes while searching for meaning in a literacy event are the same ones made by an adult, involving…