This paper reports results of an exploratory study designed to identify some of the issues most critical for understanding how naturalistic inqiry is done and why researchers behave as they do. Preliminary results are discussed of an inquiry into ten case studies, The Case Studies in Science Education (CSSE), funded as one project by the National…

Ethnography as a classroom observation method addresses itself to the situations, events, patterns, and contexts that exist in a classroom at a given time. A priori categorical observation and evaluation systems measure what the system is designed to "see," and may fail to record anomolies and salient events that affect teaching and learning in…

Results of a study conducted to develop and validate an instrument for objective and continuous assessment of student performance in the physics laboratory are reported. Two modes of teacher assessment of student performance were compared: (1) video-tape recording of two students performing experiments; and (2) an instrument for continuous,…

A number of assessment measures are available for measuring affective growth in reading. Among the factors involved in affective response to reading are attitude toward reading, interest in reading, and attitude toward specific reading programs. The most commonly used of the reactive measures of affective reading growth (those in which…

A self-instructional program for use by teachers of the handicapped, this training manual was developed to teach accurate coding with the Oral Reading Observation System (OROS)an observation system designed to code teacher-pupil verbal interaction during oral reading instruction. The body of the manual is organized to correspond to the nine…

This study investigated questions concerning the incidence of student off-task activities, which interrupt learning, in different academic activities, within different activity formats (e.g., individual, group), and among students differing in achievement growth (AG). AG was defined as a pattern of continuous growth during the previous two years…

Data derived from a year-long study of 43 algebra classes in 13 high schools were collected to assess the differences between high-inference and low-inference measures of teacher behavior as predictors of pupil achievement and attitude change. The high-inference systems rated characteristics such as enthusiasm and clarity while low-inference…

This report describes classroom observation techniques used to record the behavior of educational specialists (teachers) and students in a kindergarten and a first grade classroom of the Kamehameha Early Education Program (KEEP). Classroom behavior was observed and recorded daily during the 1973-1974 school year. Each student was observed three…

As a part of a longitudinal study of learning in open plan and conventional design classrooms, the present study focuses on school design and its influence on selected behavior of pupils and teachers. The behaviors of pupils and their teachers in eleven learning areas of open plan and seven of conventional design were observed. Among the 18…

This manual consists of lesson plans developed to train data collectors in the use of the Teacher Performance Assessment Instruments (TPAI). Each set of plans was designed for one of three purposes. Lesson plans developed for the Teaching Plans and Materials Instrument (TPM) simulate a portfolio prepared by the teacher. One-day plans developed for…

Results from the first year of a three-year longitudinal study (grades 6-8) of sex-related differences are reported. The purposes of the study are: (1) to understand more adequately the impact of one important cognitive influence (Spatial Visualization) on the learning of mathematics, and (2) to identify educational influences on the development…

Thirteen of the 41 classroom observation dimensions derived from Medley's review of teacher effectiveness reports were scored on the Georgia Assessment of Teacher Effectiveness. Subjects were 53 fifth and sixth grade teachers in language arts and mathematics. The dimensions were: large group instruction; group size without adult supervision;…

This report presents an overview of the history of the Junior High Classroom Organization Study, designed to answer questions concerning effective instruction in junior high school English and mathematics classes. Nineteen trained observers were sent to 52 classrooms in the Austin (Texas) Independent School District. Observers kept written records…

This report contains a complete record of the methodology and instrumentation of the Junior High Classroom Organization Study. The purpose of the study was to delineate specific effective teacher behaviors. Included in this report are a description of the selection and training of observers, and guidelines for writing narrative descriptions,…

The most difficult task of educational researchers is the transmission of relevant research findings to the classroom. There are two modes of transmission available to researchers: inservice to practicing teachers, and inclusion of relevant research in preservice teacher education. A study was conducted to involve beginning student teachers in one…