It is known from many international studies that Japanese students do well in mathematics. This paper describes a typical lesson from a Japanese fifth-grade classroom, and discusses the lesson in terms of problem solving, including: embedding of the problem, spending 35 minutes or more on one problem, acting out the problem, multiple solutions,…

A study elaborated a profile of four northeastern Ohio middle-grade teachers who incorporated whole language instruction into their classrooms. The overarching question investigated was how middle grade teachers proceeded to configure whole language instruction in their classrooms. Teachers for the study were selected based on their use of and…

This paper presents findings of an ethnographic study that analyzed the constraining and enabling dynamics of parental involvement in schools. The study was conducted at a suburban, an urban, and a rural high school, but the paper reports only the results from the suburban and urban schools. Data were derived from interviews with a total of 98…

Intended for students and for researchers who conduct interviews as part of case studies or as ethnography, this book provides a comprehensive, up-to-date introduction to the theory and practice of qualitative interviewing. It shows researchers how to design research based on interview data; to stimulate conversation; to absorb what is being said;…

The realization that many teachers view working with parents as the most challenging aspect of their job led to an ethnographic examination (within the context of an evaluation of the South Dakota Head Start/Public School Transition Demonstration Project) of parents' and teachers' expectations of one another. The demonstration group consisted of…

Developing students' ability to use multicultural perspectives and knowledge to think about literature, history, and society is emerging as an important part of a pluralistic approach to education. Am ethnographic study examined three innovative eleventh-grade literature-history classes as they were negotiated over 2 school years by a pair of…

Conducted at a public university that had long been overwhelmingly Anglo despite being located in a state noted for its linguistic and cultural diversity, an ethnographic study examined one adjunct writing program and the varied students it serves. Data sources were both numerous and varied--data were collected concurrently at the campus level and…

The widespread perception amongst advocates for learners from oppressed communities that linguistics are incapable of addressing such issues as the unequal distribution of power in South Africa, or of making their discipline part of the process of democratic transformation is traced to the paucity of studies concerned with the role of language in…

An ethnographic study examined three new teaching assistants (TAs) from July 1995 to July 1996 at a state university. Data included observing their classrooms, gathering artifacts, and talking about their experiences to determine what types of training and experiences lead to a successful TA and what elements or characteristics comprise a…

This paper explores the ways of speaking emerging in a Japanese hospital in response to adoption of a foreign concept, "preceptorship," a nursing educational program for training novices in real working environments. The paper notes that although the program was first developed in English-speaking countries, Japanese nurses have recently…

This study's purpose was to understand further "how" significant leadership crises create a very particular context for telling stories and, specifically, "how" the lives of school leaders are affected by the stories they tell. The study presents the stories of seven private and public school leaders who have experienced a…

A study examined first-year students' out-of-class lives, focusing on the "potentially rich" environment created when students who are enrolled in a first-year seminar also live together. The students observed were members of the University of Vermont's Living and Learning Center. Both the living environment and the class were designed…

Traditional histories of American college composition instruction in the 19th and 20th centuries examine primarily the textbooks used in those courses, then draw conclusions based on the content of those textbooks about the activities and attitudes expressed in the classroom. The canon of composition historiography is lacking in several ways: the…

A study examined the curricular event in Swedish preschools known as "circle time," a daily event in most schools during which children, teachers, and sometimes parents gather in a circle for 20-30 minutes and share songs, discussion, music, storytelling, and group play. A special theme, such as the environment or a holiday, may also be…

An ethnographic approach to teacher action research is presented in this paper. The paper argues that an ethnographic, rather than a qualitative approach, should be considered by teachers wishing to engage in interpretive inquiry (action) research because of the focus on classroom and larger cultural contexts on the teaching-learning situation.…