This study examined emotional climate in relation to the teaching and learning of grade 7 science. A multi-method and multi-theoretic approach used sociocultural frameworks as a foundation for interpretive research, conversation analysis, prosody analysis, and studies of nonverbal conduct. Emotional climate varied continuously throughout a lesson.…

The intention of this study is to examine how early childhood education (ECE) teachers can promote children's language learning and the construction of knowledge about their environment in everyday conversations. Young children primarily learn through interactions with adults and peers, with conversations representing important arenas for language…

This paper explores how State Space Grids (SSG), a dynamic systems research method, can be used to map teacher-student interactions from moment-to-moment and thereby to incorporate temporal aspects of interaction. Interactions in two secondary school classrooms are described in terms of level of interpersonal control and affiliation, and of…

The primary goal of this project is to provide a summary of extant research regarding humor in the classroom, with an emphasis on identifying and explaining inconsistencies in research findings and offering new directions for future studies in this area. First, the definitions, functions, and main theories of humor are reviewed. Next, the paper…

The interactions between teachers and students provide a venue for instructional delivery and ultimately student achievement in the school setting. However, not all students experience positive interactions with teachers in the typical classroom setting, especially those students exhibiting behavioral challenges. These students are observed with…

In this study, we examined the instructional coherence in a Chinese mathematics classroom by analyzing a sequence of four videotaped lessons on the topic of fraction division. Our analysis focused on the characteristics of instructional coherence both within and across individual lessons. A framework was developed to focus on lesson instruction in…

It is not unusual to find elaborate schemes for compelling and assessing class participation. Although participation can take many forms, in practice it is most synonymous with discussion, which, at its core, is about student engagement. But with what should the students be engaged? When we make class participation a requirement and assess it,…

A large body of research has demonstrated the value of fostering peer interaction in the context of collaborative group work as an effective strategy to facilitate learning. The present study attempted to enable teachers in a varied sample of 24 Scottish primary classrooms to improve the quality of collaborative group work interaction among their…

Background/Context: Discussion in classrooms has been cited as an activity integral to active participation in a democracy. Much research into classroom practice reveals that recitation, not discussion, is the most common form of classroom discourse. How teachers conceive of discussion, what they actually do when they attempt discussion with…

This paper reports on the uses of interactive whiteboards in "connected classrooms" in rural New South Wales, Australia. The research specifically focuses on the e[superscript 2] program, a senior school initiative among five schools that seeks to extend the range of curriculum options available for students by connecting classrooms…

Classroom observations are an important source of information about teaching and about the practice of particular teachers. The paper considers the value placed on talk as opposed to silence in this context and suggests that a cultural bias towards talk means that silence is commonly perceived negatively. The paper is based on a qualitative…

In an attempt to uncover differences in student behavior as a function of class size, the author observed a small class and a large class for 15 hours each and conducted interviews with eight students who were members of both classes. Two trends emerged from these qualitative data. First, a "diverge-converge" pattern was evident in the small class…

Transcripts of a videotape of sixth-grade pupils in their classroom, both before and after class begins, show how the pupils cue in to the order that their new teacher desires. The pupils assist their teacher in the elaboration of the order of their classroom. (Author/RM)

The contention that classroom design influences impression formation has not been empirically tested. The purpose of this article is to bring to the attention of educational psychologists the possibilities for research in this area. The paper summarizes the findings of some initial investigations and suggests directions for future study.…

Studying critical literacies includes examining how research practices influence what is learned about classroom activity and the world. This article highlights the processes and practices used in studying 1 classroom conversation. The data, drawn from an elementary school classroom of a Critical Literacy in Action teacher-researcher group member,…