In addition to learning academic content, school children learn to become socially competent members of the classroom community. This study uses microethnographic techniques to discover and describe important aspects of the social competence acquired by kindergarten and first-grade children. (Author/RLV)

Social interactions between preschool behaviorally handicapped children were measured under three experimental conditions during free-play: (a) active teacher involvement; (b) no teacher involvement; and (c) teacher structured free-play. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for ameliorating social interaction deficits among…

Reports on an observation study of children's tattling behavior in a classroom setting. General conclusion is that in areas in which there was most interaction between children, there was the most tattling to adults and vice versa. The degree to which children are constrained to cooperate is discussed. (Author/AM)

This report is concerned with the development and use of the Infant/Toddler Interaction and Activity Profile in 13 day care centers in Philadelphia. The Profile and its development are described and methods of data collection and analysis are explained briefly. Findings are reported in four major areas: (1) basic data characteristics, offering a…

The Involvement Instrument, an observational technique for examining children's interaction patterns and degree of involvement within the school setting, is presented in this paper. Training protocols for obtaining skill in using the Involvement Instrument, methods of analyzing data obtained by using the instrument, and criteria for determining…

This study examined the applicability of Watts' Human Interaction Scale to day care settings, and was also concerned at a more general level with the question of whether it is possible for day care settings to approximate good homes. Six 2-year-olds in each of two day care centers were each videotaped for a total of 45 minutes in a variety of…

Some of the specific uses, outcomes, and statistical results obtained with the Social Interaction and Creativity in Communication System (SICCS) of observation are described. Particular attention is given to the different purposes to which the SICCS has been directed, including the coding units, categories, length and frequency of observation, the…

This study was one of four designed to develop the methodological, measurement, and research strategies necessary to begin to define, analyze, and understand cooperative behavior among 4- to 6-year-old children in educational settings. Subjects were 30 4-, 5- and 6-year-olds in a kindergarten program. Each of the 30 children was observed for a…

The development of a systematic method for observing and describing significant aspects of teacher-pupil behavior in an experimental preschool educational program is described. The intent of the observation and description was: (1) to determine the extent to which theoretical principles and stated educational objectives were being implemented in…

This document presents in graphic form a system of interaction analysis, in which methods are presented for the teacher to study his teaching behavior in terms of the behavioral objectives he has established for himself. A summary of categories of interaction analysis is provided, which are labeled as indirect and direct influence. The former…

This study examined the sociometric choices and classroom behavior of third grade children in integrated schools. Children were asked how much they liked to work and to play with their classmates. Behavioral observations, using a sequential time-sampling technique, were also made for a portion of the same sample of children. Finally, achievement…

The purpose of this study was to illustrate the use of an interaction analysis in assessing specific objectives of the Demonstration and Research Center for Early Education (DARCEE) preschool program. A time sampling technique was used to monitor the interactions of 8 children (3 males, 5 females) in two settings in the DARCEE Head Start…

This study examines the development of cooperative and negative behavior in a setting in which children of varied ages had regular opportunities for social encounters. Subjects were 16 children, half 16-19 months, half 28-32 months. Each child was observed 30 minutes per day for five days. Behaviors were recorded continuously. A narrative written…

This paper describes a method of analyzing audio-taped communicative events recorded in the fall and winter of a school year (1975-1976) in two kindergarten classrooms, and reports the results of an investigation of classroom communicative process. Three levels of analysis were developed to measure (1) number and kind of recorded conversational…

This paper reports studies investigating the effects over time of age and social class grouping in infant day care on the psycho-social development of low socioeconomic status children (primarily black). Adult-child and child-child interactions were assessed in four different types of day care groupings: homogeneous x hetergeneous, age x social…