Classroom observation has the potential of obtaining valuable information regarding teacher and child behavior. This study examines the accuracy of observers coding a standard stimuli. In this procedure the observer's bias is examined, as well as the confidence that can be placed in the observation code itself. Through these procedures the exact…

This paper contains optional modifications and additions to the Brophy-Good Dyadic Interaction Coding Manual (ED 042 688). Included are 1) suggestions for changes in the way level-of-question is coded; 2) modifications of the child's answer categories for simplification or expansion; 3) new distinctions for coding the teacher's feedback following…

This paper examines current forms and instruments of classroom observation and suggests directions for future research studies. The following topics are covered: the need for good criterion measures, the use of observational instruments in outcome measures, the development of procedures to code the content that is covered in a classroom, the…

The correct assessment of observable student behavior is an important tool in the ongoing education process. Whether the setting is a classroom, a field experience, an activity, or a residential treatment center, proper evaluation techniques will provide information for the determination of policies and programs. The Flexible Observation…

An analysis system was developed to facilitate the comprehensive analysis of over 800 hand-written mathematics, communications, and social studies lesson transcripts. The coding scheme facilitates the reduction of qualitative data into categorical data. The heart of the analysis system is the Dominant Instructional Event (DIE) which facilitates…

The prototype verbal interaction recording technique described is used for studying individuals in small groups. A methodology for recording verbal interaction is developed in an effort to create a system for analyzing interpersonal and social forces in operation within groups. (SM)

The reliability of coding problems associated with observation studies is discussed. The purpose is two-fold: a) to examine coding reliability by applying the profile method to two coding occasions separated by a lengthy time interval with the object of determining both within-occasion reliability (agreement) and between-occasion reliability…

A slightly modified Flanders interaction coding system was used to code teacher verbal behaviors with reference to the ethnicity of the student to whom each behavior was directed. A number of statistically significant, substantial and pedagogically important disparities in teacher behaviors were directed toward Mexican American and Anglo students.…

This report describes the observer's manual and the corresponding trainer's manual for the classroom observation instrument which was designed to code the behavior of the teacher during reading instruction. The "Reading: Teacher Observation Scale (TOS)" has been designed to be used with a corresponding observation instrument which…

This report describes the observer's manual and the corresponding trainer's manual for the classroom observation instrument which was designed to code the behavior of students during reading instruction. The "Reading: Student Observation Scale" has been designed to be used with a corresponding observation instrument which focuses on the…

The possibility that "coder drift" may be a source of bias in classroom observation systems was investigated in two parallel experiments using the Flanders System of Interaction Analysis. Coder drift may be described as the differences in coding which result when observers create their own idiosyncratic systems of classifying teacher…

The results of two experiments support the hypothesis of "coder drift" which is defined as change that takes place while trained coders are using a system for a number of classroom observation sessions. The coding system used was a modification of the low-inference Flanders System of Interaction Analysis which calls for assigning…

This critique of James Gallagher's Topic Classification System (TCS), a tool of categorizing teacher-pupil classroom interaction, suggests revision of the system asking for more complete analysis of the data obtained with it, but recommends its use in future investigations especially in view of its organization and the "unique elements"…

This manual describes the model--specifically the observation procedures and coding systems--used in a longitudinal study of how children learn to comprehend what they read, with particular emphasis on science texts. Included are procedures for the following: identifying students; observing--recording observations and diagraming the room; writing…

Two predictors of coding performance were validated when 26 trained subjects used the Flanders System of Interaction Analysis to code 11 half-hour videotapes of fifth grade classrooms. The Teacher Evaluation Scale, a high-inference rating system based on the Global Rating Scales, was also used. The predictors were scores on a shortened form of the…