In time-on-task observations, the effects of variations in methodological characteristics on the importance of time-on-task for student achievement were examined. Substantive conclusions were affected by variations in five areas with the greatest differences due to changes in the duration and number of days of observation. (CM)

This paper addresses four issues in the design and execution of behavioral observation in classrooms. These four issues relate to the consequences of using different observation intervals, schedules of observation, student sampling methods, and definitions of on-task and off-task behavior for reliability, means, and correlations of time on-task…

Momentary time samples (MTS) of 2, 4, and 6 minutes were compared to continuous recording samples of on-task behavior for three elementary-aged students with emotional/behavioral orders (EBD). Results indicated that the 2-minute, but not the 4- or 6-minute, interval MTS were consistent with the continuous measure. Implications for research and…

How various methodological decisions may influence studies of the effect of time-on-task on achievement are examined. Subjects were students in grades 2-5 in 18 classes taught by 12 teachers in a rural Maryland school district. All students were pre-tested in February 1978 in reading, language arts, math and social studies using the Comprehensive…