Discusses criteria for evaluating school library information services. Highlights include types of services; physical facilities; library usage; circulation statistics; changes due to technology; fill rate, or the percentage of successful searches for library materials; OPAC (online public access catalog) reports; observation; and examining…

This study compared impact of traditional and experiential approaches to early childhood education on gender related patterns in activity choices. Findings confirmed gender related activity patterns previously reported. Compared to traditional settings, boys in experiential settings engaged more in doll play and expressed feelings of distress…

A model designed to more accurately describe instructional processes in transitional bilingual classrooms had four dimensions: language content, language of instruction, communication mode, and activity structures. Testing of the observational tool in four fifth-grade transitional bilingual classrooms found high interrater reliability, a need for…

Asserts that assessment requires measuring of results, evaluation of the processes that lead to results, and a commitment to promote change for the better. Describes several formative tools that have been used in both laboratory and lecture geology classes, shows how they complement the fairly universal summative evaluation, and demonstrates how…

Using a systematic storytelling procedure termed critical incident recording, a teacher-as-researcher model was implemented with staff in early childhood centers that include children with disabilities. The approach encourages teachers to conduct a critical analysis of children's performance and of environmental variables that contribute to…

Participant observers conducting research among other cultures must use what is learned without betraying the confidence of those with whom they interact. Two Native American examples illustrate how current protocols are insufficient in cross-cultural situations. Recommendations include negotiating responsibilities before seeking consent,…

Participant observation study explored social interactions and friendships among cognitively impaired adult day-care participants. Found clients engage in a variety of social interactions and friendships, enabling them to maintain a sense of self and to adjust to group norms. Discussed general socializing, enduring friendships, helping…

Two experiments, at both elementary and secondary schools, evaluated the utility of a behavior-analytic program to enhance effective leadership behaviors by two school principals. Treatment involved helping principals with classroom observations, goal setting, and providing feedback and praise. Results showed more effective behaviors by both…

Study correlated teacher characteristics derived from qualitative methods (interviews, observation, etc.) with results produced by quantitative methods (measurement of eye contact, facial expressions, voice level). The teachers' commitment to their students' learning was reflected in their adaptable and effective classroom behavior. (MJP)

Discusses the use of authentic assessment during creative learning activities in kindergarten classrooms to document growth and support further learning. Provides an example of how authentic assessment was used to document the social progress of one child during kindergarten. Concludes that authentic assessment of children's activities and…

Reviews topical and methodological trends in the past 85 years of research on language classrooms in "The Modern Language Journal." Focus is on empirical investigations into oral classroom instruction in post-secondary classes, which include comparisons of language teaching methodology, observational procedures in classrooms, examinations of…

Interviewed 32 families concerning their narrative practices, basic information about the children's story attachments, and the mothers' beliefs and practices concerning their children's attachments. Found that story attachments were social in two ways: Children created relationships with story characters, and formed story attachments with…

Uses participatory ethnography to interview lay persons about the role of religion and the church in personal meaning-making. Probes the motives that call people to theology, the theological methods people use, how people engage in religious knowing, and how the church helps these efforts. Suggests shortcomings in present religious education. (DSK)

This study examined preliminary psychometric properties of the Teaching Practices Observation Scale (TPOS), a newly developed observational taxonomy for assessing teacher behaviors during free play with young children. Behaviors of 42 child caregivers and junior kindergarten teachers were coded using a combination of time-sampling, event-sampling,…

Describes a study that was conducted to describe and interpret the cognition of a graduate student during information retrieval using the World Wide Web. Results of observation, think aloud protocols, and an in-depth interview are discussed within a theory of information processing, and implications for future research are suggested. (Author/LRW)