This paper reports an investigation of a timetabled session in a self-access center with a General English program. Five classes were observed for three weeks to determine how the available time was actually used. Learners' opinions on the purpose and usefulness of the session were also sought. The most frequently observed activity overall was…

This study compared the behaviors of mainstreamed disabled students to those of their normative peers in the same classroom. Observational sessions were conducted in 48 classrooms in 3 rural West Virginia school districts. Data were collected on 71 disabled students in grades 3-7 over a 4-week period, including students with mild mental…

Two program evaluations are described to demonstrate two very different methodologies and consumer orientations. The first, a patient satisfaction survey commissioned by a medical center, used surveys as part of a larger continuous multipurpose evaluation process, and the second, the ZooGardens evaluation, was a one-time multimethod evaluation of…

This book offers a generalized way of examining the moral significance of what occurs in classrooms, with a focus on analyzing classroom interactions from a symbolic/expressive point of view. The book's ideas were derived from the Moral Life of Schools Project, a 2-year study that investigated the ways in which moral considerations permeate the…

How infants and toddlers become skilled social actors has not been examined as often as the peer interactions of older children. This study examined 24, middle-class toddlers (ages 23 to 33 months) in 9 different settings during their free-play time at a university-cooperative nursery school. Researchers analyzed 150 social bids which were either…

A conceptual and empirical analysis of findings from the development of a comprehensive classroom-based, direct observational measure of classroom environment is presented in this paper. The System for Teaching and Learning Assessment and Review (STAR) differs from traditional instruments of direct, systematic classroom observation in that it…

This casebook is part of a set of materials written by the members of the Making Thinking Visible Project. It offers high school, college, and community college teachers' multiple perspectives on the teaching and learning of collaborative planning, and on classroom inquiry and practice. The casebook explains collaborative planning (a writing…

Designed to aid in Chapter 1 evaluation efforts, this bibliography provides information about types of tests and other measures designed to assess young children. Bibliographic summaries were based on information from publishers' manuals and scholarly reviews. Criteria for including a test in the bibliography were that the test: (1) was designed…

A research-based administrative training program prepares principals and mentor teachers to evaluate classroom instruction. Since 1986, nearly 300 principals and teachers have participated in the Techniques of Responsive Intervention to Validate Effective Teaching program (TRIVET), which has been offered as a graduate course and year-long…

Given the complexity of classroom reading observations, maintenance of measurement reliability is a concern to researchers. Sources of variation contributing to the unreliability of many measurements may be either (1) lasting and specific, (2) lasting and general, (3) temporary and specific, or (4) temporary and general. Lasting-specific sources…

An attending tutor program designed to increase faculty-student contact within an Obstetrics and Gynecology clerkship was evaluated. Sessions were observed, written documents were reviewed, and faculty and students were interviewed in order to determine if the program was meeting its goals. Based on the evaluation data, the program was…

Promoting positive attitudes and then measuring attitude growth will help teachers of reading to know if kids like books and how to improve reading instruction. (JH)

This paper reports on a study that the researchers call: "Keeping found things found on the Web" or "KFTF". The research focuses on the classic problem of ensuring that once a useful information source or channel has been located, it can be found again when it is needed. To achieve this goal, individuals engage in information…

Compared the home environments and parent-child interaction patterns of 20 preschool language-delayed children, 20 normal preschoolers and 20 genetically handicapped children with Down's Syndrome. Data indicate that language delay had a stronger influence on mother-child relationship than did socioeconomic factors. (Author/SDH)

The second in a series of manuals on adults with learning disabilities, the booklet covers assessment techniques. The nature of assessment as an ongoing process is stressed, and the role of observation (both systematic and nonsystematic) and interview data are discussed. A seven-step evaluation sequence is proposed, with the major goal of…