This report presents an overview of the history of the Junior High Classroom Organization Study, designed to answer questions concerning effective instruction in junior high school English and mathematics classes. Nineteen trained observers were sent to 52 classrooms in the Austin (Texas) Independent School District. Observers kept written records…

This report contains a complete record of the methodology and instrumentation of the Junior High Classroom Organization Study. The purpose of the study was to delineate specific effective teacher behaviors. Included in this report are a description of the selection and training of observers, and guidelines for writing narrative descriptions,…

The urban neighborhood, long of interest to city planners and sociologists, has in recent years become of increasing concern to public policy-makers. This new concern has called attention to a large gap in the municipal policy-maker's information resources. Social scientists have employed a field method, participant-observation, that can…

A SUMMER PROGRAM WAS CONDUCTED FOR DISADVANTAGED YOUTHS TO ENGAGE IN ACTIVITIES OF CREATIVE THINKING AND EXPRESSION, WIDE EXPLORATION, FREE QUESTIONING, AND SELF-ESTEEM DEVELOPMENT. FORTY HIGH SCHOOL SOPHOMORE BOYS (PREDOMINATELY NEGRO) WERE COUNSELED, GUIDED, AND INSTRUCTED IN SUCH SUBJECT AREAS AS LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND ART. THE RESEARCH…

In this chapter, a path to learning about individuals interacting with settings is proposed. Settings may be places where individuals work, live, care, become committed, or engage in any type of living. The path consists of observational and reflective techniques that may be fruitfully used by educators or any persons interested in enhancing the…

With reference to EJ 198 838, this article reports similar analysis. Commonality analysis was applied to data gathered on sixth-grade social studies lessons. Variations were found in the proportion of variance achievement. Content coverage was the most powerful process correlate of achievement. (Author/GDC)

Analyzes some of the mistakes made and the lessons learned doing participant-observation research on six special congressional elections. Briefly describes seven of these lessons including schedule strategically, get multiple perspectives, do not overlook details, be a pack rat, and recognizing that some goals and processes are antithetical. (MJP)

Describes a study that explored the social interaction among second and third grade students when a microcomputer was introduced into the classroom. The emergence of children who are microcomputer experts is discussed, the influence of such children on peers and peer preferences is examined, and implications for teachers and students are…

Using the seasons in the science classroom increases student observation skills as they focus on subtle differences such as shades of color and differences in structures. In this article, the author presents a variety of activities that can help students identify and demonstrate patterns and changes in leaf or plant development. The ability to…

The current study describes preschool teacher-child interactions during several commonly scheduled classroom activities in which teachers deliver instructions. An observation system was developed that incorporated measurement of evidence-based compliance strategies and included the types of instructions delivered (e.g., integral or deficient…

This document reports a study of school-based kindergarten through 12th grade environmental education (EE) programs. The study was developed to gather baseline information on the status of EE, identify education reform initiatives and explore their possible interactions with EE, and provide an overview of institutional needs and the factors that…

This study examined changes in infants' performance in detecting tones as a funtion of time. Stimuli were presented in blocks of fixed frequency and intensity, rather than in random order. The findings of earlier studies that an observer can reliably tell from a 1-month-old's behavior when a pure tone is being presented, and that reinforcement of…

This study explores how accurately participants in an encounter group perceive the leaders. Accuracy of the participants' perceptions were measured at the beginning and the end of the experience. Results show that group members' perceptions of the leaders were highly inaccurate. (Author)

Results of the present investigation indicate that when there is no actual change in behavior, knowledge by observers of predicted results is unlikely to alter behavioral recordings. (Author)

Reflections on the meaning and uses of science and observations about its implications in the study of learning disabilities are offered in this paper. The distinction between science and technology is examined and difficulties with society's absorption in pseudoscience or in science that has been oversimplified are discussed. The field of left…