The use of the behavioral science principle of contingency in several approaches to teaching beginning reading is discussed in this paper. The failure to provide a contingent relationship between the given reading skill and student success in demonstrating the skill can lead to repeated apparent successes without the student actually manifesting…

In order to determine how to enable teachers to become more effective in individualizing reading instruction, 75 preservice teachers who were enrolled in a general education course were observed as they tutored second and third grade children in reading twice a week for one semester. A brief analysis of the literature on the behavior of teachers…

Two major studies reported in 1970 reached similar conclusions regarding the effect of team teaching in elementary schools on collegial decision making, faculty communication, and teacher sentiments. Among other things, teachers in team-organized schools were found to have higher levels of work autonomy and job satisfaction than those in…

Teachers must establish good relationships with parents if they want to have a significant impact on their students. Finding time to communicate with parents is difficult for most educators. The telephone provides a form of communication which is effective, requires minimal expenditures of time and energy, and allows certain kinds of information…

This chapter of "Helping Teachers Manage Classrooms" presents strategies and processes that teachers can use to establish well-managed classrooms. These recommendations are based on the results of year-long descriptive studies of the management methods used by third grade teachers and by seventh and eighth grade English and mathematics teachers.…

A model of the teaching-learning process identifies and describes varied behavioral dimensions of the classroom and how they relate to pupil achievement. The model is based on the assumption that the total amount of engaged time on a particular topic is the most important determinant of achievement and has the components of: (1) quantity of…

The Classroom Interaction Analysis Index (CIAI) is an instrument developed to categorize the actions of teachers and students as they interact in classroom situations. In the study described, a class of 30 social studies student teachers were divided into teams of five each. Each team taught the same preplanned lesson twice--by illustrated lecture…

Acceptance of handicapped students by their peers is a major component of success in the mainstreamed classroom. How teachers plan for interactions and lessons determines the degree to which social acceptance is achieved. The teacher's behavior models desired social acceptance, and the structure of learning activities evidence academic…

Meeting the needs of a wide range of student abilities in the classroom taxes the talents of educators. If mainstreaming is to be effective, interactions in the mainstreamed classroom should be supportive of students' learning abilities. Since they shoulder the major responsibility of effective mainstreaming, teachers need information and support…

Teacher self-assessment is defined as "the process of self examination for the purpose of instructional self-improvement". Seven steps to teacher self-assessment, a series of interlocking strategies, are intended to help both experienced and beginning teachers identify and improve classroom teaching behavior. Although they represent a…

The traditional model for student teaching is based on a one-to-one relationship between the student teacher and the supervising teacher. However, by providing interaction with only one individual, the possibility for varied practice and feedback is limited. A model is proposed in which five student teachers work with one supervising teacher. The…

A study was conducted in three city school districts in eastern North Carolina to examine the relationship between the organizational climate of elementary schools and the reading achievement of third grade students. The Organizational Climate Description Questionnaire was given to the staff of ten elementary schools to determine whether the…

Following a literature review on the subjects of the decline in student writing abilities and increased student writing apprehension, this paper offers teachers information on a basic writing program that reduces writing anxiety and improves writing skills through large doses of positive reinforcement. The second section of the paper discusses the…

To determine what counts as success in a French first grade, an ethnographer investigated what happens when the teacher "applies" her categories of "things students do" to particular situations. The category called "searching" served as an example. To produce a body of data, the teacher commented on videotapes of…