From 1976 through 1979, Shelby County, Tennessee, schools participated in a Right to Read Special Emphasis project. An experimental and a control school were used, in which more than 50% of the pupils read one or more grades below level. The project included the use of reading specialists, a structured reading system (DISTAR), a summer reading…

Through oral languaging children learn to share ideas, to shape ideas, to structure thought, and to develop thinking skills. In order to plan appropriate and effective oral communication environments, teachers need to be aware of the factors that shape and influence communication environments or situations. There are three scales or continua of…

This paper describes writing as an exploration through unknown terrain by which student writers find out what they are really thinking. It offers teachers the following ground rules to help the difficult process whenever their students are writing in any subject: (1) do not ask students to regurgitate what they already know; (2) give students time…

This paper reports on more than five years of research on teachers who were engaged in or associated with the process of working on educational change. During this period many variables that may influence individual teacher decisions regarding change were studied. This paper reports findings regarding the apparent influence of these variables on…

Previous research has shown that teachers' sense of efficacy is an important presage variable associated with student achievement. Stereotypes evolving from this research include both positive and negative correlations between teacher perception of effectiveness and teaching experience. This research examines the relationship between years of…

A description is given of three studies on the effects of teacher clarity upon student achievement. Three low inference variables of teacher clarity--vagueness terms, mazes, and additional unexplained content--were selected for study. Vagueness terms are words or phrases indicating approximation, unclarity, or lack of assurance. A maze is defined…

Data is reported on observations made in high and low socioeconomic status (SES) classrooms of second- and third-grade teachers' feedback to students on their replies to questions posed by the teacher. Teachers in the study were chosen due to consistent effectiveness in producing student achievement gains. Interactions (teacher's question, pupil's…

Classroom process data indicate that teacher praise cannot be equated with reinforcement. Often it is not even intended as reinforcement, and when it is, it frequently has some other function. The meanings and functions of behaviors typically included under the category of teacher praise are determined by the degree of congruence between verbal…

This paper reviews the reliability of several efforts by educational researchers to determine variables in teacher behavior that influence student attitudes and achievement. In particular, works by Rosenshine (1971), Dunkin and Biddle (1974), and Rosenshine and Furst (1970) are examined and evaluated in terms of research criteria developed by…

Three recent large-scale experimental studies have built on a data base established through several correlational studies of teaching effectiveness in elementary school. These three studies have in common a treatment that addresses several routine teaching tasks and suggests some principles and techniques for effectively fulfilling those tasks.…

The crucial importance of beginning-of-the-year activities in establishing good behavior patterns in the elementary classroom is asserted. Observations were made of two groups of teachers who were very different in management effectiveness throughout a school year. A number differences between the two groups' first- day and beginning-of-the-year…

A framework is suggested for the analysis of teaching, whether for purpose of research, evaluation, or moral inquiry, that is an alternative to the present form of analysis. This form seeks in the analysis of teaching those teacher characteristics that can be established as causally reactive in producing student achievement. Differing…

This report is related to a study of first grade reading groups and presents highlights of an analysis comparing treatment and control teachers on their use of 22 instructional principles suggested in an instructional model. The principles are presented in categories that relate to getting and maintaining the students' attention, introducing the…

To test the validity of a previous study conducted under simulated teaching conditions (which found that openminded teachers use indirect influence more than closedminded teachers), it was hypothesized that the need to maintain classroom control influences the behavior of teachers under actual teaching conditions. Thirty-four high and low scorers…

Some of the works in this brief annotated bibliography present the findings of studies identifying the racial and social attitudes of the middle-class urban teacher and indicate how these attitudes may affect student performance; others are reports of inservice teacher education programs conducted to change negative teacher attitudes; and a few…