Quality Of Classroom Interactions Research Articles

Children’s preschool classroom experiences and associations with early elementary special education referral

There is a growing body of research demonstrating the association between high quality preschool and improved child outcomes; however, few studies have considered special education referral as a child outcome. This study examined whether four specific aspects of the preschool classroom experience (child engagement, global classroom interaction quality, closeness and conflict in teacher–child relationships) predicted special education referral in early elementary school. Participants were 959 preschoolers in 240 classrooms across 6 states. Of the four aspects of the preschool experience explored, higher levels of conflict in the preschool teacher–child relationship related to greater special education referral in elementary school. Associations between aspects of the preschool classroom experience and special education referral were not moderated by demographic risk. These results imply that relationships play a key role in a child’s preschool experience and reasons for potential conflict in teacher–child relationships should be more closely examined.

The cross-lagged associations between classroom interactions and children’s achievement behaviors

This study examined the cross-lagged associations between the quality of classroom interactions and children’s behaviors in achievement situations. The achievement behaviors in challenging test situations of 166 Finnish children from 70 classrooms were rated by trained testers in grades 1 and 2. The quality of classroom interactions in terms of emotional support, classroom organization, and instructional support were observed in 25 classrooms (out of 70) in grades 1 and 2. The results of multilevel modeling showed that classroom teachers’ low emotional support predicted children’s subsequent high passive avoidance, whereas high classroom organization and instructional support predicted children’s high social dependence. Furthermore, the more children showed active task avoidance, the more emotional and instructional support and classroom organization teachers showed later on in the classroom. The findings emphasize the importance of warm and supportive classroom interactions for children’s adaptive achievement behaviors. The results also suggest that teachers adapt their classroom interactions with respect to children’s active task avoidance.

Improving Classroom Quality with The RULER Approach to Social and Emotional Learning: Proximal and Distal Outcomes

The RULER Approach to Social and Emotional Learning ("RULER") is designed to improve the quality of classroom interactions through professional development and classroom curricula that infuse emotional literacy instruction into teaching-learning interactions. Its theory of change specifies that RULER first shifts the emotional qualities of classrooms, which are then followed, over time, by improvements in classroom organization and instructional support. A 2-year, cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted to test hypotheses derived from this theory. Sixty-two urban schools either integrated RULER into fifth- and sixth-grade English language arts (ELA) classrooms or served as comparison schools, using their standard ELA curriculum only. Results from multilevel modeling with baseline adjustments and structural equation modeling support RULER's theory of change. Compared to classrooms in comparison schools, classrooms in RULER schools exhibited greater emotional support, better classroom organization, and more instructional support at the end of the second year of program delivery. Improvements in classroom organization and instructional support at the end of Year 2 were partially explained by RULER's impacts on classroom emotional support at the end of Year 1. These findings highlight the important contribution of emotional literacy training and development in creating engaging, empowering, and productive learning environments.

Improving the Power of an Efficacy Study of a Social and Emotional Learning Program: Application of Generalizability Theory to the Measurement of Classroom-Level Outcomes

Social and emotional learning programs are designed to improve the quality of social interactions in schools and classrooms in order to positively affect students' social, emotional, and academic development. The statistical power of group randomized trials to detect effects of social and emotional learning programs and other preventive interventions on setting-level outcomes is influenced by the reliability of the outcome measure. In this paper, we apply generalizability theory to an observational measure of the quality of classroom interactions that is an outcome in a study of the efficacy of a social and emotional learning program called The Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing, and Regulating emotions Approach. We estimate multiple sources of error variance in the setting-level outcome and identify observation procedures to use in the efficacy study that most efficiently reduce these sources of error. We then discuss the implications of using different observation procedures on both the statistical power and the monetary costs of conducting the efficacy study.

Mapping control and affiliation in teacher–student interaction with State Space Grids

This paper explores how State Space Grids (SSG), a dynamic systems research method, can be used to map teacher–student interactions from moment-to-moment and thereby to incorporate temporal aspects of interaction. Interactions in two secondary school classrooms are described in terms of level of interpersonal control and affiliation, and of variability and recurrent stable states (called “attractors”) of teacher–student interaction. Undesirable interactions appeared to feature weaker attractors and higher variability than more desirable interactions. SSGs appeared a promising way to study temporal aspects of classroom interaction, offering variability and attractors as indicators for the quality of classroom interaction.

Goodness of Fit Between Children and Classrooms: Effects of Child Temperament and Preschool Classroom Quality on Achievement Trajectories

Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to examine whether child temperament differentially predicted academic school readiness depending on the quality of classroom interactions for 179 Head Start preschoolers. Teachers rated children's temperament as overcontrolled, resilient, or undercontrolled in the fall and reported on children's language/literacy and math skills continuously throughout the year. Observations of classroom emotional and instructional support were conducted in the spring. Results from multilevel models indicated that overcontrolled children (compared to resilient children) made greater math gains in classrooms with higher instructional support, whereas a trend-level effect suggested that undercontrolled children (compared to resilient children) made lower math gains in classrooms with lower emotional support. Results also showed that resilient children's gains in language/literacy were more positively associated with high emotional support than were the scores of overcontrolled children. Practice or Policy: This study adds to prior findings suggesting that overcontrolled and undercontrolled children need special attention in the preschool classroom. Teachers and administrators may want to carefully consider the effect that classroom interactions and instructional techniques have on individual children and attempt to tailor instruction to meet the individual needs of children within classrooms.

Within-Day Variability in the Quality of Classroom Interactions during Third and Fifth Grade

AbstractThe quality of classroom interactions has typically been studied using aggregates of ratings over time. However, within-day ratings may contain important variability. This study investigated within-day variability using the NICHD Study of Early Childcare and Youth Development’s observational data during grades 3 and 5. The first question examined the stability of classroom interaction quality within a day, and the second question examined the extent to which time of day, activity setting, numbers of adults and children, and instructional grouping predicted the quality of classroom interactions within a day. Results indicated that classroom interactions were most stable within emotional support dimensions and least stable within instructional support dimensions. Results also indicated that the start of the day and transitions were associated with lower-quality classroom interactions. Academic activities, more teachers, fewer students, and group instruction were associated with higher quality. Impli...

We Look More, Listen More, Notice More: Impact of Sustained Professional Development on Head Start Teachers’ Inquiry-Based and Culturally-Relevant Science Teaching Practices

Despite many scholars’ recommendations, science is often avoided during early childhood education. Among the reasons provided by early childhood teachers for the exclusion of science from their daily routines included science anxiety, low self-efficacy with respect to teaching science, lack of experience participating in science activities as students, or the notion that literacy and language are more important during the early years. In minority populations the problem is even greater due to identification of science with the ‘culture of. This article presents results from Ah Neen Dush, a sustained and transformative professional development program for Head Start teachers on an American Indian Reservation. The goal of the program is to support early childhood teachers in developing inquiry-based and culturally-relevant teaching practices. Through analysis of teachers’ classroom practices, surveys and interviews, we explore changes in teachers’ attitudes toward science and inquiry-based practices. Classroom observations were conducted using CLASS (Classroom assessment Scoring System), a tool used to evaluate the quality of classroom interactions. After 1 year of professional development teachers’ attitudes were found to improve and after 2 years teachers classroom practices were more inquiry-based with statistically significant increases in CLASS observation scores.

Stability and change in early childhood classroom interactions during the first two hours of a day

Abstract Early childhood classrooms support children's learning in a variety of ways. Of critical importance are the interactions teachers have with children. The type and quality of classroom interactions vary and can be grouped into three domains: instructional, organizational, and emotional. The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which the quality of classroom interactions is stable over time and the extent to which certain types of interactions (e.g., organizational) set the stage for other types of interactions (e.g., instructional) during the first two hours of a typical pre-k day. Classrooms (n = 693) were observed during four contiguous observation cycles (20 min for observation, 10 min for ratings) using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System. Stability estimates from autoregressive models showed the quality of classroom interactions was highly stable. Latent difference score models were then fit to determine how these domains of teacher interactions related with one another over time. Contrary to hypotheses, higher levels of Classroom Organization and Emotional Support were not related to positive changes in Instructional Support. However, the final model indicated that Classroom Organization and Emotional Support were positively related to one another over time. That is, higher levels of Classroom Organization were related to higher levels of Emotional Support at the next observation cycle and vice versa. Implications for the understanding of classroom interactions and the measurement of interactions are discussed.

The Effects of Preschool Education: What We Know, How Public Policy Is or Is Not Aligned With the Evidence Base, and What We Need to Know.

Early childhood education is at the nexus of basic developmental science, policy research and analysis, and the applied disciplines of education and prevention science. The field has become one of the most vibrant areas of scientific activity in terms of the connections among scientific advances and theory, program design, policy, and classroom practices. But despite the potential links between research and evaluation on the one hand and program development, practices, and public policy on the other, there are too many key areas in which public policy and practice are not well aligned with the knowledge base. These misalignments, as well as a host of questions emerging from new areas of scientific development (e.g., connections between physiological or genetic processes and behavioral development) and practice-based realities (e.g., the need for focused, intensive, and effective professional development of teachers), point to areas in which new research is needed. The aim of this monograph is to provide an analysis of the research evidence in four major domains of work in early childhood education, identifying points at which evidence is not well aligned with public policy or practice, and a set of questions to guide the next wave of research in this rapidly growing field. Overall features of the preschool landscape, including those tightly regulated by policy (such as entry age or eligibility) and those more directly related to child outcomes (such as quality of classroom interactions), are stunningly variable across settings and across time. Reasonable evidence suggests that these features also vary as a function of family background factors. The resulting picture is one of too many children and families falling through too many cracks and seams at too many levels. Thus, even in a policy and program development environment in which early education is valued and prominent and recognition of the need to close gaps and seal seams is growing, the realities point to a fragile and vulnerable nonsystem through which many of our most fragile and vulnerable citizens pass. Demographic shifts will place tremendous pressure on early education and child care in the United States in the coming decades—a trend that is well under way in many states. The consequences for preschool program eligibility and enrollment, available slots, preparation and support of staff, and program resources such as curricula are enormous. It is abundantly evident that the features of the preschool landscape—connections among child care, preschool, and schools; links between families and the adults who teach their children; capacities of the ‘‘system’’ for fostering positive development in children who increasingly vary by race, culture, language, and economic background—will undergo tremendous strain. The pressures imposed on this context and these relationships by the sheer variability present in the children and families will itself be a considerable threat to the viability of the capacity of preschool to promote positive developmental change. Compelling evidence from well-controlled research shows that preschool programs have lasting positive effects on young children’s cognitive and social development. The evidence comes from studies of child care, Head Start, and public school programs using a wide range of research methods, including experiments. Lasting positive impacts have been found for large-scale public programs as well as for intensive programs implemented on a small scale, but even some of the intensive small-scale interventions were public school programs. Some evidence has shown negative effects on social behavior, but the negative effects have not been confirmed by experimental studies. Cost–benefit analyses have shown that

High quality interaction in the classroom. A focus for professional learning.

Oral language education is important throughout primary school for the development of language and learning. Yet in today's educational practice this core principle is neglected and classroom interactions lack quality. Teachers know that supporting students to participate actively in learning is important but they do not master the interaction skills to apply this knowledge in practice. However, as small scale studies demonstrate, teachers can acquire the necessary skills to improve the quality of classroom interaction and can learn to adopt a new teacher role. To promote this on a national scale we developed a checklist for teachers that focuses on acquisition oriented interaction strategies. These teacher strategies are linked to complementary child participation. In order to yield actual changes in classroom conversations professional learning must be well structured. Major course elements on the checklist are: the use of video footage of teachers’ own classroom conversations, and team meetings combined with individually oriented teacher guidance in the classroom. Evaluations of this course yielded positive reactions. In order to guarantee implementation we developed courses for teacher facilitators as well. Presently efforts are being directed at science education in primary schools, and integration of the language and learning course in the teacher training college curriculum.

Dialogic Teaching: Discussing Theoretical Contexts and Reviewing Evidence from Classroom Practice

Drawing on recent developments in dialogic approaches to learning and teaching, I examine the roots of dialogic meaning-making as a concept in classroom practices. Developments in the field of dialogic pedagogy are reviewed and the case for dialogic engagement as an approach to classroom interaction is considered. The implications of dialogic classroom approaches are discussed in the context of educational research and classroom practice. Dialogic practice is contrasted with monologic practices as evidenced by the resilience of the IRF as the default discourse structure in classrooms. Recent evidence suggests the IRF is resistant to attempts to introduce interactive approaches to whole class teaching. Discussion of dialogic practice as a vehicle for increasing pupil engagement at a deep level and raising the quality of classroom interaction is illustrated through a consideration of Philosophy for Children, which is identified as a dialogic approach to classroom practice which has transformative potential for children's learning. Philosophy for Children offers an approach to pedagogy which enables teachers to value pupil voice and promote reflective learning. As such it has much to offer the current debate on dialogic teaching and learning. Research evidence suggests it will promote improved pupil outcomes on a range of assessments.

Pedagogical renewal: Improving the quality of classroom interaction in Nigerian primary schools

This study reports on an investigation of classroom interaction and discourse practices in Nigerian primary schools. Its purpose was to identify key issues affecting patterns of teacher–pupil interaction and discourse as research suggests managing the quality of classroom interaction will play a central role in improving the quality of teaching and learning, particularly in contexts where learning resources and teacher training are limited. The study was based on the interaction and discourse analysis of video recordings of 42 lessons and 59 teacher questionnaires from 10 States, drawn mainly from the north of Nigeria. The findings revealed the prevalence of teacher explanation, recitation and rote in the classroom discourse with little attention being paid to securing pupil understanding. The wider implications of the findings for improving the quality of classroom interaction in Nigerian primary schools through more effective school-based training are considered.

Organising the chemistry of question‐based learning: a case study

Designing inquiry‐based‐learning with and for university students develops problem‐solving skills and logical reasoning, as well as reflective thinking. It involves working as a member of a team, questioning, being creative, shaping the skills for continued intellectual development. It is argued that inquiry‐based group work is one of the most important learning experiences because it enables the exploration of theoretical ideas and conceptual change. This paper presents results about the use of students’ questions to shape these processes. This research involved one group of three students developing a mini‐project on ‘thermochemistry of fitness’. Data were collected through participant observation of group meetings and of meetings with the tutor, through semi‐structured interviews with members of the group and the group as a whole, through an analysis of the questions asked by the group in the development of the project (oral and written) and through an oral presentation by the students. The results show that the questions formulated during the development of group mini‐projects performed several important functions in the structure of the students’ work, such as organising ideas, delimiting the scale of the project, identifying and reflecting on the many strands and sources of information, and reflecting on the project as a whole. The questions have contributed to students’ engagement in the discipline, bringing an increase of interaction between teacher and students, an increase in the confidence and trust of the students in the asking of questions, and therefore an increase in the quality of classroom interactions in the learning and teaching of chemistry.

Teaching for quality learning in chemistry

In Portugal, the number of students in higher education increased from 80,000 in 1975 to 381,000 in 2000 (a change from 11% to 53% in the age group 18–22), meaning a major change in the diversity of student population with consequences well known and studied in other countries. The teaching of chemistry at the University of Aveiro, for the first‐year students of science and engineering, has been subjected to continuous attention to implement quality and student‐centred approaches. The work devoted to excellence and deep learning by several authors has been carefully followed and considered. This communication reports research work on chemistry teaching, associated with those developments for first‐year students. The work included the design of strategies and the adoption of teaching and learning activities exploring ways to stimulate active learning by improving the quality of classroom interactions. In addition to regular lectures, large classes' teaching based on student‐generated questions was explored. In order to improve students' motivation and stimulate their curiosity, conference‐lectures were adopted to deal with selected topics of wide scientific, technological and social interest. Quantitative analysis and discussion of selected case studies, together with the organization of laboratory classes based on selected enquiry‐based experiments, planned and executed by students, stimulated deep learning processes. A sample of 32 students was followed in the academic year of 2000/01 and the results obtained are here discussed in comparison with those of a sample of 100 students followed in 2001/02. Particular attention was paid to the quality of classroom interactions, the use of questions by students and their views about the course design.

The Notion of Quality in DPEP Pedagogical Interventions

The District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) has worked in 18 states in India with the agenda to enhance the quality of classroom interaction and the teaching-learning materials used. This paper examines how ‘quality’ is understood within DPEP, and the educational principles that guide DPEP efforts and training methods, based on reports of training workshops, examining textbooks and materials and first-hand field experience. A proposal is made for an alternative way of looking at ‘quality’ and efforts to realise it.

Classroom Interaction in Kenyan Primary Schools

This article reports on a study of classroom interaction in Kenyan primary schools carried out as part of a national baseline study for the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development in 1998. The baseline was designed to provide a comprehensive picture of the quality of primary education so as to allow the Kenyan Government to prioritise expenditure on resources to improve education in the republic and to assess the impact of any interventions. Video recordings of 102 lessons in English, mathematics and science were analysed using systematic observation, discourse analysis and a time-line analysis. The findings revealed the domination of transmissional forms of teaching, thereby providing little opportunity for pupils to question or explore ideas to help regulate their own thinking. The wider implications of the findings for improving the quality of classroom interaction in Kenyan primary schools are considered together with the training needs of teachers.

Vocal Teachers, Silent Pupils? Life in Botswana Classrooms

Considerable evidence is now available on the human and material inputs that more likely boost pupil achievement in the Third World. Not surprisingly, those factors central to the instructional process-textbooks, exercise books, and teacher literacy levels-are consistently related to children's achievement. Peripheral symbols of quality, including variation in teacher salaries and the character of school facilities, are related less to achievement.'

Classroom Interaction: some Qualitative and Quantitative Differences in a Mixed-ethnicity Classroom

Children's classroom success has been attributed to a variety of factors (Watts, 1975). Among these factors are the quality and number of interactions occurring between the teacher and the students (Brophy and Good, 1974). Students who attract a greater proportion of the teacher's time and experience more positive interactions are more likely to be successful than other students. Additionally it has been argued (McKessar and Thomas, 1978) that some students may have greater expertise in capturing a teacher's attention, that is, by initiating interactions, while King (1979) considered that students engaged in behaviours which were designed to maintain the teacher's performance expectations of them. Earlier literature suggested. that the teacher was responsible for controlling the nature and quality of classroom interactions (Flanders, 1970) but the interactional skills identified by the above researchers suggest that a reciprocal procedural agreement exists between the teacher and some students (Zimmerman, 1987).

Race, Intelligence, and Learning: Some Consequences of the Misuse of Test Results

EDRS Price MF-$0.65 11C-$3.29 Bias, Educational Diagnosis, Educational Opportunities, Environmental Influences, Heredity, Integration Effects, *Intelligence Differences, *Intelligence Tests, Learning Processes, *Racial Differences, Racism, *School Integration, *Test Interpretation, Test Results Jensen (Arthur R) Arthur R. Jensen's article presented no new data: it only reorganized a biased sample of already existent data. Nevertheless, it has been taken by opponents of school integration as definitive scientific evidence of the innate inequality of black and white students. Jensen and Van Den Haag advocate additional studies on individual learning ability before schools are given funds to help them desegregate. They also ask for an objective examination of the educational effects of compulsory Although this would slow school integration, such studies would be useful if they also included data on socioeconomic status and race of persons in the same classroom, rac:;a1 attitudes of classroom teachers and school administrators, presence of ability tracking, the quality of classroom interaction, etc. Even without these qualifications, no studies have found that the performance of black students declines as a result of desegregation. Desegregation must have high priority, if to do no more than prevent the unequal distribution of educational resources. Jensen's articles and those of others provide school personnel and policy makers with an excuse for systematic discrimination against minority groups and other poor children. (JM)