Use Of Classroom Observation Research Articles

Students’ attitudes towards using English as a medium of instruction in scientific disciplines: Challenges and solutions

This study aims at exploring the challenges faced by university EFL students and the solutions which they use to overcome these challenges. Therefore, this study investigated non-English major learners’ attitudes towards the challenges associated with using English as a medium of instruction in scientific disciplines. Qualitative research methods were used involving the use of classroom observations, surveys and interviews to collect the required data. The results showed a positive perception with regard to the use of English as a medium of instruction (EMI) among the participants. In addition, based on the participants’ results, the research highlights four themes as presenting the greatest challenges. Suggestions and recommendations are made for enhancing the successful use of EMI. Keywords: challenges; English as a medium of instruction; scientific disciplines IS THIS WHAT YOU MEAN?

Teacher Educators’ Perceptions of Critical Incidents in Teaching Practice: The Case of Novice EFL Teachers

Teachers experience various challenges and conditions in their profession, and they may require to make appropriate decisions and take action based on the analysis of the situation. The present study attempted to identify the critical incidents that occur in teaching practices for the novice teachers from the teacher educators’ standpoint. Moreover, they were asked to offer some solutions for these critical incidents. To do so, eight teacher educators at a teacher education university in Iran were asked to be involved in a semi-structured interview to openly express their views. Content and thematic analyses were carried out on the transcript of the interviews. Based on the findings, teacher educators referred to nine major incidents in the teachers’ pedagogical practices and offered six solutions. The major incidents included time management, the students’ ineffective cooperation, odd behavior, demotivation, dissatisfaction, lack of empathy and sympathy, the teacher’s content knowledge, and the required type of feedback. The solutions provided by the teacher educators were familiarizing the pre-service teachers with the critical incidents, management strategies, use of classroom observation, running workshops, reflective practice, and emotional intelligence development. The research results help novice and pre-service teachers to identify the critical incidents, reflect upon them, and be prepared to react appropriately. Moreover, the results confirm the necessity of a course, emphasizing both the critical incidents and the probable solutions.

Exploring the Context Dependent Factors That Shape Teachers’ Practice of Quality Classroom Questioning: A Case of a Secondary School Setting

Classroom questioning as one of the practices and tools at a teacher’s disposal in the teaching and learning process can be considered the strongest tool to teach students how to think. In the teaching and learning process, there is traditional questioning and quality classroom questioning. The purpose of this study is to explore the context dependent factors that shape quality classroom questioning practices manifested in the teaching and learning process in a form four class. The study used the Bloom’s taxonomy and the Information Processing model as theoretical framework for the study to analyze the quality of questions and activities used to direct learner attention, encourage thinking, and promote real learning. The study was based on interpretivist paradigm that is exploratory in nature taking a qualitative approach. It involved use of classroom observation, semi-structured interviews involving four teachers and six learners, and document analysis on departmental minutes, schemes of work, lesson observation forms and lesson plans to collect data. It was found out that the context dependent factors that shape questioning were found to include the classroom setting, examinations, pedagogical culture, and learners’ state of mind. Further studies are recommended to establish relationship between contextual factors and question presentation practices, and on the influence of contextual factors on cognitive level of questions and responses.

CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK AND UPTAKE PATTERNS IN ENGLISH LESSONS AT A TERTIARY INSTITUTION

New teaching methods have led to the changes in the teachers’ roles in an English class, in which teachers’ error correction is an integral part. Language error and corrective feedback have been the interest of many researchers in foreign language teaching. However, the techniques and the effectiveness of teachers’ feedback have been a question of much controversy. This present case study has been carried out with a view to finding out the patterns of teachers’ corrective feedback and their impact on students’ uptake in English speaking lessons of legal English major students at a Law University. In order to achieve those aims, the study makes use of classroom observations as the main method of data collection to seeks answers to the two following questions: 1. What patterns of corrective feedback occur in English speaking lessons for legal English major students in a Law University? 2. To what extent does that corrective feedback lead to students’ uptake? The study provided some important findings, among which was a close relationship between corrective feedback and uptake. In particular, recast was the most commonly used feedback type, yet it was the least effective in terms of students’ uptake and repair, while the most successful feedback, namely metalinguistic feedback, clarification requests and elicitation, which led to students’ generated repair, was used at a much lower rate by teachers. Furthermore, it revealed that different types of errors needed different types of feedback. Also, the use of feedback depended on the students’ English proficiency level. In the light of findings, a number of pedagogical implications have been drawn in the hope of enhancing the effectiveness of teachers’ corrective feedback to students’ uptake in foreign language acquisition process.

Classroom Discourse Analysis: A Case of ESL Reading Class

More than the recognition, perception, and interpretation of written materials, reading has been dubbed as our bridge to other skills that are necessary for academic success. Subsequently, one way for teachers to monitor both the quantity and quality of output of the students is through Classroom discourse analysis, which is an aspect of classroom process research (Jiang, 2012). This paper, therefore, aimed to determine teacher’s questioning vis-à-vis students’ reading strategies in the case of an ESL reading class in one of the private schools in Zamboanga City, Philipenese through classroom discourse analysis. As a qualitative endeavor, it made use of classroom observations with the aid of an audio recorder to enable the analysis. A total of 131 exchanges were generated in a 45-minute discussion, with roughly 25 minutes allotted to the said discourse, and the rest for other activities. Teacher-Pupil-Teacher (TPT) captured as Teacher-Student-Teacher (TST) in the case of this paper, is the recurring sequence during the whole duration of the discourse. Discourse analysis that was done to an audio recording transcript of a reading class observation revealed patterns that are primarily present in some, if not most, discourse analysis (DA) research literature. Interestingly, it, however, uncovered the following: for teacher’s way of questioning (in this case, echoice and epistemic), epistemic questions (mostly, rhetorical for this matter), were made reference(s) by the students in answering questions. Consequently, the lesson or activity became, to some extent, communicative, because of the above mentioned points.

ADAPTATION OF A CLASSROOM OBSERVATION PROTOCOL FOR ACTIVE LEARNING

In our work, we are focusing on the use of classroom observation to provide feedback on instructional space design. An initiative to redesign teaching space began a decade ago at a large, research-intensive institution. In September 2018, a large-scale (477 seat) active learning classroom became operational. The affordances of this space are intended to enable active teaching and learning in large classes. However, it is difficult to assess how successful this space is for active learning. A multi-year study has been undertaken to observe teaching practice in situ, with the goalof developing design principles for instructional space and technology that support the development, design, and implementation of teaching activities. Existing teaching observation protocols do not fully capture the interaction between the instructor and the space because such protocols were generally intended for other purposes. The goal is to develop a protocol that captures activities that are both intrinsic and extrinsic to teaching. This paper describes the development and use of an observation protocol. The core of the protocol is the wellknownTeaching Dimensions Observation Tool (TDOP). The scope of the TDOP is extended to active learning activities drawing from the Active Learning Classroom Observation Tool (ALCOT). The resulting extended protocol, TDOP+, was used for coding both live and recorded classroomobservations in the Winter 2020 term. This extended protocol allows the researchers to capture information that characterizes the intersection of pedagogy, space, and technology through Activity Theory. In future work, the data gathered through observations will be analyzed using theDifferentiated Overt Learning Activities (DOLA) framework, to provide insight into what types of teaching activity happens in a large-scale active learning classroom across STEM education and how active learning in large classrooms compares to pedagogy in other spaces.

Classroom observation and mathematics education research

Classroom observations have become an integral part of research related to mathematics education. In this qualitative study, we describe the current state of the mathematics education field with regard to the use of classroom observation. The research question was: How is classroom observation being used to measure instructional quality in mathematics education research? In all, 114 peer-reviewed manuscripts published between 2000 and 2015 that involved classroom observation as part of an empirical study were examined using a cross-comparative methodology. Seventy (61%) did not use a formalized classroom observation protocol (COP), 21 (18%) developed their own COP, and 23 (20%) used a previously developed COP. Of the implemented COPs, 44% have published validity evidence in a peer-reviewed journal. We perceive the great variety of research approaches for classroom observation as necessary and potentially challenging in moving mathematics education forward with respect to research on instructional contexts.

Observable mathematical teaching expertise among upper elementary teachers: connections to student experiences and professional learning

Researchers examining elementary teachers’ mathematical teaching expertise—that is, teachers’ knowledge both of mathematics and of how to effectively teach mathematics—have linked such expertise to student outcomes. But, given the increasing use of classroom observations for teacher evaluation in the USA, this study considers whether and how upper elementary teachers’ mathematical teaching expertise is observable in everyday classroom observations. Using classroom observation data collected with the widely used CLASS observation instrument, this study examines relationships among observation data, student outcome data, and data on opportunities for professional learning from 298 upper elementary teachers in four urban school districts in the USA. Using principal components analysis, this study isolates an observable dimension of mathematical teaching expertise. Regression analyses then identify statistically significant relationships among observed mathematical teaching expertise and multiple student outcomes, including mathematics learning and self-efficacy, as well as teacher professional learning through collaboration with mathematics coaches. Our findings inform strategies for observing mathematical teaching expertise, strengthening the practices of upper elementary teachers, and improving student experiences in the upper elementary grades.

Associations between observed patterns of classroom interactions and teacher wellbeing in lower secondary school

Classroom observations and teacher self-reports were used to examine the relationships between patterns of teacher–student interactions and the wellbeing of Norwegian lower secondary school teachers. Latent profile analysis identified four subgroups. Teacher–student interactions and the teachers' wellbeing were inter-related in that teachers who were observed to be high in all the interaction domains (Emotional Support, Classroom Organization, and Instructional Support) perceived themselves as having high job satisfaction. The results showed that improving teachers’ wellbeing has the potential to improve teacher–student interactions and vice versa. The study also discusses the use of classroom observations to facilitate teacher–student interactions in teacher training.

Face-Threatening Acts: Conflict between a Teacher and Students in EFL Classroom

As traditional concept of Chinese value and personality, the issue of face plays a vital role in Chinese culture not only in daily life but also in learners’ learning context. This study investigates English teachers’ use of threatening acts in EFL classrooms. One female EFL teacher of the junior high school and her 49 EFL students participated in the present study. With the use of classroom observation, the teacher interview and students’ open-ended questionnaires, 38 threatening acts and 4 main threat types (indirect threats, indirect accusation, direct threats with modified blame, and direct threats with explicit blame) were noted. The factors affecting the teacher’s use of threatening acts and students’ responses and opinions toward the teacher’s use of threats were discussed. The pedagogical implications were provided at the end of the study.

Observing instructional quality in the context of school evaluation

Observational measures of instructional quality are used in both research and evaluation contexts. In European school evaluation systems, one main intended use of classroom observation results is to inform schools' instructional improvement efforts. This study examined the quality of such diagnostic information in the context of a school evaluation system in Germany. The factor analytic results indicate that the empirical structure of the observation instrument lacks correspondence with its original normative model but does mirror a five-factor model based on recent literature, including classroom management, two different aspects of student orientation, cognitive activation, and classroom assessment. The generalizability analyses show that both indicators and observers represent important sources of measurement error. Additionally, their magnitude is larger for shorter observations (lesson segments). At least two, sometimes three, observers and between five and ten indicators per dimension are needed to achieve sufficiently reliable results, but results importantly depend on which dimension of instructional quality is being assessed.

Examining the Use of Classroom Observations in the Evaluation of Special Education Teachers

A primary focus of recent educational policymaking has been on improving measures of teaching effectiveness, attributable in part to recent federal policies such as the Race to the Top initiative and Investing in Innovation. To date, neither researchers nor practitioners have arrived at a consensus on the best methods for evaluating special educators. While value-added scores are likely not suitable for the majority of special education teachers, observation systems appear to be more promising because they can be used across a variety of instructional settings and formats. To illustrate the steps that would be necessary to validate observation systems for use with special educators, we examine the observation system being most commonly used in school districts—Charlotte Danielson’s Framework for Teaching (FFT). Drawing on empirical research, we propose a definition of effective special education teaching, and we then use this definition to frame our investigation into FFT. We conclude with a series of recommendations for research that would establish the validity of using FFT to evaluate special educators. We also describe how the challenges specific to FFT would generalize to other observation systems.

Teacher Questions in a Content-based Classroom for EFL Young Learners

Questions are the most common form of interaction between teachers and students in classroom teaching. However, while many studies go to questioning techniques in ESL/EFL classrooms, few turn to content-based classrooms, especially for young learners. The goal of this study is to explore types and functions of questions that teachers use in Content-Based Instruction (CBI), and how teachers deal with the non-responded questions. The participants were 16 Grade-three students and 1 teacher teaching “Science” in English from Plookpanya School in Thailand. A purely qualitative method was adopted through the use of classroom observations and interviews. The results showed that the teacher questions were referential and display questions. However, only display questions were used when dealing with teaching and learning. They serve several functions such as to elicit information, to check learners’ understanding, etc. In addition, six question modification strategies were employed when dealing with non-responded questions. Pedagogical implications for the effective use of teacher questions in content-based classrooms for young learners are also discussed.

Sustained classroom observation: what does it reveal about changing teaching practices?

In the context of the tension between classroom observation as a form of empowerment and as an instrument of control, the partnership between three 16–19 colleges and a university School of Education in delivering a programme of sustained observation over eight years is explicated. Drawing on the literature about continuing professional development (CPD) and the use of classroom observation as a developmental and inspection tool, the principles and processes that underpin the programme are explained. Content analysis of 924 reports of classroom observations is undertaken to establish two areas where changes in practice can be relatively easily achieved and two areas that are more resistant.

‘I just do as expected’. Teachers’ implementation of Continuous Assessment and challenges to curriculum literacy

This paper reports on a study that clarifies the nature and scope of the challenges experienced by primary school teachers in Swaziland when using Continuous Assessment (CA) as a tool to improve teaching and learning. Through the use of classroom observations and stimulated recall interviews, we sought to understand the significance of the choices they made to meet the requirements of the prescribed lesson objectives. Their accounts of the assessment exercises they used reflect their understanding of the content they had to teach, the discipline from which it was drawn and intentions of the CA programme. In conclusion, we provide cues that may be useful to further these teachers’ curriculum literacy.

Teacher lust: reconstructing the construct for mathematics instruction

Two collegiate mathematics courses for prospective elementary and middle grades teachers provide the context for the examination of Mary Boole’s construct of teacher lust. Through the use of classroom observations and instructor interviews, the author presents a refined conception of teacher lust. Two working aspects of the construct were identified: (1) enacted teacher lust; an observable action that may remove an opportunity for students to think about or engage in mathematics for themselves; and (2) experienced teacher lust; an internal impulse to act in the manner described. Empirical examples of each facet, differences between conscious and unconscious interactions with teacher lust, along with potential antecedents are discussed.

Student teacher collaborative reflection: perspectives on learning together

This paper reflects on the collaborative learning experiences of two ‘student teachers’ who have recently completed a Masters in Higher Education. Its purpose is to enhance our general understanding, and to encourage debate on how the professional expertise and confidence of new academics may be supported. Specifically, the article examines the use of classroom observation and associated reflective activities between student teachers as important cornerstones for professional growth and in developing a sense of collegiality. The paper sets the context by drawing together the theoretical literature relating to classroom observation and reflective practice. Then it draws on our experiences of using a particular classroom observation tool (FIAC) and how our learning was enriched through the exchange of written reflections. The paper illustrates how shared reflective activities between peers, such as story-telling, deepens understanding. In particular, it highlights the importance of understanding the emotional dynamics at play in learning. Travelling, while taking you to new places, emphasizes the value of having an emotional and physical base. T. S. Eliot said that ‘the end of all our exploring/Will be to arrive where we started/And know the place for the first time’. This applies equally to an internal as well as an external environment and I feel that this trip has helped me see myself more clearly. (Keenan & McCarthy, 2000, p. 386)

Evaluation of nursing faculty through observation.

The purpose of this study was to assess current use and faculty perceptions of classroom observation as a method of faculty evaluation in schools of nursing. Baccalaureate schools of nursing were surveyed to determine current use of classroom observation and its worth from the perception of administrators and faculty. Although most schools used classroom observation as a method of faculty evaluation, further clarification and research is needed in the following areas: purpose of classroom observation; number of observations necessary; weight given to classroom observation in relation to other evaluation methods; and tools used.

Discipline in the classroom: Communicative strategies for negotiating order

Unrelenting routine problems, anxiety about discipline, and inability to respond to institutional demands are central communicative issues that many student teachers and first year teachers are concerned about as they begin their teaching careers. The purpose of this study was to extend the current understanding of one of these issues, discipline, by viewing it from the framework of Negotiated Order Theory. This case study examination reveals how and why discipline is negotiated by a first year teacher and his ninth grade students. Through the use of classroom observation and interviews with the teacher and his students, this study specifically explicates the communicative strategies used by the teacher and his students to negotiate classroom order. The results indicate that students' misbehavior often serves as a strategy for voicing dissatisfaction with the present classroom order. At the same time, the repeated discipline calls by the teacher reflect the teacher's and students' desire for changes in the classroom conditions. Future research needs to investigate the negotiation of order across a variety of classrooms and to consider different subject areas and grade levels.

The use of classroom observation and student profiles for effective instruction with limited ability adults

This article reports on a Canadian approach to the teaching of adults with learning difficulties. The authors have developed a classroom observation instrument and model for improving teacher strategies. This is based on an ongoing dialogue between the various participants. Although the strategy has been developed with adults, it has clear implications for use with adolescents.