CLASSROOMOBSERVATIONSWhatWillYouLook

For?
These observation assignments are designed to help you have a more productive learning experience when you do your 30-40
hours of observations. I would hope that you will all get a chance to help out in class - take attendance, work with small groups of
students, grade some student work, perhaps help out with a lab or lesson. In addition to any teaching opportunities you might
have, I also want you to do some focused observations. That is the point of this assignment.
In addition to the types of assignments listed here, you will also have a checklist of "typical activities" that you need to complete
in the schools. Remember that you will be evaluated by the teacher(s) you visit so be sure to spend several class periods with a
single teacher.
You will also be writing 3 vignettes about what you see in the classroom. My goal with those assignments is to get you to focus
on issues of concern to you. The assignment also helps you reflect upon what you see in the classroom. A full description of this
is in the packet handed out in class.
Classroom teaching is a complex enterprise, with a very large number of interacting variables at play. Because of this, classroom
observation becomes highly challenging. The first thing you have to do -- if you are going to avoid the trap of dealing only in
vague generalities ("nice lesson", "it went smoothly", and such) is acknowledge that complexity. The next step is to realize
that you will have to isolate one or two variables (at most) and focus primarily on these. During another observation you can
always focus your attention on a different subset of variables.
With that in mind, here are some of the kinds of things one might look for in a classroom observation: (Please note due dates for
these observations on the syllabus.You do not have to complete each of these - some are assigned and others are 'free choice'. We
will use data you collect during your observations in class.)
Your classroom observation log will have several components. The main portion of your note taking is personal. This part of the
log will not be turned in. You will have several assignments that will be turned in. Directions and rationale for observation
assignments are found in the course pack.
Teacher Verification Log Teacher signature chart (located in course pack)
Checklist of Activities Performed list of activities you are required to perform and those I'd like you to do
Reflective Journaling Vignettes (3 total )
A reflective vignette is a brief written description of a classroom event. The vignette describes events that give rise to a dilemma.
The vignette is written in three parts: the body is written first, the question second, and the title third. The body consists of a brief
description of a single classroom event (one page or less). It tells what happened, how the teacher responded, what was seen,
heard and felt. It includes no evaluative comments. The question brings into focus the particular problem that the student has
experienced. The title focuses the problem to a single word or phrase. [see course pack for an example and rationale for this
assignment]
Youwillhaveseveralobservationassignmentstocompleteduringyour45hoursoffieldwork.
Completionofthefieldworkactivitieschecklist
Mapoftheclassroom
TeachingVignettes3criticalincidentswhichyouobserveandhavequestionsabout
Questioningstrategiesdatakeeping
Casestudyofastudent
Casestudyoftheschool/district
Principal/Asst.PrincipalInterview
PiagetInterviewsprotocol&materialstobecheckedoutfromme
Atleast4assignmentstobeselectedfromthemenubelow:(descriptionsforeachobservationarebelowandinyourcoursepack.
Datacollectionsheetsarealsoinyourcoursepack.)

Genderequity
Useofmanipulatives
Useoftechnology
Distractions
Writetheteacher'slessonplan(basedonwhatyouobserve)
DevelopmentalFlowofthelesson/unit
InterpersonalInteractions
Typeofinteraction
Useofchalkboard/overhead,handouts&tests,useoftextbook
Assignments&grading
Scienceastheoryorfact(natureofscienceissues)

Map of The Room: Draw a map of the classroom. This is especially important to do in the middle school science classroom as
the room might not be a dedicated science room.
How is it (or is it not) conducive to learning? What kind of a learning environment is it? What "signs" do you see in the room that
science is taught & learned here? comfortable learning environment? seating arrangements? What does what you see in the room
tell you about what usually happens there? How valid are your inferences?
Safety Issues: Where are is safety equipment in this room? (fire extinguishers, sinks eye wash, fire blankets, hoods) As you look
around the room what are the danger points in the room?
These questions are ones you should consider whenever a teacher does a demonstration or students are doing a lab. What things
that happen are potentially of danger to students? What does the teacher do to help prevent accidents?

External Factors: How many interruptions during the class period? For what? By whom? How much instructional time becomes
"non-instructional" time? How does the teacher deal with these unasked for interruptions?
"Discipline" What things does the teacher say or do to establish the "tone" of the classroom? What factors contribute to making
the classroom an effective learning environment? If an "event" occurs -- how did it develop? What did the student(s) do? What
did the teacher do? Not do?

Use of Questions: What types of questions were asked? By whom? Who responds? How often? Were they of variable difficulty?
What happens to the responses of the students? Responses of the teacher?
Some uses of questions in instruction: recall data/facts; establish the student's background of information; focusing instruction;
summarizing; to arouse interest; to increase student involvement; curiosity; to punish; to embarrass; to evaluate . Notice the use
(or lack of use) of "Wait Time" (see the paper by Mary Budd Rowe for an understanding of this)

Gender Issues in the Classroom: This observation form will help you become more aware of gender and racial biases in the
classroom. Most teachers are unaware of difference in treatment of their students because they don't analyze what they say/do.
Are all students treated equally? Are there patterns to how a teacher interacts with the students? Is sexist or racist language used?
What effect might that have on students in the class?

"Developmental flow" of the Lesson: What components are present, and what is their sequence of occurrence? For example:

lesson usually begins with some sort of introduction, the aim of which frequently is to motivate, or to "grab" the
students' interest.

early in the lesson, one often attempts to provide a sense of direction; aims of the lesson; focus for what will follow;
objectives.

lesson activities are sometimes interspersed with "medial summaries"

at end of activities, does the teacher summarize (overall summary)?

does the teacher do something to find out how well students have learned the material of the lesson? (lesson
"appraisal")

assignments and/or "enrichments" are often used to round out the lesson; some teachers use some sort of a
"generalizing experience" which helps students to broaden their understanding of a concept or skill.

Interpersonal Interactions: What is the "flow" of classroom communication? Primarily from teacher to students? How much
communication moves in the reverse direction? How much exists between students? Appropriateness" of that flow?
What is the role of the teacher in this lesson? (i.e., source of all the information? facilitator? or what?) What evidence is there to
indicate the degree to which students are actively involved in learning?

Type of Interaction: Lecture, lab or workshop, lecture-demonstration, supervised study, discussion, review lesson are examples
of categories (this is merely a broad classification; therefore, not particularly useful, except to "label" the lesson).
Use of Learning Aids and Manipulatives: audio-visual materials? demonstration materials? models? charts/maps?
live/preserved specimens? How effective do the materials seem to be? Evidence? How else might these materials have been
used? Might some others have been used with greater impact?

Use of Chalkboard/Overhead Projector: Legible? Visible? Make sense? What might have been done differently? Does the
teacher follow the 'rules & guidelines' suggested in the handout I gave you?
Handouts, Test, etc. How helpful are they? How do they contribute to learning? Legible? Understandable? (get copies for
possible future analysis)
Use of the Textbook: Does it "dominate" what happens in class? How is it used? For what purposes? How often? How helpful is
it? Do students appear to like it? Does the teacher share strategies for success with students?

Assignments: When given? What? Why? What happens to it afterward? Clear purpose? How does it relate to enhancing
learning? Realistic expectations? Student reactions?
Grading: How is it handled? Student reactions? How does the teacher feel about his/her grading procedures?

Science as theory or fact?: Is theory presented as theory, or as fact? Is there an "investigative" mood in the classroom (let's find
out!)? Is there a focus on doing science (as opposed to reading about it, talking about it, etc)? Is the focus on "product" or
"process"? What proportion of effort on each? Is this class consistent/at odds with the Nature of Science?
OBSERVATION SHEET: USE OF LEARNING AIDS AND MANIPULATIVES

COURSENAME:DATE:
Are audio-visual materials used? How?
Are demonstrations done? When in the lesson? How easy are they to see? Do they help make ideas clearer?
Are any models used?
Are charts/maps in evidence? Used to enhance the lesson?
Are there live/preserved specimens?
How effective do the materials seem to be? What evidence do you have?
How else might these materials have been used? Might some others have been used with greater impact?
Keep a list of all the learning aids you see being used (i.e., lab equipment - be specific, rulers, scales, burners or hot plates,
computers, microscopes or magnifying glasses, chemicals - be specific). Make notes about their effectiveness at aiding in student
learning.
LEARNING AID

PERCEIVED EFFECTIVENESS

POINTSTOPONDER:
1.Listobservationsthatleadyoutothinkthattheuseoftheseteachingtechniqueswithlearningaidswasbeneficialtothe
students:
2.Listobservationsthatcausedyoutothinkthattheuseofsomeorallofthelearningaidsmaynothavebeenhelpful:
3.Imagineyourselfteachingthesamelessonsometimeinthefuture.Whatwouldbedifferentand/orthesamewhenYOUdo
theteaching?

OBSERVATIONSHEET:USEOFQUESTIONS
PARTONE
INSTRUCTIONS:Makealistofallthequestionsateacherasksina20minuteperiod.Trytorecordthemverbatim.Trytodo
thisobservationduringasectionofthelessonwhentheteacherwillbeaskinglotsofquestions.Dothisobservationbeforedoing
parts2&3.
OBSERVATIONSHEET:USEOFQUESTIONS
PARTTWO
INSTRUCTIONS:Tocompletethisexercise,youwillneedtoobservethesameteacherandthesameclassduringa23day
interval.Ifpossible,completeonesetofobservationsinahighschoolandanothersetinamiddleschool.[ifyouareteaching
audiotapeyourselffor3consecutivedaysandanalyzethetape]

Makeaseatingchartforeachclasstobeobserved.Usethechart(s)tokeeptrackofwhichstudent(s)arecalledon.Simply
tabulatethedataforagivenperiodoftime(15minutesforeachobservation,forexample)foreachclass,andthendothe
following:
1.Createachartorsomeotherinformativewaytodisplaythedata;
2.Writeashortsummaryofyourobservations;whatpatternsdidyounotice?
3.Listatleastthree(3)inferencesbasedonyourobservations.Canyoupredictwhowillgetcalleduponfordifferenttypesof
questions?
OBSERVATIONSHEET:USEOFQUESTIONS
PARTTHREE
Instructions:Classroomquestionscanbecategorizedinavarietyofwaysanddifferenttypesofquestionsservedifferentgoals.
Youwilllearnmoreabouthisduringthecourseofthesinglesubjectprogram.Fornow,considerjustthreefairlybroad
categoriesofquestions:(1)thosewhichareknowledgebased,(2)thosethatdealwithapplicationsofknowledge,and(3)those
whichrequireanalysis.Inthispartoftheobservationassignmentyouareaskedtokeeptrackofthetypesofquestionsasked
duringagivenperiodoftimea1520minutesegmentofalesson.Simplytallythequestionsaskedaccordingtothethree
categories.[ifyouareteachingaudiotapeyourselffor3consecutivedaysandanalyzethetape]

TYPEOFQUESTION

TALLY

Knowledgebasedquestions

Questionsrequiringapplications

Questionsrequiringanalysis

MAKINGSENSEOFTHEDATA:
Underwhatcircumstances,andforwhatpurposes/goals,mightyou,asateacher,choosetousequestionsofthefollowingtypes:
Knowledgebasedquestions:
Questionsrequiringapplications:
Questionsrequiringanalysis:

CLASSROOMOBSERVATION:GENDEREQUITY
Instructionsforcompletingthechart:atthreedifferenttimes,foratwentyminuteinterval,tallyandcalculatethemeannumber
andkindsofresponsesobserved.

Observation

GIRLS

BOYS

Number

ResponsesNoted

ResponsesNoted

Numberof

About

About

Numberof

About

About

responses

Behavior

Learning

responses

Behavior

Learning

1
2
3
Duringeachobservationinterval,noteiftheinstructoruses,ordoes,anyofthefollowing(recordinyourlog):
1.Commentsthatsuggestgenderrolestereotyping(examples:"beneatlikeagirl","whatwouldyourfathersay?")
2.Apparentassignmentofanytasksorlessonactivitiesaccordingtostudentgender.
3.Useofsexist(ornonsexist)languageinclass,inhandouts,orintests.Aspossible,provideexamplesofanyobserved.[refer
tohandoutfromclass]
4.Howencouragementofoutofclassscienceand/ormathactivitiesisgiven.
5.Useofsexisthumor.Ifobserved,listexamples.Alsolistanyinstanceswhereateachermightcorrectanotherperson'suseof
sexisthumor.
6.Anyinstancesofsupportwhichateachermightreceivefordoingsomethingdifferentorspecialforgirls(i.e.,supportfrom
anotherteacheroranadministrator)
OTHERELEMENTSOBSERVED
1.Varietyandtypesoflearningmaterials.
2.Bulletinboards:informationaboutsciencecareers?Arestudentsgradespubliclydisplayed?Anyinformationabouttherole
ofwomenand/orminoritiesinscience?
3.Studentlaborotherworkgroups:aretheysinglegenderormixed?Ifmixed,towhatextentarethegirlsinvolvedinsetting
upexperimentsand/orcollectingdata?Ingroupproblemsolving,whatrole(s)aretakenbygirls&boys?Membersofdifferent
racialorethnicgroups?Howaregrouptasksassigned?byteacher?bystudents?
4.Observetheseatingarrangementoftheclass.Makeaseatingchartwhichdisplayswheregirls&boyssit,wheremembersof
variousracialorethnicgroupssit.Aretheirpatterns?Whatimplicationsdothosepatternshaveforyouastheteacher?