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Journal ArticleDOI

Relationships between teacher behaviors and pupil achievement in three experimental elementary science lessons.

01 Nov 1970-American Educational Research Journal (SAGE Publications)-Vol. 7, Iss: 4, pp 477-491
TL;DR: Despite considerable growth in the number of observational studies of teaching in the last five years, there have been relatively few investigations of the relationships between what teachers do in the classroom and pupil achievement as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Despite considerable growth in the number of observational studies of teaching in the last five years, there have been relatively few investigations of the relationships between what teachers do in the classroom and pupil achievement (Nuthall, 1968; Meux, 1967). As Gage has noted (Gage, 1966), observational data-gathering in classrooms has an obvious attraction to educational researchers, but there is little if any empirical evidence which makes it clear just what aspects of teacher behavior are most relevant to the major concerns of schools.
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504 citations

01 Dec 1998
TL;DR: The role of semantic features in defining abstract concepts has been discussed extensively as discussed by the authors, and it was Katz and Fodor (1963) who first popularized the notion that abstract concepts can be defined as sets of features.
Abstract: concepts, then, are the basic components of propositions that are themselves the basic units of deep-structure, linguistic thought. Given the importance of abstract concepts to linguistic thought, it is useful to consider these in some depth. The Nature of Abstract Concepts There has been a great deal of research and theory on the nature of abstract concepts (Klausmeier, 1980; Smith and Medin, 1981; Tennyson, 1975). Virtually all of the major discussions of the nature and format of abstract concepts acknowledge the role of semantic features. It was Katz and Fodor (1963) who first popularized the notion that abstract concepts can be defined as sets of semantic features. Unfortunately, to exemplify semantic features as they relate to abstract concepts, one must use words that are not the concepts themselves, only "tokens" for the abstract concepts. With this in mind, consider Figure 2.4 which illustrates the role of semantic features in defining abstract concepts. The words in set A all represent abstract concepts with the semantic features human, animal, and two-legged. The words in B1 and B2 represent abstract concepts that are differentiated by the fact that all B1 abstract concepts contain the added semantic feature of male, all B2 words represent abstract concepts with the added semantic feature of female. The abstract concepts represented by words in set C do not share a male-female distinction, but they do share a semantic feature that might be called siblings. Semantic feature theory, then, asserts that abstract concepts are defined by sets of semantic features. The abstract concept represented by the word cow is defined by semantic features such as animate, concrete, four-legged, milk-producing, and so on. The abstract concept represented by the word desk is defined by semantic features such as inanimate, concrete, four-legged, used for paper work, and so on.

313 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, Nuthall proposes an explanatory theory for research on teaching that can be directly and transparently linked to classroom realities, arguing that such research must provide continuous, detailed data on the experience of individual students, in-depth analyses of the changes that take place in the students' knowledge, beliefs, and skills, and ways of identifying the real-time interactive relationships between these two kinds of data.
Abstract: In this article, Graham Nuthall critiques four major types of research on teaching effectiveness: studies of best teachers, correlational and experimental studies of teaching- learning relationships, design studies, and teacher action and narrative research. He gathers evidence about the kind of research that is most likely to bridge the teaching-research gap, arguing that such research must provide continuous, detailed data on the experience of individual students, in-depth analyses of the changes that take place in the students' knowledge, beliefs, and skills, and ways of identifying the real-time interactive relationships between these two different kinds of data. Based on his exploration of the literature and his research on teaching effectiveness, Nuthall proposes an explanatory theory for research on teaching that can be directly and transparently linked to classroom realities.

239 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, two basic approaches characterize classroom research on second language learning: interaction analysis and anthropological observation, within each approach several methods are available for data collection and analysis, including behavioral observation systems, discourse analysis, ethnography, constitutive ethnography and diary studies.
Abstract: Two basic approaches characterize classroom research on second language learning: interaction analysis and anthropological observation. Within each approach several methods are available for data collection and analysis. Procedures described are the use of behavioral observation systems, discourse analysis, ethnography, constitutive ethnography, and diary studies. Strengths and limitations of these methods and of both basic approaches are considered, and suggestions are made for the design of future research. This work needs to include a classroom observational component in which language acquisition as well as classroom process variables are treated. In this way it will be possible to test a theory of second language acquisition with the aid of formal instruction.

229 citations