How to Conduct an Observation Observations are like a video camera. They record interactions, learning, playing, physical surroundings, and teaching.

Questions to Consider?? What is the purpose of observing? What types of things are important to look for? What is an inference? How is it different than a fact?

Objective Statements 1. Only observable actions; Not motives, attitudes, or feelings 2. Don’t try to interpret why something happened; No judgments, conclusions, or labels

Things to Observe Environment – physical surroundings, room set-up, diversity of decorations, location of teacher’s desk, centers, etc.

Teacher Tone of voice, proximity to children, verbal/nonverbal communication, interactions, words, appearance

Children Interactions with others, nonverbal/verbal communication

Inference Attempting to explain observed behavior and give it meaning. Why did child behave or react… What caused teacher to… No two people will interpret the facts the same way. They infer based on their own personal experiences, feelings, values, and attitudes.

Video Clip on Various Observations http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1Xtr3RKjGc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRgIxK0WNis

Summary What were your observations about the environment? What were your observations of the students? What difficulties did you encounter in making the distinction between fact and inference?