Learner observation tasks as a learning tool for pre-service teachers

Observation tasks

An observation task is ‘a focused activity to work on while observing a lesson in progress’ (Wajnryb 1992:7). Like a selective verbatim technique it focuses on one or a small number of aspects of the teaching/learning process but covers nonverbal behaviour as well. The purpose of the task is to collect actual facts or patterns of interaction that emerge in a lesson. The ad

vantage of the collecting information with the help of selective tasks is that ‘it provides a convenient means of collecting data that frees the observer from forming an opinion or making a non-the-spot evaluation during the lesson’ (Wajnryb 1992:7).

To draw general conclusion about the techniques of observation I can say that some of them suggest either too broad or too narrow studying of the teaching process. It does not suit the main objectives of the Observation Weeks at the Teaching Practicum that are targeted to acquaint trainees with all the facets of the complex teaching/learning process gradually, to practice and develop trainees’ observation skills.

2.7. Evaluation of documents

2.7.1 Criteria for manual evaluation

The data evaluation process in qualitative and quantitative research is complex, laborious and time consuming procedure. In social research there are two main approaches to analysis and evaluation of data: manual and computer based. In the former case qualitative research evaluation is treated as ‘intuitive, idiosyncratic and creative’ (Stroh 2000:226). Due to the immersive nature of the participant observation and closeness to a subject a researcher is inclined to see things from the member’s perspective. Thus Cohen and Mannion (1994:52) suggest evaluating materials by means of two stages: ‘external’ and ‘internal criticism’. External criticism is concerned with establishing the ‘authenticity’ (Scott 1990:37) or genuiness of material. It is aimed at the document itself rather than the statements it contains and endeavors to analyse forms of the data rather than the interpretation or meaning. That is way it sets out to discover frauds, inventions or distortions. A set of questions proposed by Platt (1981) can be employed to test observation material on its authenticity:

Does the document make sense or does it contain glaring errors?

Are there different versions of the original document available?

Is there consistency of literary style, handwriting or typeface?

Has the document been transcribed by many copyists?

Does the version available derive from a reliable source?

Internal criticism deals with the accuracy of the data presentation and an evaluator has to establish ‘credibility’, ‘representativeness’ and ‘meaning’ (Scott 1990:53) of the document.

Credibility refers to the question of whether the task is ‘free from error and distortion’ (Macdonald 2001:204). The later may occur when the comments and discussion were made long time after actual observation, or when the account has been made through different hands and the author was not present at the lesson. The task is considered to be representative if all the aspects of the task have been taken place in an accurate way. But missing of some categories might occur, then the question of what is missing, how much and why should be considered.

Representativeness can be affected by the interest or bias of the author to please the reader, or being under pressure, from fear or vanity the writer can distort or omit some facts.

The meaning of a document should be established at two levels: ‘the surface or literal meaning, and the deeper meaning arrived at … interpretative understanding or structural analysis’ (Macdonald 2001:205). The first type embodies the form of the text whereas the second one analyses the content of the message from the point of view of ‘tendencies, sequences, patterns, and orders’ (Ericson, Bareaneck, and Chan 1991:55). Arguably textual analysis should draw to discourse analysis and concentrates only on language features regardless of social setting. Whereas Scott (1990:64) claims that a text is deprived from its real meaning in isolation from the social context. So ‘texts must be studied as socially situated products’ (Scott 1990:65).

2.7.2 Computer-based evaluation

Computer application in qualitative research analysis arguably brings some organisation and system into unstructured material and various paper forms, but definitely is helpful in storing and managing a large amount of materials in ethnography and statistics in quantitative data collection. Sophisticated software packages have been generated for the last years, for example, the Ethnograph (Seidel), QSR NUP∙IST (Richards and Richards), Hyper-RESEARCH (Biber, Kinder) ATLAS/ti (Muhr), SPSS. Computer programmes are of great help for a researcher and can assist in simple functions such as text processing and speed search as in more complicated ones: coding or indexing words and further retrieving them, building theories, making descriptive statistics and inferential one. But Gayle (2000) admonishes that a researcher should remember that computers do not produce results as such, they ‘merely take some of the laborious data management tasks away from the researcher’ Gayle (2000:415).

Chapter 3

Design of the learner observation tasks

3.1. The area of the observation tasks

The area of observation and the structure of the tasks are modified forms of the classroom observation tasks proposed by Wajnryb (1992). The learner area covers the same focuses as were originally proposed, such as ‘the learner as a doer’, ‘the learner motivation’, ‘the learner level’ except the ‘classroom climate’ task. I have shifted the focus of ‘teacher’s attending behaviour towards the learners’ to ‘classroom climate’ as this is the first meeting with the group of pupils and it is crucial to grasp the idea of social relationship between learners and teacher-learners, to make up a general impression about the degree of learner’s involvement into the lesson activities, their attitude to the language studying and the nature of language use at the lesson, either ‘drill’ to practice grammar or ‘real’ (Allwright 1988:13) to communicate. It should help trainees to become aware of other specific questions that influence learning process and learner development.

The focus of every task is sequenced according to its complexity from more general to more specific category. For example, the variable ‘learning styles’ requires higher inference categories than ‘motivation’ as student-teachers have to observe not only the language behaviour but the manner of approaching and processing the activity, and more descriptive language is entailed in their comments accordingly. Although, the evidences of language level seem to be easier to notice but student teachers are recommended to reflect upon the linkage between all the facets of the previous focuses and their influence upon the leaner level.

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