School-Based Observation A Practical Guide to Assessing Student Behavior

"This book is divided into three main sections. The first section, Foundations of Direct Observation, is intended to provide readers with the basic conceptual foundations of direct observation. We review the basic considerations involved in conducting school-based observations (Chapter 2), describe the most important indicators of high-quality observation methods (Chapter 3), and suggest guidelines for maximizing the reliability and validity of decisions based on observation data (Chapter 4). The second section, Specific Observational Codes, then moves from a general discussion of the overall assessment method to a more specific discussion of extant codes that are available for specific purposes. A number of evidence-based observation codes that were designed to assess student behavior in classroom settings (Chapter 5), the classroom environment (Chapter 6), student behavior in non-classroom settings (Chapter 7), and both student behavior the environmental context within functional assessment (Chapter 8) are introduced. We provide general guidelines for developing a unique code in Chapter 9, as well as a library of operational definitions and a range of sample coding forms within the appendices. The third and final section, Using Assessment Data to Inform Decision Making and Intervention, consists of one chapter focused on what to do once observational data have been collected"--