Classroom Practice

Think alouds are valuable tools for academicians, test developers, and practitioners as they provide a unique window into a respondent’s thinking during an assessment. The purpose of this special issue is to highlight novel ways to use think alouds as a means to gather evidence about respondents’ thinking. An intended outcome from this special issue is that readers may better understand think alouds and feel better equipped to use them in practical and research settings.

Response process validity evidence provides a window into a respondent’s cognitive processing. The purpose of this study is to describe a new data collection tool called a whole-class think aloud (WCTA). This work is performed as part of test development for a series of problem-solving measures to be used in elementary and middle grades. Data from third-grade students were collected in a 1–1 think-aloud setting and compared to data from similar students as part of WCTAs. Findings indicated that students performed similarly on the items when the two think-aloud settings were compared.

Response process validity evidence provides a window into a respondent’s cognitive processing. The purpose of this study is to describe a new data collection tool called a whole-class think aloud (WCTA). This work is performed as part of test development for a series of problem-solving measures to be used in elementary and middle grades. Data from third-grade students were collected in a 1–1 think-aloud setting and compared to data from similar students as part of WCTAs. Findings indicated that students performed similarly on the items when the two think-aloud settings were compared.

Learning goals differ from performance goals. We elaborate on their function and importance as the guiding force behind maintaining cognitive rigor during mathematics learning.

Hunt, J. & Stein, M. K. (2020). Constructing goals for student learning through conversation. Mathematics Teacher: Learning and Teaching PK-12, 113(11), 904-909.

One of the most relentless areas of difficulty in mathematics for children with learning disabilities (LDs) and difficulties is fractions. We report the development and initial testing of an intervention designed to increase access to and advancement in conceptual understanding. Our asset-based theory of change—a tested and confirmed learning trajectory of fraction concepts of students with LDs grounded in student-centered instruction—served as the basis for our multistage scientific design process.

In this article, we report on the development of a novel, video-based measure of teachers’ moment-to-moment noticing as knowledge-filtered perception. We developed items to capture teachers’ perception of similarity of their own teaching to the teaching shown in three short video clips of authentic classroom instruction. We describe the item design and relate teachers’ moment-to-moment noticing to their reflective noticing as measured by judgements of similarity teachers provided after viewing each video.

Sandoval, W. A., Kawasaki, J., & Clark, H. F. (2020). Characterizing science classroom discourse across scales. Research in Science Education.

Maass, K., Cobb, P., Krainer, K., & Potari, D. (2019). Different ways to implement innovative teaching approaches at scale. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 102, 303-318.

There is international and widespread recognition that early childhood education must be fully inclusive and based on the language, culture, and epistemology of local Indigenous communities (Kitson, 2010). Early childhood education (ECE) programs can only deliver on the promises ofculturally responsive schooling (Castagno & Brayboy, 2008; McCarty & Lee, 2014) when “staff members understand cultural expectations, relationships, and the subtleties of communication, including non-verbalcommunication” within the community (Kitson & Bowes, 2010, p.86).