Classroom Assessment Scoring System - CLASS

Pre-K OverviewKim Roberts

Ashland Early Childhood Regional Training CenterKim.roberts@ashland.kyschools.us

Classroom “Quality”

What? Who? Where?

STRUCTURE

Curriculum

Standards

How?

PROCESS

Implementation

Relationships

Children’s Academic & Social Development

Academic & Social Interactions

Materials

Training and Education

How Do We Measure Classroom Process?

• Classrooms are complex places

• We need a lens through which to view them

• The lens we choose impacts what we see

• The Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) offers a lens through which to view classrooms that has several advantages:

– Reliable, validated measure

– Reflects the complexity of classrooms

– Provides a common language

The CLASS Lens

Reliable, not valid Not valid, not reliable Reliable and valid

Source: www.georgetown.edu/departments/psychology/researchmethods/ researchanddesign/validityandreliability.htm

What Does the CLASS Measure?

Emotional Support

Positive Climate

Negative Climate

Teacher Sensitivity

Regard for Student Perspectives

Instructional Support

Concept Development

Quality of Feedback

Language Modeling

Classroom Organization

Behavior Management

Productivity

Instructional Learning Formats

What the CLASS Is NOT

• Not just about the teacher, i.e., this teacher is a ‘3’

• Not a checklist• Not about the physical environment• Doesn’t capture all aspects of the

classroom– Cultural Sensitivity– Literacy

Children’s Learning Gains and the CLASS

NCEDL Research

• Largest studies of state-funded preschool classrooms to date

• 6 States in the Multi-State Study (2001) selected based on diversity in:– 40 school/centers selected randomly, per state– stratified by: teacher credentials (BA vs. no BA),

in school vs. non-school, and full/part day

• 5 SWEEP States (2003) selected to:– aimed for 100 school/centers selected randomly, per state– No stratification

• Both studies: 1 classroom selected randomly • Both studies: 4 children per class selected

randomly– half girls; half boys, 4-year-olds

Multi-State Study of Pre-K California, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, Georgia, & New York

States in the Study

SWEEPMassachusetts, New Jersey, Texas, Washington, & Wisconsin

Profiles of Pre-K Classrooms

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

14% 18% 27% 21% 20%

% of Classrooms

Emotional Support

ClassroomOrganization

Instructional Support

Average Score

on CLASS

LoCasale-Crouch et al, 2006

Gains in Achievement in Emotionally Supportive Elementary Classrooms

98

99

100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

No problemsMultiple problems

Standardized tests of achievement adjusted

Low Moderate High

1st Grade Emotional Support

Kindergarten adjustmentproblems

Hamre & Pianta, 2005

Gains in Achievement in Instructionally Supportive Elementary Classrooms

98

99

100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

High Mat EdLow Mat Ed

Standardized tests of achievement adjusted

Low Moderate High

1st Grade Instructional SupportHamre & Pianta, 2005

The CLASS Dimensions

How is the CLASS Organized?

3 DomainsEmotionalSupport

ClassroomOrganization

InstructionalSupport

10 dimensions PC NC TS RSP BM P ILF CD QF LM

Multiple Indicators Define Each Dimension

Multiple Behavioral Markers Define Each Indicator

How is the CLASS Organized?

Dimension

Indicator

Behavioral Markers

Emotional SupportDomain

Emotional Support Domain

How do teachers help students develop

– Warm, supportive relationships with teachers and peers

– Enjoyment of and excitement about learning

– Feelings of comfort in the classroom

– Appropriate levels of autonomy

Positive Climate

• Reflects the emotional connection between teachers and students and among students, and the warmth, respect, and enjoyment communicated by verbal and

non-verbal interactions.

– Relationships– Positive Affect– Positive Communication– Respect

Positive Climate

• Teachers and children are comfortable with one another and enjoy spending time together: matched affect, enthusiasm, social conversation.

• Not necessarily all grins and giggles - different teachers have different styles and demeanors

• Respect - different from regard

Positive Climate Video Exemplars

• Shared Enjoyment When Puppet Says “Boo!”– Relationships– Positive Affect– Respect

• Social Conversation During Center Time– Relationships– Positive Affect– Positive Communication– Respect

Negative Climate

• Reflects the overall level of expressed negativity in the classroom. The frequency, quality, and intensity of teacher and peer negativity are key to this scale.

– Negative Affect

– Punitive Control

– Sarcasm/disrespect

– Severe Negativity

Negative Climate

• Not the absence of Positive Climate, but rather the presence of specific behaviors that express negativity in the classroom.

• These include– Anger or irritation– Use of threats or yelling to control the children– Sarcasm or disrespect– Severely negative behaviors such as hitting or fighting

Negative Climate

• It is rare to have classrooms score in the middle or high range.

• The more instances of negativity the higher the code.

• Severe negativity results in automatic 7.

Teacher Sensitivity

• Encompasses the teacher’s awareness of and responsiveness to students’ academic and emotional needs. High levels of sensitivity facilitate students’ abilities to actively explore and learn because the teacher consistently provides comfort, reassurance, and encouragement.

– Awareness– Responsiveness– Addresses Problems– Student Comfort

Teacher Sensitivity

• Levels of awareness influence abilities to adapt and respond to children’s needs.

• Teachers address academic and emotional needs.

• How comfortable are the children approaching and sharing their ideas and products with the teacher?

Teacher Sensitivity Video Exemplars

• Addressing Fire Alarm Concerns – Awareness– Addresses Problems– Student Comfort

• Differentiating Instruction to Support Individual Students – Awareness– Responsiveness– Addresses Problems– Student Comfort

Regard for Student Perspectives

• Captures the degree to which the teacher’s interactions with students and classroom activities place an emphasis on students’ interests, motivations, and points of view, and encourage student

responsibility and autonomy.

– Flexibility and Student Focus– Support of Autonomy and Leadership– Student Expression– Restriction of movement

Regard for Student Perspectives

• Teachers follow the children’s lead.

• Children have opportunities to participate and contribute.

• Teachers encourage student independence.

• Children assume leadership roles.

• Children are encouraged to express themselves.

• Appropriate movement is allowed and encouraged.

Regard for Student Perspectives Video Exemplars

• Children Lead a Classroom Routine – Flexibility and student focus– Support for autonomy and leadership– Restriction of movement

• Giving Children Leadership Roles – Flexibility and student focus– Support for autonomy and leadership– Student expression– Restriction of movement

Emotional Support Domain Sorting Activity

• Break into groups.• Determine which Emotional Support dimension

best matches each scenario:– Positive Climate– Negative Climate– Teacher Sensitivity– Regard for Student Perspectives

• Attach scenario to the appropriate dimension. • As we review, write appropriate dimension on

your sheet for later reference.

Instructional Support Domain

How do teachers help students

– Learn to solve problems and think creatively

– Get individualized feedback about their learning

– Develop more complex language abilities

Concept Development

• Measures the teacher’s use of instructional discussions and activities to promote students’ higher order thinking skills and cognition and teacher’s focus on understanding rather than rote instruction.

– Analysis and Reasoning– Creating– Integration– Connections to the Real World

Concept Development

• Discussions and activities encourage analysis and reasoning.

• Opportunities for creativity are provided.

• Activities are integrated with previous learning.

• Connections to life outside of school are made.

Concept Development Video Examples

• Predicting and Experimenting with Eggs– Analysis and reasoning– Creating– Integration– Connections to the real world

• Linking Prior Knowledge to New Knowledge– Analysis and reasoning– Connections to the real world

Quality of Feedback

• Assesses the degree to which the teacher provides feedback that expands learning and understanding and encourages continued participation.

– Scaffolding– Feedback Loops– Prompting Thought Processes– Providing Information– Encouragement and Affirmation

Quality of Feedback

• Scaffolding supports student learning.

• Teachers persist in feedback loops with children.

• Children are asked to explain their thought processes.

• Teachers clarify and expand information.

• Encouragement and affirmation increase children’s involvement in learning.

Feedback Loop Example #1

It is a cold and rainy day. Lucas asks his teacher why they are not going outside to play. The following exchange takes place:

Lucas: Why do we have to stay inside?Teacher: What do you think, Lucas?Lucas: I don’t know.Teacher: Look out the window and tell me what you see.Lucas: Rain. Teacher: What would happen if we went outside?Lucas: We’d get wet.Teacher: And how would that make us feel?Lucas: Yucky. Teacher: That’s right. We would feel yucky because our clothes would get wet from the rain. That is why we are staying

inside right now.

Feedback Loop Example #2

Hwa is playing shape bingo. She has not had any trouble matching the pictures of the circle, square, oval, or triangle to the pictures on the bingo mat. However, she is stumped by the rectangle and calls her teacher over.

Hwa: I need help.Teacher: I think you can figure this one out. Let’s look and see whether there

is another one that looks similar.Hwa: (places the picture of the rectangle on top of a picture of a square and

asks her teacher if that is right)Teacher:They look a lot alike, but they are not the same. See how all four

sides of the square are the same? What is different about the sides of this

shape? Hwa: (looks as the rectangle again) Bigger.Teacher:You are right, two of the sides are bigger or longer. Can you find a

shape where two of the sides are longer?Hwa: (scans the bingo mat and quickly matches the rectangle)

Providing Information Examples

• Expansion– The teacher wraps up a lesson on community helpers by

asking if anyone can think of a community helper. Alonzo says, “Mail carrier.” His teacher says, “That’s right, mail carriers are community helpers because they bring us our letters and packages.”

• Clarification– Child calls a pair of gloves “mittens.” The teacher explains,

“Gloves are like mittens because they keep our hands warm, but gloves are different because they have spaces for each of our fingers. Mittens have a big space for all of the fingers on one hand.”

• Specific feedback– The teacher asks if anyone can tell her two rhyming words.

John says, “Cat and hat.” The teacher says, “Yes, cat and hat are rhyming words. Cat has ‘at’ and hat has ‘at’. They sound the same in the middle and the end.”

Ineffective Feedback

• Miss Karen asks the children to look at the weather chart and tell her whether they have had more sunny days or more cloudy days. Sharice says, “Cloudy.” Miss Karen says, “No” and then asks if anyone else knows the answer.

Effective Feedback

• When discussing the weather chart, Sharice says that there have been more cloudy days than sunny days which is the wrong answer. In response, the teacher says, “Let’s look at the chart and count the number of cloudy days.” The teacher and Sharice count together. Sharice forgets the number that comes after 3 so the teacher gives her a hint, “Ffff….” Sharice says, “4, 5 – 5 cloudy days!” Then the teacher says, “Let’s count the number of sunny days,” and they count together again. After Sharice correctly identifies the number of days as 7, the teacher asks Sharice to tell her which number is bigger. Sharice answers, “Sunny.” The teacher responds, “You’re right. There are 7 sunny days and 5 cloudy days so there are more sunny days than cloudy because 7 is more than 5.”

Quality of FeedbackVideo Exemplars

• Prompting Thought Processes about Shadows– Feedback loops– Prompting Thought Processes – Provide Information– Encouragement and Affirmation

• Using Clues to Identify the Name of a Book – Scaffolding– Feedback Loops– Encouragement and Affirmation

Language Modeling

• Captures the quality and amount of teacher’s use of language-stimulation and language-facilitation techniques.

– Frequent Conversation– Open-ended Questions– Repetition and Expansion– Self & Parallel Talk– Advanced Language

Language Modeling

• Natural conversations are encouraged.

• Teachers ask open-ended questions that require more complex language to answer.

• Repetition and extension honors and models language use.

• Teachers connect actions to words with self- and parallel talk.

• Advanced language is used and connected to known words.

Language ModelingVideo Exemplars

• Walkie-Talkies in Centers– Frequent Conversation– Open-ended Questions– Repetition and Extension

• Encouraging a Child to Describe Her Hat– Open-ended Questions– Repetition and Extension

Classroom Organization Domain

How do teachers help students…

– Develop skills to help them regulate their own behavior

– Get the most learning out of each school day

– Maintain interest in learning activities

Behavior Management

• Encompasses the teacher’s ability to provide clear behavior expectations and use effective methods to prevent and redirect misbehavior.

– Clear Behavior Expectations– Proactive– Redirection of Misbehavior– Student Behavior

Behavior ManagementVideo Exemplars

• Communicating Expectations before Work Time– Clear behavior expectations– Proactive– Student behavior

• Clear Behavioral Expectations during Transition– Clear behavior expectations– Proactive– Redirection of misbehavior– Student behavior

Productivity

• Considers how well the teacher manages instructional time and routines and provides activities for students so that they have the opportunity to be involved in learning activities.

– Maximizing Learning Time– Routines– Transitions– Preparation

Productivity Video Exemplars

• Making the Most of Snack Time– Maximizing learning time– Transitions

• Creating Routines in the Classroom– Maximizing learning time– Routines– Transitions– Preparation

Instructional Learning Formats

• Focuses on the ways in which teachers maximize students’ interest, engagement, and ability to learn from lessons and activities.

– Effective Facilitation– Variety of Modalities and Materials– Student Interest– Clarity of Learning Objectives

Instructional Learning Formats

• Even though ‘instructional’ is in the title, this is NOT about the quality of instruction.

• It’s about the ‘hooks’ teachers use to engage children.– NOT the kinds of questions the teacher asks, rather that the

teacher asks questions to engage children; and– NOT whether or not the children are learning something,

rather that they are engaged and interested so that the potential for learning is there.

• Clarity of learning objectives is not all or nothing.

Instructional Learning Formats Video Exemplars

• Using Name Cards and Letters to Engage Students in a Lesson– Effective facilitation– Variety of modalities and materials– Student interest

• Creative Story Reading– Effective facilitation– Variety of modalities and materials– Student interest

Copyright 2008 CASTL

•http://www.brookespublishing.com/class2007/

•http://www.teachstone.org/

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