An Analysis and Evaluation of Educator Selected Data Collection Procedures in Actual School Settings

Abstract

The present research evaluates the type of data collection procedures that teachers/paraprofessionals, enrolled in service program to train special education teachers, are likely to employ in their respective classrooms. The participants were 69 educators enrolled in a three-year field based program designed to train and endorse special education teachers in the state of Washington. The teachers were instructed in the various types of behavioral measurement and data collection procedures employed in the classroom. Data were collected from 138 individual classroom research projects. A slight majority (52.8%) of participants gathered observational data, while 47.2% of the students collected permanent product data. The type of observational data collection systems that the participants employed varied. Random time sampling was employed in a majority (85.6%) of the cases, frequency recording was chosen by eight participants and time sampling by only three participants None of the participants chose interval recording to gather their data. A Chi Square test indicates that these differences are statistically significant (x² = 141.63; p = .0001). Differences in the procedures employed in the present research, as contrasted with that found in acceptability research dealing with behavioral procedures, are discussed. Implications for training special and regular education personnel in behavioral assessment are made.