The purpose of the study was to discover, define, and describe contextual dimensions which are associated with first grade students' engaged time-on-tasks. Another goal was to discover, define, and describe tasks which engaged the students in more on-task time. / Because of the lack of a theory of instruction, the research on time-on-task has been based upon models of time and learning which do not include contextual variables. This study was designed to fill this gap in order to build upon the large body of quantitative studies which have shown a consistent positive relationship between time-on-task and school achievement. Beause the goals for the study required a discovery mode, a micro-ethnograhic design was chosen. The researcher spent two months as a daily participant observer in a public school first grade classroom, adopting the role of first grade student in order to gather authentic data from the child's point of view. / The findings of the study revealed 34 contextual dimensions associated with time-on-task, 20 of which were discussed in detail. Dimensions which were highly prominent and have the most promise for intervention strategies were: the availability of help, mutual assistance, proximity to adults, sense of purpose, pride in personal products and accomplishments, stamina, fooling around, mimicry, conversations among peers, and personal possessions. Dimensions which were embedded within either the social structure of the classroom or the developmental characteristics of the young child were: concept of time, semantic differential, frame clashes, contextualizing conventions, and social stratification through ability grouping. Dimensions which were less prominent than expected were: noise, interruptions, rewards and punishments, and competition. A final dimension that was more prominent than expected was parallel processing. Although it was expected that particular tasks could be discovered which engaged children more, the nature of the task proved to be yet another of many contextual dimensions associated with time-on-task. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-09, Section: A, page: 2756. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_75373 |
| Contributors | BUTZIN, SARAH MILLS., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 270 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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