One explanation for the continued achievement gap between students with learning disabilities (LDs) and their general education peers is that best practices are not implemented with sufficient fidelity in the classroom. Teacher observation systems are increasingly seen as an important component of improving practice and outcomes for students with LDs because they offer the opportunity to evaluate teaching practice and to provide teachers with feedback on how to improve instruction. Recent analyses of observation systems suggest that when teachers are objectively evaluated and supported to improve instruction, there is a positive impact on student growth (Biancarosa et al., 2010; Taylor & Tyler, 2012). However, much of this existing research has focused on observation systems developed for use with general education populations. Few studies have focused explicitly on tools designed for teachers that serve students with disabilities (SWDs) (Johnson et al., 2018; Jones & Brownell, 2014) and very limited research has examined the utility of observational scores guiding job-embedded professional development for special educators. Thus, the limited availability of observational tools and related research in special education underscores a significant gap in research to practice that may impede teachers’ professional growth and effectiveness in meeting the complex learning and social behavior needs of the students they serve. Conducting rigorous observations of instruction has shown to appropriately capture the complex and dynamic nature of classroom instruction and positive behavior management (Connor, 2013; Snyder et al., 2006). However, a number of factors impact the results of observation systems, including the design and intended use of the observation instrument; scoring standards/rubrics, the qualifications, background and training of the raters who score them; the level of inference needed to score items; and the context in which teachers’ work. Although many researchers and practitioners assume that observations of teacher instruction can lead to improved practice, limited validity evidence exists on the effects of observation instrument scores and data-driven performance feedback on teacher practices and student educational outcomes, particularly for students with LD. In addition, given the number of factors and variables that can impact an effective observation system, it is critical for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to have a strong understanding of these variables to make effective decisions surrounding practical applications of observations. Ideally, the observation tools will have efficacy for informing practice across the various instructional settings in which students with LDs receive instruction, including special education classes, intensive interventions within multi-tiered systems of support, and inclusive settings such as the general education classroom. In addition to multiple settings, observations must be appropriate across a wide variety of content areas and include supports for behavior. This special issue includes papers reporting on recent efforts to design, implement, and validate a variety of direct observational systems for improving classroom practices and student educational outcomes. As researchers who are deeply involved in the development and validation of teacher observation instruments designed to improve special education practice and outcomes for SWDs, our goal in bringing this set of papers together is to provide insight and information around a comprehensive set of issues that can guide our field forward. Specifically, we aim to increase awareness of the importance of observation assessment approaches for teaching students with LD. In addition, we hope the articles in this special issue serve as a springboard for future measurement development and validation and assessment-driven professional development for supporting special education teachers and the students they serve. 944795 LDXXXX10.1177/0022219420944795Journal of Learning DisabilitiesJohnson et al. research-article2020

中文翻译：

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特刊简介：直接观察系统能否改善教师实践和学生成果？

对于有学习障碍的学生 (LD) 与其普通教育同龄人之间持续存在的成就差距的一种解释是，最佳实践在课堂上没有以足够的保真度实施。教师观察系统越来越被视为改善 LD 学生实践和成果的重要组成部分，因为它们提供了评估教学实践的机会，并向教师提供有关如何改进教学的反馈。最近对观察系统的分析表明，当教师得到客观评估和支持以改进教学时，会对学生的成长产生积极影响（Biancarosa 等，2010；Taylor & Tyler，2012）。然而，现有的大部分研究都集中在为普通教育人群开发的观察系统上。很少有研究明确关注为为残疾学生 (SWD) 服务的教师设计的工具（Johnson 等人，2018 年；Jones & Brownell，2014 年），而且非常有限的研究检验了观察性分数指导工作嵌入专业发展的效用特殊教育者。因此，特殊教育中观察工具和相关研究的有限可用性凸显了研究与实践之间的重大差距，这可能会阻碍教师的专业成长和满足他们所服务学生的复杂学习和社会行为需求的有效性。对教学进行严格的观察表明，可以恰当地捕捉课堂教学和积极行为管理的复杂性和动态性（Connor，2013；Snyder 等，2006）。然而，许多因素会影响观测系统的结果，包括观测仪器的设计和预期用途；评分标准/量规、评分者的资格、背景和培训；对项目进行评分所需的推理水平；以及教师工作的背景。尽管许多研究人员和从业者认为对教师教学的观察可以改善实践，但关于观察工具分数和数据驱动的绩效反馈对教师实践和学生教育成果的影响的有效性证据有限，尤其是对于 LD 的学生。此外，考虑到可能影响有效观测系统的因素和变量的数量，对于研究人员、决策者、和从业者对这些变量有深刻的理解，以便围绕观察的实际应用做出有效的决策。理想情况下，观察工具将有效地为有 LD 的学生接受指导的各种教学环境提供实践信息，包括特殊教育课程、多层次支持系统内的强化干预以及包容性环境，如通识教育课堂。除了多种设置外，观察必须适用于广泛的内容领域，并包括对行为的支持。本期特刊包括报告最近为改进课堂实践和学生教育成果而设计、实施和验证各种直接观察系统的努力的论文。作为深入参与旨在改善 SWD 特殊教育实践和成果的教师观察工具的开发和验证的研究人员，我们汇集这组论文的目标是围绕可以指导的一系列综合问题提供洞察力和信息我们的领域前进。具体而言，我们旨在提高对观察评估方法对教学 LD 学生重要性的认识。此外，我们希望本期特刊中的文章可以作为未来测量发展和验证以及评估驱动的专业发展的跳板，以支持特殊教育教师和他们所服务的学生。944795 LDXXXX10.1177/0022219420944795Journal of Learning DisabilitiesJohnson 等人。研究文章2020 我们汇集这组论文的目标是围绕可以指导我们的领域向前发展的一系列综合问题提供洞察力和信息。具体而言，我们旨在提高对观察评估方法对教学 LD 学生重要性的认识。此外，我们希望本期特刊中的文章可以作为未来测量发展和验证以及评估驱动的专业发展的跳板，以支持特殊教育教师和他们所服务的学生。944795 LDXXXX10.1177/0022219420944795Journal of Learning DisabilitiesJohnson 等人。研究文章2020 我们汇集这组论文的目标是围绕可以指导我们的领域向前发展的一系列综合问题提供洞察力和信息。具体而言，我们旨在提高对观察评估方法对教学 LD 学生重要性的认识。此外，我们希望本期特刊中的文章可以作为未来测量发展和验证以及评估驱动的专业发展的跳板，以支持特殊教育教师和他们所服务的学生。944795 LDXXXX10.1177/0022219420944795Journal of Learning DisabilitiesJohnson 等人。研究文章2020 我们旨在提高对观察评估方法对教学 LD 学生重要性的认识。此外，我们希望本期特刊中的文章可以作为未来测量发展和验证以及评估驱动的专业发展的跳板，以支持特殊教育教师和他们所服务的学生。944795 LDXXXX10.1177/0022219420944795Journal of Learning DisabilitiesJohnson 等人。研究文章2020 我们旨在提高对观察评估方法对教学 LD 学生重要性的认识。此外，我们希望本期特刊中的文章可以作为未来测量发展和验证以及评估驱动的专业发展的跳板，以支持特殊教育教师和他们所服务的学生。944795 LDXXXX10.1177/0022219420944795Journal of Learning DisabilitiesJohnson 等人。研究文章2020