Examining the Factorial Validity of the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol as a Performance Evaluation Tool

• In Event: Developing, Using, and Analyzing New Tools for Classroom Observation

Abstract

This paper examines the factorial validity of the widely-used Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP). Using exploratory factor analysis, it examines if/how the 30 features listed under eight SIOP components correlate to possibly reflect different factor structures and if these factor structures change with varying parameters. Using the SIOP protocol, 102 trained inservice teachers evaluated a video-taped SIOP lesson in a 6th-grade science class. Results revealed that (1) SIOP measures four different stable factors; not eight components, (2) of these four factors only one shows an exact match with a SIOP component, and (3) discrepancies between the current structure of the protocol and the factor structures identified in this study are consistent, begging for a conceptual re-organization of the model.

Authors

• Nihat Polat, Duquesne University

• Laura J. Mahalingappa, Duquesne University