American Indian/Alaska Native Perspectives on the Classroom Assessment Scoring System: Culture and Practice Implications

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session 19
  In Roundtable Session: Indigenous Ways of Knowing in the Classroom

Abstract

The Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS; Pianta, La Paro, & Hamre, 2008) is an observation instrument that was developed to assess the quality of interactions among
teachers and children in classrooms from pre-kindergarten through secondary school. The
CLASS has been used extensively in research, professional development programs, and as a
monitoring tool in the Head Start system, but its psychometric properties from American
Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) classrooms are unknown. To examine the use of the CLASS in AI/AN Head Start programs, a group of community members, program administrators, and researchers designed a study to investigate the gap centered on the cultural sensitivity and appropriateness of the CLASS in AI/AN early childhood education programs.

Authors

• Nicole L. Thompson, Arizona State University

• Jessica V. Barnes-Najor, Michigan State University

• Michelle C. Sarche, University of Colorado