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#15 is evidence because its specific and has data (aka numbers) to back up the observation. I think that is my biggest takeaway from this activity that if you can reference numbers some how then it makes the observation a fact.

#16 What does it mean by a class was chaotic? I have had many classes where students were working on choice boards and from an outside perspective it would look like students walking around the room talking, but they were all engaged with material just in a different way then their neighbor.

#20 is evidence that does not include numbers but a direct quote

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I agree that we need content observers because they will have more background knowledge about what you are doing on a daily basis.

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#6 is definitely an opinion.  The teacher is stating before the lesson happens that it will be interesting.  That's the opinion of the teacher.  If the students said it at the end that would be an opinion as well

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#13 is an opinion.  Saying a teacher is favoring female students is something that an observer says based on what they might see.  Someone else could feel the exact opposite.  Maybe a teacher just happened to call on female students by chance?

#16 - "the class was chaotic and out of control" is an opinion.  Some teachers don't mind noise and an observer could feel the opposite way.  Maybe students are working in groups and the noise level got to an extreme level.  The students could just be talking really loud in their groups.  Evidence would have to be stated for it to be a fact.

#11 - This is evidence.  Students with their heads down is easily visible during a lesson.  If an observer states that heads were down during a lesson and then states a reason would then be an opinion.  An observer might assume why students were NOT interested in the lesson....the teacher then might state the reason during a post conference....maybe students were having a rough morning or did not get a good nights sleep..or were not prepared.....this could be a conversation to have outside of the lesson

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I think that is a great idea to get content specific observers to be able to give you constructive feedback. I feel this is important to make your curriculum more rigorous or even to help differentiate it.

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Statement 13: The teacher favors female students. This statement is an opinion because it is the observers thought or observation that the teacher favors female students. This is not a proven fact. Another observer could come in and feel the exact opposite. It is important that opinions are not based into conclusions when being observed.

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Statement 4: The teacher asked five yes or no questions in the first five minutes. This statement is evidence because it has a numerical distinction correlated with the amount of time. Therefore, a type of data or a fact is  being shown.

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I thought statement 14, "the teacher spent most of the class period talking with students in the back of the room," was evidence.

It can be deceiving because they do not say an exact number of minutes.  They just use the word most.  But most of the class period can easily be calculated by an observer.

I thought statement 3, "some students have difficulty staying engaged," is an opinion.  To the naked eye, one make think that they can discern if students are engaged or not.  However, this is opinion and cannot be positively identified to be fact.

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I agree that as a teacher these statements would be helpful to teachers to perhaps see in numbers and writing the number of students participating.  One thing I always find very lacking in my observation post-meetings, is suggestions for improvement... and I always ask.  I think some of this might stem from having people outside my curricular area observing me, I like content specific suggestions.  Since we so rarely are able to get or be observed by peers, I would like to see more constructive responses rather than fact vs. opinion.

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I agree that 16 is opinion.  In a classroom of close to 30 students broken up into groups debating an issue, it may look chaotic and out of control, same thing with a busy science lab.  This does not reflect whether or not actual learning is occurring and often times it is.  I feel an effective observer would be moving around the room asking students questions based on the teachers lessons to see if actual learning is taking place.

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I think by using the word most it can be considered opinion.  In a 45 minute class my ideas of "most"  would be 35 minutes.  Someone else might have a different idea.  I feel if they wanted to really be accurate they would have included how many minutes were spent on each particular activity.  This would also be helpful for the teacher they are reviewing to get an idea how much time they are also spending on management issues vs. actual curriculum.

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Statement #6 - " I assure you today's lesson will be quite interesting'

While the statement itself is the opinion of the person saying, the way in which this statement was used in evidence.  The fact that an observer would write it down is just evidence that it was said.  If the observer had said in the write-up "I thought the lesson was terribly boring"  it would have been evidence.

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I completely agreed with your rationalization for #14.  The word MOST stuck out for me as well.  That word is incredibly vague, and can be open to any observers interpretation.

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This activity was very similar to a Fact/Opinion activity that we do in SS class for evaluating primary sources.  The students grapple with the validity of a source, noting if it contains historical facts or opinions.  This activity therefore seemed rather cut and dry for me.  I put an X between E and O for #14.  It was the word MOST that caused me to straddle the evidence or opinion spectrum.  To say a teacher spent most of their time working with students in the back could be easily interpreted as either.  Most is a vague word but also could be interpreted as 70+% in my eyes.

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I also thought statement 6 was opinion, and am still finding it hard to understand why it would be evidence.  What do the quotes do to make it evidence? If a math teacher were to say this about a specific lesson that I don't find interesting, wouldn't that be an opinion statement....??

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Statements #4, 10, 11 and 15 all represented the collection of evidence and indicated some form of data collection. Statement #15 gave us the number of students out of their seats in relation to the number of students. #10 indicated ALL students, #11 mentioned 5 students had their heads down, #4 related responses to the amount of time. This information is useful both to the student and the teacher as it measures the students actual engagement in learning and is linked to Domain 3: Instruction, Component 3d: Using Assessment in Instruction. Top of page 30 says that "when they (the teacher) observe inattention, they move to correct it...carefully monitor student understanding...make minor midcourse corrections as needed."

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I originally said that this was an opinion too. The fact it was scripted caught me off guard. Following our discussion I did understand the reason. Looking back to the text also clarified the reasoning.

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I chose statement #16 as an opinion. In entering a room the class could look chaotic and out of control but in fact the teacher could have just asked the students to move to their respective groups. Had I seen the room a few minutes earlier it could have looked a lot different. #18 was somewhat trickier to identify, but "encouraging concentration" were the key words in identifying it as an opinion.

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I believe the statements 16 and 18 were opinion statement as they were written.  An observer could defiantly provide factual evidence of how a classroom's table arrangement encourages concentration or how a classroom could be seen as  chaotic and out of control, but this evidence may not make his/her claim factual.  All teachers have their different teaching styles.  Some teach using controlled chaos as some would say and others teach by providing direct instruction to a quiet group of students.  What students learn from different teaching styles depend on Domain 1 (Planning and Preparation), Domain 2 (Classroom Environment) and  Domain 3 (Instruction).  I believe students are learning as  long as they are engaged, actively listening, and participating in class.

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Statement #6: " I assure you today's lesson will be quite interesting".

I felt that this was an opinion statement even though quotes were included.  After discussion in class I did understand that it was evidence because of the

quotes, but it was hard for me to recognize this as evidence.  This statement may be linked to domain 3" Instruction.  We all know as teachers that different students find different topics interesting.  If students are not engaged (participation out loud, asking questions of one another, or understanding the meaning of the content or activity)  the lesson is not interesting.

Statement 32: The teacher was fair and consistent in in his behavior management strategies is an opinion.  The statement provides zero facts or details

that support the claim.  Domain 2: Classroom Environment (Managing student behavior) is an essential skill needed to teach in the Rochester city school district. I know that I am always trying to evolve my classroom management skills as I become more experienced as a teacher.

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Statement #18 "The new table arrangement encourages concentration and controlled interaction with neighbors" and Statement #16 "The class was chaotic and out of control" are both projecting an opinion or judgement on Domain 2: Classroom Environment and Domain 3: Instruction. They both are discussing conclusions based on based on certain observations of certain moments in a classroom, and may or may not offer a complete story of a classroom environment, or of a teacher's instruction. Statement #18 might show evidence of thoughtful planning of Domains 2 and 3, while Statement #16 shows a teacher might need more time to work with both of these Domains.