Two developments in teacher expectation research formed the basis for the current study. First, researchers have begun investigating the self-fulfilling prophecy effects of teacher expectations on a variety of psycho-social outcomes in addition to the effects on academic achievement. Second, researchers have started to realize that some groups of…

Data were gathered, using pre and posttests and interviews, on the learning of individual students during a seven-week unit on a science topic (conservation) in a fourth grade classroom. Case studies of the learning experiences of each child, based on recordings and detailed observations of all class activities, were used to predict student…