Book excerpt: For many student teachers the classroom is a strange and potentially uncontrollable environment. This book shows how the period of classroom observation, which for most students precedes teaching practice, plays an important part in this transition process. In A Guide to Classroom Observation, Rob Walker and Clem Adelman explain what is involved in being a good observer. They answer such practical questions as how should an observer react to a class, where should he sit, what should he wear, how far should he allow himself to participate in the lesson? They go on to demonstrate that observation can be a positive activity, incorporating analysis of teacher gesture, voice and movement, and pupil reaction together with study of the effects of the physical arrangements of the classroom on the school population.