Head Start has long focused on assessing and improving program quality to ensure that the children served receive the best possible preparation for school and life. Most research has been focused inside the classroom--the classroom environment, teacher qualifications, and teacher interactions. Of course, the classroom is important because that is…

New Teacher Evaluation and Support Systems were fully implemented in every public school during the 2012-13 school year. Rhode Island educators have had a significant voice in revising the Student Learning Objective (SLO) process for the 2013-14 school year. Through surveys, focus groups, working groups, principal shadows, regional meetings, and…

This paper aims to inspire stakeholders working with quality of higher education (such as members of study boards, study programme directors, curriculum developers and teachers) to critically consider their evaluation methods in relation to a focus on student learning. We argue that many of the existing methods of evaluation in higher education…

Article provided some recommendations by the Hawaii Music Advisory Council on how to achieve a balanced music curriculum in Hawaiian schools. (Author/RK)

The author suggests a simple three-stage model as a guideline for systematic curriculum evaluation: evaluation of goals; collection, organization, and analysis of data; and decision making. (Author)

Describes steps taken by Lake Washington School District in Kirkland (Washington) in acquiring microcomputers, including (1) doing preliminary research, (2) forming a steering committee, (3) attending a conference on educational data systems, (4) defining 10 objectives for a computer awareness program, and (5) launching the program in three pilot…

The need for accountability in school psychological services is receiving increased attention. School psychologists are now being asked to demonstrate the effectiveness of their services. Data collection procedures can improve services to clients and systems, enhance the delivery system's psychological services program, validate the need for…

Maintains that introductory sociology courses rely on a preponderance of jargon that obfuscates the nature of the discipline. Advocates communicating the nature of sociology by emphasizing its three main approaches: structural, systematic, and critical. Suggests that religious affiliation and economic status influence ability to think…

This publication is a guide with the materials necessary for leading a workshop session on a method for Chapter 1 program improvement that involves teachers and administrators. The "For the Children" approach to program improvement offers a plan for bringing together the people who are responsible for implementing the program that has…

Seeking to describe the current conditions of U.S. arts education, this document contains information collected and compiled from state education agencies. In 1984, the National Executive Board of Music Educators National Conference (MENC) adopted three goals which stated that by 1990: (1) every student in grades K-12 would have access to music…

This handbook has been prepared to address one specific problem: How can the techniques of program evaluation be effectively applied to produce useful information about the operations and impact of moral education programs in secondary schools? The handbook is divided into five chapters. The introductory chapter describes the background and…

The use of target setting in conjunction with good information systems in colleges and work-based learning (WBL) providers can lead to improved service provisions across the sector in the United Kingdom. Target setting must be carried out in a systematic way in which providers must develop target- setting processes with a focus on learner success;…

This publication explores the relationship between state systemic reform initiatives and state student assessment programs using a database established by the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory and interviews with state assessment directors in California, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Texas, and Vermont. States throughout the country are…

This guide is intended to help educational planners in building partnerships between educators teaching courses in electrical occupations and the business, industry, and labor sectors of their communities. The guide, which is written in outline form, includes concept statements, explanations of concept statements, examples, and step-by-step…

This document, which draws heavily on lessons learned during 11 years of the Southern Regional Education Board's High Schools That Work initiative, is intended to help state leaders review their existing system for assessing accountability in vocational education or plan such a system. The document begins with a discussion of the purpose of…