The National Academy of Education (NAEd) undertook this consensus report on the evaluation and improvement of teacher preparation programs (TPPs). Specifically, this consensus report aims to (1) identify and disseminate best practices for evaluating and improving TPPs to promote teacher effectiveness and student achievement; (2) provide…

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…

One of the greatest challenges in education today is to adapt and respond to a linguistically and culturally diverse world, and to combat social disintegration and discrimination. Participatory and collaborative action research represents an empowering and emancipatory approach to this challenge because the "target groups" become…

During the last decade, policy and public attention have focused increasingly on the out-of-school hours, and programs to fill this time have proliferated for children and youth. These programs serve varying purposes, including providing child care and a safe haven, improving academic performance, enhancing general youth development, allowing…

The purpose of this presentation is to describe some of the activities of a partnership forged between NYU researchers and senior leaders in NYC that was intended to provide research infrastructure and capacity-building solutions while also addressing jointly identified research questions about the "Pre-K for All" (PKA) program. The…

The Center for Adult English Language Acquisition (CAELA) Network, under contract with the Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE), has created a framework that can be used to plan, implement, and evaluate professional development for practitioners working with adult English language learners at the state, regional, and program levels. The…

Developing and maintaining effective physical education programs requires that teachers continually update their knowledge and skills. Books and journals, conferences, professional organizations, and consultants provide information to help teachers develop effective programs. (DF)

This document analyzes the inspection reports of the five further education (FE) colleges in Britain that have achieved a grade of 1 for quality assurance (QA), identifies key lessons for the improvement of programs in other FE colleges, and refers to helpful FE publications. The five colleges consisted of two general FE colleges, one sixth-form…

Four kinds of measures of excellence are currently used in evaluating vocational education: components and process, occupational impact, equity, and individual student development. None of them displays the kind of precision that characterizes measures in the physical sciences. Furthermore, the nature of the enterprise to which these measures must…

Practical methods for gaining support for educational programs from national, state, and local leaders are examined in this article. A partnership of this type can promote excellent educational programs by presenting the positive aspects of education. (DF)

The goals of this practicum were to organize a state network and to increase communication among early childhood educators in 2-year colleges in Pennsylvania; to increase public awareness as the teachers defined their mission, evaluated their programs, and articulated program goals; and to formulate guidelines specifying minimum content for early…

A survey of directors of 61 Texas early intervention programs found that directors felt that program improvement should be the main reason for program evaluation efforts, that evaluating program goals and child progress are the most feasible strategies, and that evaluating program quality and family progress are the most difficult strategies. (DB)

In this guide, the results and findings of a major survey of magnet schools are organized into a practical manual for school districts to use in planning, developing, and implementing new magnet programs or improving those already in existence. The guide is divided into three sections: (1) key steps in magnet program development (an outline of…

The search for indicators of quality for colleges and universities was initiated during the past decade and many variants of these efforts have emerged in Europe, Australia, and on the North American continent. In the financial squeeze of the 1980s and 1990s, demands for quality and excellence in the conduct of higher education have continued to…

Noting that most evaluations of out-of-school (OST) programs have examined the programs as a whole without taking into account the specific activities offered, this issue of "Out-of-School Time Evaluation Snapshots" surveys the range of activities being implemented in OST settings across the country to better understand and promote…