Documented volunteer experience can be a valuable tool for the individual who volunteers as well as for the organization for which the volunteer works. Current trends point toward the heightened need for validating volunteer experience. Recordkeeping systems can help facilitate effective placement of all volunteers according to their interests,…

A medication efficacy graph was developed, revised, and applied in a case study to effectively monitor progress of a client with profound mental retardation and maladaptive behaviors. The graph enables clinicians to measure and display not just incidents of maladaptive behaviors but weighted maladaptive behaviors, adaptive behaviors, potency of…

Gives advice on the evaluation, purchase, and setup of a computerized student database for consolidation of scheduling, attendance, grades, and other recordkeeping tasks. Recommends questions to be asked and outlines a workable system configuration. (JM)

An observational technique for assessing the social interaction skills of elementary age students with disabilities is described. The procedure focuses on three interaction elements: (1) initiating the interaction, (2) turn taking, and (3) responding to the interaction. The method of data recording and analysis is delineated. (DB)

The monograph describes various aspects of data collection, analysis and data-based decision-making for the regular or special education classroom teacher. Direct and repeated measurement of student progress and program effectiveness is advocated. Four fundamental steps are outlined: (1) identify instructional objectives and collect data on…

Principles of statistical process control are applied to a clinical setting through the use of control charts to detect changes, as part of treatment planning and clinical decision-making processes. The logic of control chart analysis is derived from principles of statistical inference. Sample charts offer examples of evaluating baselines and…

Suggestions for organizing the objective structured clinical examination for medical students and physicians address selection of competencies to be evaluated, number, type, and duration of examination stations, use of examiners, clarity of instructions, test administration, resource requirements, interstation signals, and recordkeeping. (MSE)

An ongoing project to measure faculty work at the University of Southern California exemplifies the collaborative approach to producing an assessment instrument that documents both an individual's productivity in research, teaching, and service and determines the worth of his activities in relation to institutional goals. The resulting Faculty…

This study addressed the question of whether teachers' judgments differ according to the frequency of data collection on student performance and the type of trend. The study also investigated whether teachers' judgments, based on different types of graphs (ascending, descending, flat, or variable), vary with the frequency of data collection. A set…

This article proposes methods for asking analytic and systemic questions and using quantitative and qualitative data for documenting behavior change in young children receiving special education services. Suggestions are provided for developing data collection protocols that are valid but that are also manageable in practice. (Author/DB)

The primary aim of this research project was to assist elementary classroom teachers in developing and using appropriate techniques for assessing and recording their students' achievement in science (taught as a core subject or as part of an environmental studies topic). The project was designed with the intention of providing a supportive…

Steps are presented for developing a course of independent study in an industrial arts context; behavioral objectives are emphasized. A sample "quest sheet" illustrates the method. (AJ)

This report evaluates the Quality Education Initiative (QEI) evaluation system developed in Pennsylvania to monitor and report progress of individual programs or sites serving students with and without disabilities. The system has three parts: a Program Documentation Outline (PDO), a Program Reporting Outline (PRO), and a Program Improvement…

This guide is intended to help develop and implement an outcomes assessment program at the school, district, or state level. An introduction summarizes the purposes of this approach to assessment, which focuses on results rather than process. A four-step process is outlined. The first step is to establish a solid foundation for assessment efforts,…

Analysis of patient logbooks kept by 75 medical students in a family medicine clerkship provided a great deal of information about the nature of students' experience, changes taking place as the year progressed, the degree to which program objectives were being met, and differences between sites. (MSE)