No one has a bigger stake in teaching effectiveness than students. Nor are there any better experts on how teaching is experienced by its intended beneficiaries. Only recently have many policymakers and practitioners come to recognize that--when asked the right questions, in the right ways--students can be an important source of information on the…

Presents a method for teaching sampling that uses hypothetical, small-scale target populations. Suggests that this method can best introduce the basic concepts of sampling in the context of a concrete example. Uses actual data collected from the class in order to provide a hands-on experience. Notes some potential limitations of the approach. (KO)

Describes a process for evaluating career education activities. Discusses the selection of the evaluation sample, selection and development of instruments, data reduction and analysis, comparison standards, and preparation of an evaluation handbook. (JOW)

This manual is intended for managers of training and institutional development programs. Its objective is to provide clear and practical advice for those who conduct impact evaluations. Impact evaluation is distinguished from other types of evaluation by the area of the program on which it focuses, the assessment of the extent to which a program…

The article proposes a strategy for the assessment of young children with handicaps in which brief clinical sampling is used to document developmental skills. This information may then be used in designing intervention programs. Principles and techniques of brief clinical sampling are described and application examples are given. (Author/DB)

One of the benefits of performance based assessment is its allowance for the teacher to gather information about how the student understands and applies knowledge. In this Digest, the basic steps a teacher should take to plan and execute effective performance-based assessment are outlined. Coverage includes the steps of planning and executing…

Third in a series, the monograph summarizes the key evaluation issues, design approaches, and statistical techniques used in conducting the 1980-1983 impact evaluation of Indian Education Act Title IV Part A programs. The monograph describes the major problems in evaluating the program to determine the degree of its positive contribution to…

Developed as part of a three-year project funded by the Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA), this manual is designed to present librarians in the State of California with an alternative, "sense-making" approach to assessing the information needs of patrons and potential patrons and to assessing accountability, i.e., whether…

The Quality Circle project is a problem-solving concept requiring the interaction of a variety of organizational skills. Circle members work together, becoming involved in problem-solving processes. They make decisions and take action based upon the data they collect. The reliablity of those data is crucial to the circle's success. Presented in…

This booklet provides some systematic guidelines for assisting educational planners to discriminate between high-quality educational research and research that should not be relied on for decision making. The guidelines focus on educational research studies that employ either experimental or survey-research methodologies. A checklist is presented…

Discusses current issues in measuring library effectiveness, including rapid technological changes and increasing obsolescence in librarians' competencies; increased pressure for accountability; tools to help libraries become what they determine they should be rather than conforming to national standards; and how to determine the validity and…

Research shows that learning communities are an effective way to improve student performance and persistence, but the success of any particular implementation is not guaranteed. Each program should be evaluated with regard to the likelihood that better-prepared students tend to participate. The protocol used for evaluation at Indiana…

Under the Drug-Free Schools and Campuses Act, institutions of higher education are required to review the effectiveness of their alcohol and drug prevention programs biannually. This guide offers a method for gathering and interpreting student survey data on alcohol-related problems based on the methodology of the College Alcohol Survey developed…