In 2000, the California State Legislature passed the Schiff-Cardenas Crime Prevention Act, which authorized funding for county juvenile-justice programs and designated the Corrections Standards Authority (CSA) (formerly named the Board of Corrections) the administrator of funding. A 2001 California Senate bill extended the funding and changed the…

Notes that, very early in program planning, budgets are estimated for major program components, including evaluation. Proposes heuristic for establishing reasonable evaluation estimates in initial planning. Describes logical sources of information from which to construct such a heuristic. Recommends that, for typical programs and projects, initial…

Content analysis of critical events methodology is demonstrated in an evaluation of the Educational Telecommunications for Alaska (ETA) Project. This methodology was used to collect and interpret the data derived from the ETA staff personnel representing five components of the project. The data were analyzed using content analysis procedures. The…

Uses a travel cost method to quantify benefits received by visitors to Petawawa National Forestry Institute's public awareness facilities. Analysis of data from 697 visitors provided a basis for calculating benefits, which are reported in monetary terms. These benefits ranged from $2.89 to $6.64 in value (United States) per visit. (Author/JN)

The paper reviews cost-effectiveness evaluations of child maltreatment interventions. Though methodologically sound research is limited, existing research suggests that home health visitors, lay group counseling, and family and group therapy are promising interventions. Medical foster care substantially reduces costs, but its effectiveness has not…

A Lesson Plan Evaluation Form was developed to provide systematic quantitative data about classroom functioning in an elementary-level gifted program. Plans (n=137) from 15 teachers were analyzed, and useful information about program functioning was obtained in a cost-effective manner. Data obtained were consistent with data from more traditional…

This two-report volume was prepared to describe approaches for evaluating individual Office of Telecommunications Policy (OTP) demonstration projects in the future and to aid demonstration project directors in project planning and development. The first report focuses on the role of planning and evaluation activities, stressing their importance in…

Experts' opinion is proposed as a valuable evaluation tool. Advantages of this method include the relative cost effectiveness when compared with other data collection methods. It is a time-saving method important in formative evaluation when a decision must be made concerning implementation of a course of action. When experts are carefully…

Telephone interviews were conducted with key individuals in each of the 50 states to gather information on both the most successful and the least successful technology-based educational projects at the elementary and secondary levels in each state. The survey was designed to elicit information on the following: (1) the instructional needs…

Based on pupil-specific observation data drawn from a sample of 13 fifth-grade math classrooms, this article reports efforts to develop and test an economic model of the allocation of teacher resources within classrooms. Tables provide data on teacher attention and resources. (PB)

The second of two related pamphlets, this guide describes how to design an outcome study and outlines procedures for collecting outcome data. After an introduction that delineates the purpose of the two-part series, the pamphlet is divided into four major sections. The first section explains how to select a cost-outcome analysis. The next three…

Presents a general framework for designing sampling programs that ensure cost effectiveness, and managed errors kept within known and acceptable limits. (LZ)

The two reports presented here describe an 18-month project intended to review and evaluate the first year's activities of the Office of Telecommunications Policy's (OTP) Telecommunications Demonstration Program for the delivery of social and health services; develop approaches for evaluating individual demonstration programs in the future;…

Data from two studies on evaluation budgeting practices are presented. In the first study, estimated budget figures are provided for formative and summative evaluations by 29 state education agency evaluators. In the second study, initial budget figures, final costs, and study characteristics are abstracted from the records of 85 evaluations…

This policy research summary outlines the paradigms and processes used in recent research and evaluation studies conducted on supported employment and rehabilitation programs in Minnesota. First, the paper reviews evaluation strategies and models for assessing the individual and societal efficacy of supported employment. It identifies key…