This study was designed to measure instructional design competencies as a result of participation in a 9-month Web-based training program called "Roadmap to Effective Distance Education Instructional Design." The researchers used a self-assessment pre- and posttest to determine participant initial and final competence in 12 areas: adult…

The American Evaluation Association's (AEA) Independent Consulting Topical Interest Group (IC TIG) has a membership of over eight hundred individuals who generally work as sole proprietors, in partnerships, or in small consulting firms. Well over a decade ago, the IC TIG conducted a survey of its membership (Bonnet, 1992). To gather current data…

The Illinois Community College Board provided more than $3.3 million to community colleges during fiscal year 2007 to provide workforce and economic development services through their Business and Industry Centers. The workforce development activities conducted under this grant include customized job training on campus or on-site at a business;…

Creating and evaluating Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for students with disabilities is a major responsibility for teachers and school leaders, yet the process involves legal components not always understood by educators. In "Understanding, Developing, and Writing Effective IEPs," legal and special education experts Roger…

The National Dropout Prevention Center for Students with Disabilities (NDPC-SD) was assigned the task of summarizing and analyzing the data for Indicator 2--Dropout--from the 2005-06 Annual Performance Reports (APRs) and the revised State Performance Plans (SPPs), which were submitted to the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) in February…

The nation's social agenda for improving education and training has converged with national economic forces (Hornbeck & Salamon, 1991). The emphasis on lifelong learning of the workforce through education, training and development, demands for ever-improving productivity and significant technological advancements have required new tools to…

Data fuel the process of change. Schools and districts should have electronic data systems that store data and make it easy to extract useful information. School leaders and their staff have questions; they need answers. Their data, when stored in a suitable electronic data system, will help them construct better answers to their questions more…

In spite of the fact that noncredit generates approximately 10% of enrollment in the California Community College System, many people outside and even within the system are not aware of or do not fully understand the importance of noncredit and how it serves California's educational needs. Noncredit courses are basically what its title…

The authors compared traditional and Web-based versions of an environmental education program in terms of their effectiveness in raising knowledge and promoting attitudes of environmental issues. They used a pretest-posttest nonequivalent control group quasi-experimental design. Results showed a statistically significant increase of knowledge…

In spite of the most adverse circumstances, some children manage to survive and even thrive, academically and socially, into adulthood. A complex array of individual, family, and community factors has been identified that best explains resilience and lays the foundation for programs and interventions targeted at fostering the development and…

Purpose: This paper aims to diffuse the concept of a multi-lateral learning process as a means to promote experimental didactics and research (and the cross-fertilization between these two activities) in the field of design of sustainable product-service systems (PSSs) and to consider the university campus as the locus for the design,…

A 3rd party provider approached university faculty and administration to develop an on-line program for the Master's degree in educational administration and leadership. While the monetary benefits of an online delivery were attractive, the institution rested its final decision on the instructional merits of the plan. The faculty used a 3rd party…

Alternative certification programs continue to increase as school districts, institutions of higher education, and commercial companies share common educational expectations. In Kansas, a state-wide collaborative of eleven partner institutions, governed by an advisory board, designed a conceptual framework, a standards-based program, curriculum,…

Catholic education in the United States continues to face mounting economic challenges. Dioceses are being challenged with the painful reality of closing Catholic schools that have long served communities. These school closings leave behind wounded and disillusioned professionals. The Process of Compassion Workshop was developed to provide…

This report presents results from research into the effects of early childhood programs on their participants, particularly low-income and at-risk children. The studies described offer evidence on the long-term effects of high quality early childhood programs. Such programs can have long-lasting positive effects on children and their families,…