This evaluation study examined a state-wide professional development program composed of two institutes, one for mathematics teachers and one for science teachers, each spanning two weeks. The program was designed to help teachers transform their practice to align with Common Core State Standards for Mathematics and Next Generation Science…

In order to enhance Extension evaluation efforts it is important to understand current practices. The study reported here researched the evaluation behaviors of county-based Extension professionals. Extension professionals from eight states (n = 1,173) responded to a survey regarding their evaluation data collection, analysis, and reporting…

The Pittsburgh Promise is a scholarship program that provides $5,000 per year toward college tuition for public high school graduates in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania who earned a 2.5 GPA and a 90% attendance record. This study used a difference-in-difference design to assess whether the introduction of the Promise scholarship program directly…

The purpose of this study was threefold: (a) to describe the impact the SLS courses had on the retention and success rates of students who were taking developmental English courses at FSCJ-Kent Campus, (b) to explain how students taking developmental English felt the SLS courses impacted them, and (c) to find out what elements of the SLS program…

The present article focuses on how faculty can be guided in the mentoring process and how formal mentoring programs improve practice, as well as the impact of formal mentoring on new faculty and faculty mentors. The empirical case study described features a new faculty mentoring program in its second year of development in a university research…

Class-size reduction (CSR) mandates presuppose that resources provided to reduce class size will have a larger impact on student outcomes than resources that districts can spend as they see fit. I estimate the impact of Florida's statewide CSR policy by comparing the deviations from prior achievement trends in districts that were required to…

Nearly every high-priority item in national, federal, state, and local discussions about education--and policy proposals across the political spectrum--requires high-quality longitudinal data to inform its design, implementation, and evaluation. This factsheet shares Data Quality Campaign's (DQC's) analysis of what "Data for Action 2011:…

In 2004, Lumina Foundation for Education launched "Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count," a national initiative aimed at improving success among community college students, particularly low-income students and students of color. Now encompassing more than 130 institutions in 24 states and the District of Columbia, Achieving the…

The impact of Florida's "A+" accountability program, which until 2006 included a voucher program for chronically failing schools, on public school performance has been extensively studied. The results have consistently shown a positive effect on academic outcomes in Florida public schools. However, no empirical research has been done on…

This paper examines (1) the problems of program design and implementation in relation to evaluation design, the confusion between research and evaluation design, and the overemphasis on quantitative data; (2) clarifies misconceptions about these problems and the evaluation process; and (3) suggests ways of avoiding these problems in the future.…

The purposes of this study were to: (1) determine the essential elements of foreign student programs as they now exist in Florida community colleges; (2) identify and compare the essential elements of an effective foreign student program as perceived by community college presidents, members of boards of trustees, and foreign student advisors; (3)…

The report evaluated performance, qualifications, training, and acceptance of occupational specialists (O.S.) in Florida public school districts. Data were provided by 64 school district superintendents, 78 principals of schools employing an O.S., 281 occupational specialists (employed in more than 95 percent of school districts), 548 students,…

The Worker Profiling and Reemployment Services (WPRS) program requires states to establish systems for identifying Unemployment Insurance (UI) claimants likely to exhaust their UI benefits and refers them to reemployment services. An evaluation was conducted to assess the reliability of the impact estimates provided in the evaluation of the WPRS…

Anyone who has worked as a teacher or principal in an elementary school understands the value of reliable and valid assessments of early reading progress. In order to implement an effective reading program, schools should have a coordinated plan for using screening, progress monitoring, diagnostics and outcome measures to guide instruction and to…

The mission of the study reported here was to provide a better understanding of the existing financial arrangement for elementary and secondary education, to design alternative systems where they appeared to be justified, and to recommend systems that would provide like amounts of dollars for students with similar characteristics (deaf, blind,…