One of a series of sixteen knowledge transformation papers, this paper examines the advantages and disadvantages of longitudinal studies as a method for evaluating vocational programs. First, longitudinal methods are defined for the differences between them and cross-sectional studies are established. The results of a literature search conducted…

Story telling is defined as a kind of journalistic documentation, based on directly observable referents, and used to contribute to an understanding of educational problems. In the area of educational research, story telling is part of the genre which includes case studies, ethnography, and ethnology. Story telling describes an environment in…

Seven articles highlight evaluations that are especially investigative in nature to examine how common elements in these studies can be used to improve evaluation and practice. The evaluator is seen as detective, ethnographer and management consultant, national program monitor and analyst, and international development specialist. (SLD)

Providing the early childhood (EC) community with a timely, actionable information about the Illinois State Board of Education's early learning initiative, "Little Prints" is a newsletter highlighting best practices among EC programs, representing the interests of and issues of EC professionals engaged in the education and care of…

The six chapters of this theme issue attempt to define conceptual and methodological issues in the evaluation of integrated services systems and to begin to synthesize some of these issues. An introduction to these evaluation issues is followed by case studies and a discussion of implications for program and policy development. (SLD)

This research report contains seven papers on students with serious Emotional Disturbances (SED) and/or Severe Behavior Disorder (SBD) who participated in the Georgia Psychoeducational Network Program (GPN). "The 1982 Cohort of GPN Preschoolers--Where Are They in 1987-1988?" (Juanda Ponsell and others) reports the placement of 75…

The 9 articles of this theme issue stem from a project on alcohol and drug abuse that involved 14 projects, 10 of which began with randomized clinical trials. These papers describe implementation problems associated with experimentation in field research and the focus on ensuring internal validity. (SLD)

The horizontal evaluation model was developed to remedy three major problems associated with competency-based approaches to teacher evaluation: there is no consensus regarding what competencies are essential to good teaching; teachers' behaviors may or may not be related to competencies they possess; and competency-based evaluation typically fails…

This handbook is the second in a series designed to aid teachers in developing a multicultural education curriculum. It is divided into two parts. Part 1, consisting of seven chapters, covers aspects of Canadian cultural diversity, and suggests activities for acquainting students with the various cultures native to Canada: (1) celebrations; (2)…

This collection of essays focuses on various aspects of research and instruction related to developmental education. The collection includes: (1) "Evaluating Instructional Software for Developmental Education," by Curtis Miles, which includes information on types of microcomputer software, developmental student characteristics,…

One of a series of sixteen knowledge transformation papers, this paper represents a comprehensive study of the nature and types of impact evaluation available to vocational administrators, researchers, and evaluation experts. After explaining the concepts of the CIPP (context, input, process, product) model, of summative evaluation and the value…

This report contains an overview of the General Psychoeducational Program Network and four research papers on the education of students with Serious Emotional Disturbances (SED). The first paper, "Academic Progress of SED students Served in the Georgia Psychoeducational Program Network" (Thomas H. Cope), reports on a study which found…

The way that a college can transform its periodic self-study process into an ongoing program is addressed, with a focus on the contribution of the institutional research office. Also considered are data elements that self-studies most often require and the way that data elements relate to judgments and interpretations made through the self-study.…

This journal issue addresses the issue of testing in the social studies classroom. The first article, "The Role of Testing" (Bragaw), focuses on the need for tests to reflect the objectives of the study completed. The varying functions of pop quizzes, weekly tests, and unit tests are explored. "Testing Thinking Processes" (Killoran, Zimmer, and…

In Great Britain, interest in the measurement of value added was stimulated initially by the requirement that schools and further education (FE) colleges publish league tables of examination results. Value-added data can be aggregated to compare different institutions' performance. Within colleges, value-added data provide a basis for setting…