The seven articles in this issue represent an approach to multisite evaluation that has much in common with the tradition of clinical trials. However, this approach shares with cluster evaluation an appreciation for the adjustments that are necessary to reflect the realities of conducting evaluation research in actual service settings. (Author/SLD)

The extent to which evaluation and auditing have converged on procedures in recent years and the extent to which they remain different are examined in the five chapters of this special issue. Different emphases, the question of collaboration with the subjects of inquiry, and issues of routinized performance are explored. (SLD)

This theme issue discusses the misuse of evaluation. The eight articles all discuss instances in which the evaluation process or evaluation findings were misused. Misuse is usually not the result of methodological issues but rather is an issue of human relations and sometimes of political pressure. (SLD)

Described in this newsletter issue are research activities involving the development in Sweden of an indicator model to provide a holistic and comprehensive depiction of schools. Intended for use in continuous follow-up and evaluation activities, the model attempts to mirror the situation in schools by means of existing information expressed as…

This eight chapters of this special issue introduce the use of a template to specify program components as a new tool for program evaluation. The template articulates the components needed for program delivery and provides a systematic method for assessing program implementation. (SLD)

Two chapters of this issue consider critical multiplism as a research strategy with links to meta analysis and generalizability theory. The unifying perspective it can provide for quantitative and qualitative evaluation is discussed. The third chapter explores meta analysis as a way to improve causal inferences in nonexperimental data. (SLD)

This special issue focuses on several methodological issues in the evaluation of the largest mental health and substance abuse project for children and adolescents conducted at a single site, the U.S. Army's Fort Bragg Child and Adolescent Mental Health Demonstration program. The introduction and seven articles describe this program and the…

The educational authorities of the Member States of the European Economic Community have begun to study the evaluation of vocational training programs. The study first will probe two strategic questions: (1) evaluation--to what end and by whom should evaluation be made?; and (2) what should be evaluated? The first program slated to be evaluated is…

The eight articles of this issue examine the nature of differences that arise between qualitative and quantitative researchers in program evaluation in terms of goals and epistemologies. The origins of these differences and their consequences are explored. Authors represent both perspectives but do not defend their ideological turfs. (SLD)

This UNESCO newsletter contains six sections concerned with various aspects of population education. Section 1 deals with workshops for monitoring and evaluating population education programs. Section 2 evaluates the programs of six Asia-Pacific countries (China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, India, Pakistan, Philippines, and Thailand).…

Research adaptation is an endeavor that implies solid collaboration among school practitioners and university and college researchers. This volume addresses the broad issues of research as an educational endeavor, adaptation as a necessary function associated with applying research findings to school situations, and change as an inevitable…

Seven chapters present 31 propositions challenging traditional ideas about the nature and practice of program evaluation. Methods to improve evaluation models and approaches and ways to address intermediate and advanced evaluation issues are explored. The discussion also serves as an introduction to the most analytical and comprehensive of the…

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)

The seven articles of this special issue focus on theory and research related to survey methods and whether evaluators need information that is absent from the larger survey literature. These articles reflect the view that the considerations relating to good survey research apply also to using surveys in evaluation. (SLD)

Traditionally, outcomes measured by postsecondary vocational education assessment have included labor force participation rates, type of employment, earnings, and employer satisfaction with employees. Today, however, legislators and policymakers are moving more and more toward accountability measures tied to students' educational outcomes, such as…