Examines and compares various outcomes of education, such as standardized test results, classroom observations, teacher reports, and teacher interviews, in terms of their potential to inform policymakers about policy influences on student outcomes. Suggests the need for clearer understanding of how these approximations are related to each other.…

U.S. Department of Education (ED) activities relating to the utility of Title I evaluations are discussed within the context of an overview of the Title I Evaluation and Reporting System (TIERS) and a history of Title I evaluations. Implications for Chapter 1 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act (ECIA) of 1981 are considered. (LC)

The methodology associated with the California Study of Elementary Mathematics is examined. The article includes an overview of state policy and a description of participants and data collection procedures at the state, school district, school, and classroom levels, including methods used to collect data for development of case studies. (TJH)