Although there are tools to assess student's readiness in an "online learning context," little is known about the "psychometric" properties of the tools used or not. A systematic review of 5107 published and unpublished papers identified in a literature search on student online readiness assessment tools between 1990 and…

Background/Context: The target of assessment validation is not an assessment but the use of an assessment for a purpose. Although the validation literature often provides examples of assessment purposes, comprehensive reviews of these purposes are rare. Additionally, assessment purposes posed for validation are generally described as discrete and…

Correlational analyses are one of the most popular quantitative methods, yet also one of the mostly frequently misused methods in social and behavioral research, especially when analyzing ordinal data from Likert or other rating scales. Although several correlational analysis options have been developed for ordinal data, there seems to be a lack…

Meta-analytic structural equation modeling (MA-SEM) is increasingly being used to assess model-fit for variables' interrelations synthesized across studies. MA-SEM researchers have analyzed synthesized correlation matrices using structural equation modeling (SEM) estimation that is designed for covariance matrices. This can produce incorrect…

There has been much research concerning functional assessment over the past 20 years, but several important research considerations have yet to be explained. One is the comparison of different types of functional assessment (e.g., experimental functional analysis and non-experimental functional assessment). The current study aims to compare the…

Conducted a meta-analysis of methodologies used to evaluate after school programs and attempted a synthesis of evaluation findings. Results show that evaluation reports demonstrate moderate compliance with the Program Evaluation Standards of the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation but evidence did not allow for meta-analysis of…

Case examples in the articles in this volume are analyzed in the mixed-method conceptual frameworks presented in the early chapters. The richer understanding derived from these approaches support the call to advance mixed-method inquiry beyond models and toward inquiry attributes that can be combined. (Author/SLD)

Background/Context: Although the importance of facilitating transfer from community colleges to 4-year institutions is almost universally accepted, there is little consensus on how to measure transfer success or evaluate policies aimed at assisting students in making this educational transition. Despite the increasing attention on transfer in…

In response to a recommendation that the Office of Educational Research and Development (OERI) adopt consensus panels such as those used by the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration, this paper tries to represent the range of consensus panel applications and to identify the major considerations for OERI application. A…

Some guidelines are offered for interpreting and evaluating meta-analytic reviews of research. The choice of unit of analysis, the issue of fixed versus random effects, the meaning of heterogeneity, the determination of appropriate contrasts, and the choice of measures of central tendency are discussed. (SLD)

The six articles of this issue discuss the place of meta-analysis in the health professions and present two state-of-the-art meta-analyses using a variety of innovative methodologies, statistics, and secondary analytic procedures. A survey conducted for this issue and its sequel explores interventions to facilitate meta-analysis. (SLD)

This paper reports the development and evaluation of an observation guide that draws on qualitative techniques of participant observation and semistructured interviewing to help anyone interested in visiting and understanding schools to develop a "big picture" profile quickly and efficiently. The guide reflects the philosophy of E.…

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)

Because research synthesis enables one to determine either the overall effectiveness of a particular treatment or the relative effectiveness of different types of treatments, it is becoming increasingly popular as a tool in program evaluation. Numerous methodological problems arise, however, when research synthesis is applied to studies conducted…

Criteria for relevant classroom assessments are discussed, and a biofunctional model of learning assessment is presented. In classroom assessment, the following criteria must be considered: (1) assessment approach (process-oriented and outcome-oriented); (2) assessment context (knowledge and higher-order thinking skills); (3) assessment method…