Social return on investment (SROI), an evaluation method that compares monetized social value generated to costs invested, is in ascendance. Conceptually akin to cost-benefit analysis, it shares some of its challenges; however, these are heightened due to the expressed promise of using SROI to compare programs and inform philanthropic and public…

Many seem to believe that researcher-made tests are unnecessary, if not inappropriate, for evaluating reading comprehension interventions. We suggest that this view reflects a zeitgeist in which researcher-made (proximal) tests that align with the researchers' interventions are closely scrutinized and often devalued, whereas commercially developed…

This is a design case of the development, implementation, and evaluation of an online course for nursing educators at a large southeastern college. The course teaches best practices for organizing online instruction with a focus on the Quality Matters standards. Implementation with a small group of instructors resulted in positive responses that…

Increasing instructional quality in higher education is a key goal of educational development (ED) work, yet demonstrating complex outcomes remains challenging and lacks practical guidance. Evaluating ED services often relies on a reductionist approach characterized by linear assumptions of causal pathways to measure the extent to which…

Departments and programmes in higher education are required to participate in an increasing number of programme, course and student assessments. These assessment requirements are also opportunities to develop student skills related to scientific literacy and research, if students are included in the process of developing, administering and…

In 2018 the Office of Community College Research and Leadership (OCCRL) conducted an evaluation of the Illinois Community College Board's (ICCB) program review process, focusing on the career and technical education (CTE) programs. The purpose of program review is to support community colleges in decisionmaking and planning as related to…

This paper considers the support required to develop Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) capability across institutions. Rather than developing a checklist or a standardised audit approach, this paper describes the reflective journey taken by a group of academic developers who used strategies and structures previously identified in the…

Higher education makes important contributions to the betterment of society and to the lives of individuals. On a societal level, higher education supplies an educated citizenry and workforce. For individuals, higher education provides an opportunity for personal development, fulfillment, and economic mobility. States play a large role in helping…

The availability of effective research-based interventions and practices within schools is a growing concern within the field of education. There remains a lack of interventions that have been fully evaluated for use within schools and by school personnel, particularly in the area of social skills interventions. Understanding the need for social…

Professional learning communities (PLCs) have emerged as one of the nation's most widely implemented strategies for improving instruction and PK-12 student learning outcomes. PLCs are predicated on the principles of improvement science, a type of evidenced-based collective inquiry that aims to bridge the research-practice divide and increase…

The purpose of this paper is to present a review of the major policy studies concerning school counseling in the United States that were disseminated between 2000 and 2014. In all, reviewers located 37 documents that were disseminated between 2000 and 2014, and that were either intentionally written with a focus on policy implications or were…

Parent trigger laws have gained momentum nationally under the premise that they will increase local authority by amplifying parental voice in the decision to turn around "failing" schools. Using Hirschman's exit, voice, and loyalty framework we create two conceptual models of voice and evaluate the promise of voice in California, home of…

Why individuals choose not to sign up for social programs, particularly when the costs of sign-up are low and the benefits generous, is a crucial question for policy scholars. In this paper, we show that a substantial share of qualified middle school students fail to sign up for Washington State's College Bound Scholarship program, and this…

What happens when teachers are given funding and time to identify and develop targeted and innovative professional learning? This article focuses on lessons learned from grants funded through the California Department of Education that were designed to do just this. As the state and the nation consider the best approaches to professional learning…

"Reconnecting Youth" is an elective, credit-bearing course for students at risk of dropping out of school due to frequent absenteeism, low grades, or a history of dropping out. The curriculum focuses on building self-esteem, decision making, personal control, and interpersonal communication skills. The What Works Clearninghouse (WWC)…