The Personal Learning Environment (PLE) has been presented in a number of guises over a period of 10 years as an intervention which seeks the reorganisation of educational technology through shifting the "locus of control" of technology towards the learner. In the intervening period to the present, a number of initiatives have attempted…

In this paper we share our reflections, as evaluators, on an evaluation where we encountered Excessive Evaluation Anxiety (XEA). The signs of XEA which we discerned were particularly evident amongst the program head and staff who were part of a new training program. We present our insights on the evaluation process and its difficulties, as well as…

The research findings of many thanatologists have brought an awareness to the general public that the study of death and dying is an appropriate and instructional need for many people. The attitudes of middle aged and older adults regarding death anxiety, life satisfaction, and locus of control were examined to determine whether adults would…

The effect of participation in a series of workshops about citizen involvement in civic affairs on locus of control, life satisfaction and anomia among the aged population in the Piedmont region of North Carolina was investigated, as well as the extent to which certain personal and situational characteristics of respondents were associated with…

Describes and evaluates the Life Choices Program for girls (N=66) aged 9 to 12, which emphasizes empowerment as an intervention. Comparison of the Life Choices participants with controls (N=50) showed no significant differences in locus of control. Differences in values suggest Life Choices participants are more aware of role alternatives. (JAC)

Female Mexican American high school students attended presentations by Hispanic female role models in business, academic, and professional careers. Although student questionnaires suggested high levels of career and educational aspirations and self-efficacy, focus-group comments indicated external locus of control and feelings of isolation and…

Describes a program for training people to apply generic problem-solving techniques to personal problems. Male student volunteers (N=64) were assigned to a training group or no-training control group. The training group achieved a higher standard in their bachelor's degrees and developed an increased belief in internal control. (Author/JAC)

The demands by applicants for prompt emergency services and by funding sources for greater accountability along with long waiting lists resulted in the formation of a crisis unit offering brief psychotherapy in a problem-solving framework. The services focused on: (1) the presenting problem as it reflected a core conflict or longstanding life…

A two-year evaluative study of a Child Parent Center Compensatory Education Program examined specific program characteristics and parent involvement as they affected achievement, locus of control, and home environment. Based on this quasi-experimental study, the program increased achievement, promoted greater feelings of control, and stimulated…

Child Parent Centers (CPC) have been established in selected disadvantaged areas to provide systematic educational experiences for preschool children as young as three years of age. This study provides an update on the current state of the CPC and its latest adaption, the Child Parent Expansion (CPX) Program. A three-year, longitudinal evaluation…

The goal of the Conecuh County (Alabama) project was to successfully implement an Experience-Based Career Education (EBCE) program based on the model developed by Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, which integrates academic requirements and work experience opportunities into a comprehensive curriculum. To determine program effectiveness at…

This volume, third in a series evaluating the Child and Family Resource Program (CFRP), provides an overview of the evaluation, documents the first 6 months of the study, and examines initial program impact on families. Chapter 1 briefly summarizes the design of the CFRP evaluation and addresses the issues of sample selection and attrition, data…

To help bridge the gap between school and employment, the Moore-Norman Area Vocational-Technical School District (Oklahoma) developed an experience-based career education (EBCE) program for high school juniors and seniors and out-of-school youth between sixteen and twenty-one years. Project objectives included the following: (1) to serve 150 youth…

A study was conducted of Indiana's Summer Programs for the Education and Development of Youth (SPEDY) to describe the program themselves and to study the programs' effect on participants' short-term career education attitudes, knowledge, and skills. SPEDY is a training for public-sector work program operated each summer for about ten weeks for…

A plan for evaluating the Apple Classroom of Tomorrow (ACOT) is presented, which implements the model for Sensible Technology Assessment/Research (STAR). STAR involves interactive participation in the evaluation study by ACOT participants, collateral university researchers, and University of California (Los Angeles) staff to develop a credible,…