It has been two years since the Evaluation Research Society (ERS) published its Standards for Program Evaluation. The standards have influenced professional activities, such as panel discussions, and have been useful in training evaluators. However, the question arises as to whether the standards have been consulted by practicing evaluators or…

This report documents the construct validity and reliability of the Professional Development Inventory (PDI), an assessment center sponsored by the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP). The assessment center provides a means for assessing participants in situations simulating those confronted by principals on the job. The…

The paper describes a vocational program in which task analysis was used in teaching vocational skills to 64 severely and profoundly developmentally disabled clients. Tasks required for successful completion of work situation and program conditions are outlined. An evaluation system is utilized in which behavior is rated according to nine levels…

This paper presents one approach to assessment of students with severe mental retardation, as implemented in the Harris County Department of Education in Houston, Texas. The paper views assessment as a strategic problem-solving process that acquires information vital for making programmatic suggestions. The benefits of parental involvement in the…

Three approaches to validating competencies of vocational education programs in technical and professional schools are examined. Competencies are defined as behavior-oriented and relatively simple, observable behaviors which can be identified and measured by the frequency of occurrence. The three models, which have elements in common, are expert…

Research examined in this review shows that when women and men perform the same acts or produce similar products, evaluations often differ, frequently in ways which are not consistent. In general, evaluation favors men over women when a competent performance is being assessed, while women are favored over men when an incompetent outcome is being…

Ethnomethodological research involves participation in the field, with some degree of social interaction, with the subjects of the study; direct observation of relevant events; some formal and a great deal of informal interviewing; systematic counting; collection of documents and artifacts; and flexibility in the direction the study takes. This…

A previous review of the effects of stressors on military performance shows that different stressors have different effects, the effects of stress vary with the type of skill being measured, the presence of certain stressors leads to decrements in performance, and incident-related stress accompanying these stressors can further impair performance.…

Quantitative assessment instruments have been developed to identify those skills or behaviors which individuals with developmental disabilities need in order to become competitively employed, and to measure individuals' progress in the program and hence measure program effectiveness. Such assessment instruments are problematic, as each employment…

The relationship between the behavioral consistency procedure and two other procedures (application form analysis and rating scales) were investigated through a comparison of initial employment and hiring practices used by the U.S. Civil Service Commission. The position of Budget Analyst was initially assessed in terms of five achievement areas…

These five papers are from a symposium that was facilitated by Darlene Russ-Eft at the 1995 conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development (HRD). "The Setting of Goals for Skill Acquisition" (Howard J. Klein, Peg Thoms) reports a study of hospital managers that found that goal manipulation did not lead to significant main…

The theoretical implications of management assessment centers for evaluating headteachers in Great Britain are examined in this paper. Issues in developing informed, objective management assessment are discussed, which involve the following: the educational system's permeable boundaries; the context in which management assessment and development…

Since 1928 when women represented 55% of all elementary school principals, the number of women in educational administration has been declining. In addition to historical trends which brought more men into the education profession, two factors hinder the promotion of women to administrative positions. The first factor is perceived barriers…

A pilot study assessed the effects of training in self-awareness and self-regulation on the reading comprehension of students in a postsecondary occupational training program. Subjects, 11 students enrolled in a community college technical training program in welding, were given training sessions that provided practice in metacognitive methods…

This report describes the development of an Assessment Center for Deputy Wardens of Security of the Georgia Department of Offender Rehabilitation. The formulation of a complete job analysis based on extensive interviews, questionnaires, on-site meetings, and reviews of job descriptions is outlined, and assessment staff training is discussed. The…