The Down East Partnership for Children (DEPC) was established in 1993 to bring together health, education, and social service agencies to address the needs of children and families in two eastern North Carolina counties. Collaboration theory provided a useful lens through which to examine the development of the partnership, recognize preconditions…

A reorganized version of standards to be utilized for those who are involved with educational evaluation in Brazil was the result of a critical review of evaluation standards which were originally elaborated by the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation. The conceptual framework for the critical review comprised logical…

Decreased resources, increased accountability demands, and the need for economic survival have made the evaluation of the outcomes of continuing education efforts in nursing a salient need. Economic survival, in particular, is largely dependent upon the skill of the continuing educator in achieving the desirable balance between organizational and…

Formative evaluation is discussed as it relates to educational television (ETV). Formative evaluation, used to improve a project during its development, is especially valuable in the production of television programs. Methods useful in the formative evaluation of ETV are: (1) try-out studies; (2) learner verification and revision; (3)…

The emphasis on and the importance of evaluation have been addressed by program planners for the past 60 years. Evaluation strategies have broadened from the Tylerian approach, which focuses on specific objectives, to more investigation using indicators as measures of program success. Evaluation is important during the development of a program and…

This paper presents one possible approach to the formative evaluation of a Teacher Enhancement Program (TEP). The approach was applied to a National Science Foundation TEP designed to enhance teachers' knowledge and use of performance assessment technology. The study demonstrates the applicability of the approach to formative evaluation and…

This paper shares the outcomes of a developmental process designed to create a comprehensive teacher assessment program within a local school district. The paper includes a rationale that helps to explain the need for developing teacher evaluation systems different from most current models, the processes used to create the assessment program, and…

Setting unresolved technical issues aside, there are three other changes that are needed before e-learning realizes its fullest potential. First, the basic mental model of what e-learning is must be expanded. Second, the quality of assessment within e-learning products must be improved. Third, there must be rigorous evaluation of e-learning…

Both evaluation and planning typically begin with an attempt to define the conceptual territory of interest; this paper presents an approach to such conceptualization. The term, structured conceptualization, is used to refer to any definable set of procedures which can help a user develop a useful conceptual representation. Structured…

Evaluations of multisite programs present special challenges to evaluators concerned with the use of evaluation results. This paper offers an approach that holds promise for mitigating the problems inherent in evaluating programs at multiple sites. A brief analysis is presented of the challenges these programs present and the reasons these…

Two evaluation projects conducted for the Minnesota Agricultural Extension Service are examined from a user-focused perspective: (1) a needs assessment of large scale commercial farmers for program development by the Office of Special Programs; and (2) a review of the extension programs in Nicollet County. Each incorporated the focus group method…

The evaluation process provides valuable information so that practitioners may share and benchmark their efforts to improve and enhance the quality of the educational reform initiative called tech prep. Evaluation should be part of every phase of a tech prep initiative, from needs assessment to completion. A tech prep program is typically at one…

Marketing has become a popular strategic initiative among state extension services to meet the growing demand for program accountability. The Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service (LCES) began a formative evaluation of its marketing efforts as a step toward a comprehensive marketing plan. All extension faculty were surveyed to determine their…

In light of the National Education Goals of 1990, several arguments against any federally funded large-scale census approach to the assessment of college student learning in the United States are presented to clarify challenges to an objective of Goal 5, which specifies that "the proportion of college graduates who demonstrate advanced…

The study involved an attempt to promote use of evaluation data in compensatory education through a technical assistance effort at the state education agencies (SEA) level. It included a secondary analysis of Hawaiian Title I longitudinal data and dissemination of findings through a series of consultations with evaluation and program personnel at…