Theory-based evaluation (TBE) is an evaluation method that shows how a program will work under certain conditions and has been supported as a viable, evidence-based option in cases where randomized trials or high-quality quasi-experiments are not feasible. Despite the model's widely accepted theoretical appeal there are few examples of its…

Schools, districts, and state-level educational organizations are experiencing a great shift in the way they do the business of education. This shift focuses on accountability, specifically through the expectation of the effective utilization of evaluative-focused efforts to guide and support decisions about educational program implementation. In…

Collaborative Evaluation systematically invites and engages stakeholders in program evaluation planning and implementation. Unlike "distanced" evaluation approaches, which reject stakeholder participation as evaluation team members, Collaborative Evaluation assumes that active, on-going engagement between evaluators and program staff,…

Introduces the articles of this special section on the evaluation of educational technology and provides an overview of each paper. Calls for adjustments to, rather than replacement of, existing evaluation frameworks. (SLD)

Provides managers with specific guidance on developing and using logic models. For the last 20 years logic models have been used largely in program evaluations to chart what should have happened and what did or did not occur as intended. Logic models start with inputs and work through processes to the desired end state, whether output or outcome.…

Describes the Logic Model process, a tool used by program evaluators to tell the performance story of their program. The model describes the logical linkages among program resources, activities, outputs, customers reached, and short, intermediate, and longer-term outcomes. (SLD)

The intertextual model of evaluation proposed by M. Riffaterre is explored and applied to two problems, the general problem of what to do when there are multiple but conflicting criteria for evaluating a policy, and the specific issues of disposition of native American burial remains. (SLD)

Empowerment evaluation is defined as a process that encourages self-determination among the recipients of a program evaluation. This article contains a theoretical framework of empowerment evaluation, a discussion of methodological issues, and suggestions for operational considerations for evaluators who wish to implement empowerment evaluation.…

The development and field testing of a model used to evaluate the vocational education programs in a metropolitan community college system are reported; it can also be implemented on vocational programs at other institutions. (Author/JKS)

Presents an early stage evaluation model that was used to provide a framework to assess the effectiveness of three comprehensive community initiative projects that were put in place in Nebraska in 1996. Discusses challenges of evaluating these broadbased initiatives and pitfalls in using result-based performance evaluation. (SLD)

Presents a comprehensive evaluation framework and applies it to a family empowerment program in Montana that was developed as an aspect of welfare reform. The framework encompasses seven areas from developing objectives to developing a sound conceptual framework. (SLD)

Presents a way to evaluate the impact of local human services delivery systems and illustrates this logic model through the experiences of an urban United Way organization. This experience suggests that the logic model may have applications in planning when the aim is long-term social objectives through short-term interventions. (SLD)

Describes the use of the program logic model as an integrative framework in the multimethod evaluation of a middle school curriculum delivery program. Shows how the logic model was used to focus data collection, organize data, and interpret the data in an integrative framework. Focuses on the area of computer skills to illustrate the usefulness of…

A framework is described for economic evaluation of substance abuse interventions, describing addiction and treatment dynamics and highlighting therapeutic and economic endpoints. Cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit analyses are discussed. In conjunction with a decision-tree model, economic evaluation is presented as a tool for informed resource…

Concept mapping was used to assess the fidelity of an experimental program model for psychiatrically disabled street dwellers. Concept maps portrayed the program as conceptualized by its Boston University developers and program staff. Quantitative and descriptive analyses of the maps indicated good fidelity of model transfer. (SLD)