Describes the purpose of evaluation, what benefits can be expected, and discusses the forces promoting and hindering the use of evaluative information. (Author/MLF)

An interview with the Illinois State director of research and evaluation, covers issues related to commissioning and using evaluators. Pancrazio's position is with the State Board of Education. Focus is on the preparation of research reports to facilitate decision making and policy making. (TJH)

Based on a review of research on evaluation use, the implications for future research and for improving the practice of evaluation are discussed. Six principles of evaluation use are outlined, and internalization of evaluation functions by decision makers is addressed. (TJH)

Good evaluation shares much with good teaching. What makes an evaluation useful can depend on qualities of teaching brought to the evaluator's role. (Available from: Jossey-Bass, Inc., 433 California St., San Francisco, CA 94104, single issue, $6.95.) (Author)

Suggestions for broadening the utilization of evaluation research findings are discussed. Major program changes, based on evaluation, may not become obvious for several years; program actions may contradict findings and still be based on rational decision making processes; evaluation findings may have far-reaching effects which were not recognized…

A performance-standard setting procedure termed judgmental policy capturing (JPC) and its application are described. A study involving 12 panelists demonstrated the feasibility of the JPC method for setting performance standards for classroom teachers seeking certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. (SLD)

This speech concerns the dimensions of context-oriented evaluation and begins with a discussion of the differences between measurement, research, statistical methodology, and evaluation. Decision-oriented evaluation is described as a process in which the evaluator has, as a major concern, the responsibility to determine likely decisions prior to…

Discusses the role and consistency of judges' interpretations of teacher performance as part of an evaluative scheme for complex performance, with reference to the ideological framework of professional standards. The tension between assessment decisions and the recognition that assessment involves interpretation is explored. (SLD)

A ninth grade home economics course, taught in an Australian high school, was evaluated with the goals of providing staff with information on evaluation procedures and obtaining information upon which judgments and recommendations for change about a particular course could be made. Of key importance in this project was the presence of an outside…

Program administrators for 64 Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) programs in New York City were asked to respond to a questionnaire rating scale concerning the helpfulness and quantity of information that had been provided to them by the program evaluators. The rating scale categorized areas of administrative decision making in five…

Involving producing, analyzing, and using information, evaluation is the central discipline of the information age. Both traditional criteria for good evaluation and standards formulated in 1981 prescribe evaluations that are useful, practical, ethical, and accurate. The burning question in evaluation is the utilization of information for…

There is a continuing need in evaluation research for the establishment of a relationship between evaluation findings and decision making. A method is proposed for a particular situation: annual funding decisions for projects in a large grant program in vocational education. Outcome and predictive impact variables were ranked by three groups of…

No Child Left Behind legislation makes it clear that outside evaluators determine what gets taught in the classroom. It is important to ensure they measure what truly counts in school. This fact is poignantly and sadly true for the under funded, poorly resourced, "low performing" schools that may be hammered by administration accountants…

In recent years the Lincoln, Nebraska public school system has increased the amount of material available for the evaluation of its educational programs and has organized it for use in decision making situations. This position paper summarizes the current situation, and clarifies policies and procedures for educational program evaluation. Two…

Four evaluation methods for determining educational policy are objectivism; subjectivism; emotive-imperative; and instrumentalism. For the objectivist, the rationale for undertaking an evaluation is based on empirical verification or non-verification of claims of existing policies or activities. Secondly, the objectivist is interested in…