Recent federal legislation has created strong incentives for states to adopt principal evaluation systems, many of which include new measures of principal effectiveness such as estimates of student growth and changes in school climate. Yet, there has been little research on principal evaluation systems and no state-by-state analysis of the…

The vital role of principalship in improving schools in general and enhancing student achievement in particular has been well documented. Given its importance, there is a need for tools to improve principalship, particularly ones emphasizing those dimensions associated with student achievement. Given the accountability movement, with its…

In the assessment-driven environment of today's schools, questions about effectiveness and impact on student learning often focus on the school as a whole. An often-missed piece is taking a critical look at specific programs and approaches. Program evaluation is a tool that can help do this. Program evaluation can help to answer a range of…

How do the various ideas currently used in conceptualizing and modeling evaluation relate to the administrator? How can he best use them in guiding his institution in evaluation? This paper summarizes some of the major trends of thought related to evaluation and explores them from an administrative rather than from a research or instructional…

Purpose--The purpose of this article is to review literature in certain areas and report on related results from a study of successful school principalship in the Australian state of Tasmania. Design/methodology/approach--Surveys on successful school principalship were distributed to a population of 195 government schools (excluding colleges and…

Problem solving and decision making are considered to be keys to successful management. A normative method for problem solving is presented, suggesting that the analysis of the problem be structured along a five-step procedure: problem identification, analysis, decision alternatives, decision making, and decision implementation. Follow-up…

A discussion of some of the causes of deficiencies in evaluation and the contention that the administrator can help improve its quality by being other than a passive participant in the evaluation process. (Author/RY)

Various cost analysis techniques for colleges and universities are discussed. The role of dean, department head, and provost or president in the procedure are described. A technique that limits the potential for misuse and helps academic administrators is recommended. (BH)

Evaluation can serve a variety of educational management questions, but an administrator's ability to use evaluation as a management tool depends not only upon his or her own perception of evaluation but also on the perceptions of other potential evaluation users in the system. Research has uncovered a variety of factors influencing an…

Attempts to demonstrate how the general logic of experience of J. Dewey helps explain the epistemological underpinnings of the evaluative perceptions and professional judgments of six principals. Descriptive statements of these principals reflect normative expectations and structural constraints combined with idiosyncrasies and discretionary…

Process and impact evaluations are compared, and a framework is provided to determine the nature and potential variability of the costs associated with each technical step of each type of evaluation. Recommendations to help in the choice of evaluation option are provided. (SLD)

The responsibility of the college president is to hear all voices, solicit opinion broadly, and help formulate policies that benefit the entire campus. A comprehensive review should be undertaken to help the board decide on campus priorities. (MSE)

This manual was designed for the administrator who has the responsibility for conducting all or part of an evaluation or is responsible for using evaluation results in program planning. The manual provides step-by-step guidelines to help: identify the purposes and audiences of an evaluation; prepare a basic description of the program or activity;…

This book begins with a look at current practice in administration. It then proposes a general problem-solving strategy to help administrators and supervisors with the array of difficulties that face them. The development of an administrative/supervisory team is proposed as a method of effectively implementing the problem-solving strategy.…

Descriptive statements of evaluation practices by principals were studied concerning normative expectations and J. Dewey's general logic of experience. Focus was on describing what principals think and do in terms of evaluation as a step toward bringing evaluation specialists and educational practitioners into a closer working relationship. Four…