As readers of "Assessment Update" know, the call for assessment is sweeping over the globe, so much so that faculty and administrators are finding it difficult to ignore it--though many may wish they could. Unfortunately, awareness does not lead to an increase in assessment implementation because fear of assessment is still widespread. The push…

A study was conducted to clarify issues and problems involved in the assessment of the effectiveness of military training and to evaluate and recommend more objective procedures for determining the effectiveness of Navy training. The study results are reported in two volumes. This volume examines specific problems affecting Navy training…

Suggests that the demand for accountability is well taken provided that those who design programs and those who assess them are also held responsible. Theory and practice, including evaluation are to be reviewed in reciprocal relationship to each other. (Author/AM)

This paper asks whether all the current attention being given to educational evaluation and all the activity going on indicates real progress in the output of evaluation and its use in the policy process. The paper reviews the brief history of educational evaluation and gives a qualified "yes" as an answer to the question, noting: significant…

A systematic evaluation strategy, applicable by pupil personnel staff under existing school conditions, is presented. While the strategy is useful with various levels of objectives ranging from broad program objectives to specific outcomes for individual pupil attainment, it is suggested that assessment of the degree to which pupils attain desired…

In order to determine how much objective evidence exists regarding the effectiveness of career education programs in U.S. schools, American Institutes for Research in Behavioral Sciences (AIR) conducted a comprehensive, national search for well-evaluated activities. The initial nominations of 394 programs were received from state career education…

When California implemented its class-size reduction (CSR) program in 1996, a number of questions regarding financial burdens, teacher shortages, scarcity of facilities, and collective bargaining were raised. This first-year implementation study aims to provide some contextual information as background for answering questions, to clarify these…

With class-size reduction (CSR) in California now a reality, some early evaluations of the program are now possible. A contribution to this early assessment is offered here. The paper describes teachers' and parents' renewed confidence in public education despite the challenges presented by the logistics of implementing the program in the nation's…

Suggests an evaluative model for assessing the quality of a music program that asks questions concerning goals and objectives, leadership of the program, staffing, curriculum and scheduling, instructional materials, and learning outcomes. Advocates the guidelines proposed by the Music Educators National Conference (MENC) in assessing what…

In order to determine how vocational education programs should be evaluated, it is first necessary to define vocational education, to describe how vocational education programs are now being evaluated, to find out how other federal education programs are evaluated, and to suggest what criteria might reasonably be set out in future federal…

Intended for the classroom teacher, this review of first generation career education research is based primarily on Edwin L. Herr's comprehensive review and synthesis, "Research in Career Education: The State of the Art" (ED 149 177). Herr's major findings have been summarized in a list of statements. For example, two of these statements…

The orientation of this report is that of identifying educational projects which can be considered truly exemplary. The bulk of the report consists of a 23-step procedure for validating the effectiveness of educational programs using existing evaluation data. It is not intended as a guide for conducting evaluations but rather for interpreting data…