This dataset contains participant data related to the use of badging (achievement) feedback in pedagogical design. Two sections each of web-based graphic design and web design undergraduate courses were offered at the University of Central Florida. A badging system for achievements was included in one section of each. Performance, engagement and…

In connection with the Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009, GAO (Government Accountability Office) was required to study the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC), a federal source of evidence about effective education practices. Operating through a 5-year contract awarded by the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES), the WWC…

Using a set of scenarios derived from actual evaluation studies, this simulation study examines the reported influence of evaluation information on decision makers' potential actions. Each scenario described a context where one of three types of evaluation information (large-scale study data, case study data, or anecdotal accounts) is presented…

As the procedures of evaluation research have developed during recent years, it has become clear that the results of evaluation studies have failed to provide policy decision makers with useful information. An approach towards designing and implementing more useful evaluations--the stakeholder survey--is discussed. Stakeholders are individuals, or…

Evaluation studies on educational questions attempt to provide answers in the form of conclusions or inferences which are derived from the information collected. Valid inferences are a result of careful research design for the study, and may be causal, descriptive, value-oriented, or probabilistic. Basic steps in designing an evaluation study are…

Offers a framework for explicitly defining the types of information that clinicians use and the various states of information need on which different studies have focused. Highlights include methodological issues in information needs research, clinical questions, and evaluating information systems and the impact on information needs. (Author/LRW)

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…

Successful outcomes assessment programs have many common characteristics. Institutional researchers should examine these signs of success and use them as guides for developing their own campus programs. (Author/MSE)

This report presents the results of a survey of Digital Library Federation members that examined the kinds of assessments they were conducting, what they did with the results, and what worked well or not so well. The first section of the report is an introduction that describes the report structure and summarizes challenges in assessment. The…

Nine articles in this festschrift for Herbert Goldhor explore relatively new and innovative approaches to problem solving in libraries. The articles identify and discuss methods and techniques of applied and evaluative research, consider conceptual and practical issues related to problem solving in libraries, and recognize Goldhor's many…

This document presents the research proposal and supporting documents for a study to evaluate the process of developing a comprehensive dissemination capacity in State Education Agencies (SEAs) and to assess the impact of the capacity building activities in the states, addressing two questions: Is dissemination capacity being built and, if so,…

Integrating information from local school district and community data sources is essential to understanding the relationships between them. A major problem in merging such data concerns the geographic incongruities of the boundaries of school districts (local education agencies) and the boundaries of communities. This paper focuses on resolution…

School climate is an elusive but powerful concept that has captured the attention of both researchers and practitioners, but choosing an instrument to assess climate can be very complicated. This monograph accordingly discusses four basic issues that should be considered prior to selecting an instrument to measure school climate: purpose, choice…

Examines the impact of Internet information resources on the development and adaptation of research strategies based on a study of federal alcohol control policy. Considers how Internet access affects utilization of information services within an organization, and describes measures of utilization and effectiveness for assessing the impact of…

One of a series of manuals developed by the Home and Community-Based Career Education Project, the publication presents the activities of the project's research and evaluation component, which continually informs the staff about project development and describes client characteristics, needs, decisions, and plans. Generic issues which must be…