Traditional classroom assessment practice often leaves students out of the conversation, exacerbating the unequal power distribution in the classroom. Viewing classrooms as autonomy-inhibiting is known to influence students' psychosocial wellbeing as well as their academic achievement. This is especially relevant in STEM fields where marginalized…

An educational intervention's effectiveness is judged by whether it produces positive outcomes for students, with the randomized controlled trial (CRT) as a valuable tool for determining intervention effects. However, the intervention-as-implemented in an experiment frequently differs from the intervention-as-designed, making it unclear whether…

The purpose of this study was to develop a tool to evaluate the quality of a clinical information system (CIS) conceived by nurses and conduct a pilot test with the developed tool as an initial assessment. CIS quality is required for successful implementation in information technology (IT) environments. The study started with the realization that…

This report summarizes research findings and implementation practices for teacher and principal value-added models (VAMs), as a first step in the Team Pennsylvania Foundation's (Team PA) pilot project to inform the development of a full, statewide model evaluation system. We have selected 21 studies that represent key issues and findings in the…

Purpose: This paper aims to compare the ways in which a range of quality frameworks have been validated and to identify a number of factors that have an impact on validation processes. Design/methodology/approach: Seven examples of published quality frameworks applicable to the field of e-learning are described and the methods used to validate…

This paper provides practical guidance for researchers who are designing studies that randomize groups to measure the impacts of interventions on children. To do so, the paper: (1) provides new empirical information about the values of parameters that influence the precision of impact estimates (intra-class correlations and R-squares); (2)…

Restorative Practices (RPs) in schools developed out of growing interest in Restorative Justice in the community. Schools looking for strategies to address disaffection, behaviour difficulties and violence were attracted by the key ideas: the need to restore good relationships when there has been conflict or harm; and develop a school ethos,…

The Vocational Education Act of 1963 (P.L. 88-210) specified that funded programs undergo periodic and regular evaluation to determine if participants are being adequately prepared for employment. A quasi-experimental method for objectively evaluating pilot programs is to use appropriate reference groups in lieu of the traditional experimental…

Worldwide there seems to be an interest in enhancing the student learning experience through particularly interactive learning, which is an educational philosophy that places the student at the centre of the learning process. Such an approach acknowledges the educational contexts from which students come. What is even more important is the fact…

A pilot project attempted to measure reactions of participants to the Technology Education Division program at the national convention of the American Vocational Association in St. Louis (December 1992). After a review of the literature, a Conference Reaction Model was developed and subjected to peer review. After several revisions, a pilot…

This report describes the first year (Phase I) of the 3-year evaluation of the Child and Family Mental Health (CFMH) Project. Phase I was designed to provide a descriptive analysis of the CFMH Project in terms of the number and characteristics of recipients of the services, the nature and extent of the specific primary prevention approaches used,…

The term "pilot study" has been used over the years to describe the evaluation of the many elements involved in deciding whether a proposed condition should be added to a newborn screening (NBS) panel, and until recently, was unilaterally used to describe the evaluation of the assay to be used before the condition was officially adopted by a state…

A study examined how much emphasis instructors of public speaking place on content and delivery when teaching and delivering oral and written critiques. The study sought to determine whether when teaching a hybrid introduction to communication course, or public speaking course, instructors are challenged with teaching their students about issues…

A pilot study in three rural Colorado communities that focused on health service delivery problems related to cancer concentrated on perceptions of community influentials, health care providers, and patients and their families. Results indicate that qualitative methods can identify crucial problems for most people without losing sight of outlier…

This report describes a 7-week pilot study conducted to estimate probable participation rates for a planned substance abuse treatment outcomes study. The pilot program tested whether acceptable response rates might be obtained by contacting clients whose records had been examined by an earlier study (retrospective) or by contacting current clients…