This study addressed the impact of VAM, concerns with VAM data, uses and interventions educational leaders provided teachers, and components perceived as necessary for VAM effectiveness as an evaluation tool. The demographics used for this study were position, school size, and experience. Due to the documented need for educational accountability…

Assurance of student learning through effective assessment has become increasingly important over the past decade as accrediting agencies now require documented efforts to measure and improve student performance. This paper presents the methodology used by the College of Business Administration at California State University, Stanislaus to assess…

The use of evaluation information in a large state agency was investigated through a case study approach. Utilization was measured through a scaling procedure considering the status of recommendations within a report and the extent of influence of the evaluation of the status. The scaling procedure, the equal-appearing interval method, used…

Two case studies, a study of retention of health care personnel and a study of internal organizational communication, are presented that illustrate the application of multidimensional unfolding (MDU) and mapping to organizational concerns. This approach to multivariate analysis allows clients and stakeholders to picture the results of complex…

Discusses the following aspects of educational evaluation: (1) structural changes; (2) conceptual changes; (3) mixed methods and unraveling consensus; (4) utilization of findings; (5) the role of values; and (6) the role of politics. Discusses how evaluation moved from monolithic to pluralistic, reflecting the change from consensus to pluralism in…

Three trends that are projected for the future of evaluation are greater use of evaluation research in litigation; increasing integration of the social and natural sciences for certain kinds of evaluation research; and a move away from conventional statistics toward data analysis. (SLD)

The future of program evaluation is bright if evaluators do not ignore their roots in quantitative research. The current interest in qualitative approaches and the call for a "fourth generation" in evaluation should not override training in quantitative research. Qualitative research should complement, rather than replace, traditional…

Although methodological integrity is not the sole determinant of the value of a program evaluation, decision-makers do have a right, at a minimum, to be able to expect competent work from evaluators. This paper explores five areas where evaluators might improve methodological practices. First, evaluation reports should reflect the limited…

The nine-volume Survey Kit is designed to help readers prepare and conduct surveys and become better users of survey results. All the books in the series contain instructional objectives, exercises and answers, examples of surveys in use, illustrations of survey questions, guidelines for action, checklists of "dos and don'ts," and…

The purpose of this report was to explore one way in which quantitative and qualitative paradigms in program evaluation can be employed to reinforce each other. An evaluation was conducted of a large number of special education programs for preschoolers with handicaps in Louisiana. Since 1978, Louisiana has funded programs in 65 public school…

In eight chapters, this document offers guidelines for school administrators on evaluating schools and school programs, based on a poll of administrators and consultants. The introduction discusses the purpose of evaluation, especially school improvement, and presents a list of evaluation standards. Chapter 1 outlines steps in evaluation planning,…

This book presents a comprehensive treatment of the subject of evaluation as applied to literacy programs, covering evaluation theory, planning, and practice. Part I discusses questions of definition, context, objectives, and functions of evaluation and presents descriptions and analyses of evaluation paradigms and models. In Part II, the…

This book's purpose is to show .how assessment can be used to enhance the educational and research functions of colleges and universities by promoting talent development among both students and faculty members. Chapters cover the following topics: (1) review of traditional uses of student assessment; (2) the input-environment-outcome model which…

This manual, which is intended for practitioners involved in the Asia and the Pacific Programme of Education for All, explains the basic concepts and procedures involved in monitoring and evaluating literacy and continuing education programs. The following are among the topics discussed in the manual's eight chapters: (1) understanding monitoring…