Texas is developing a return-on-investment (ROI) measure to assess the cost-effectiveness of work force programs. Emphasis is on issues related to conducting cross-program ROI analysis at the level of the Local Workforce Development Board (LWDB) in career or one-stop centers. To make the most appropriate and effective use of ROI, the following…

This report describes the background, development, validation, and major components of the Standardized Assessment System (SAS). (The SAS is a multi-component system designed for use in evaluating a wide variety of experimental and demonstration youth programs initiated the Youth Employment and Demonstration Projects Act--YEDPA--of 1977.)…

The Center on Education Policy (CEP) has been studying state high school exit examinations since 2002. This is the sixth annual report on our comprehensive study of exit exams. The information comes from several sources: our survey of states that have mandatory exit exams, interviews with state officials, media reports, state Web sites, and case…

Background: This article builds on three years of qualitative research on Wisconsin's Student Achievement Guarantee in Education (SAGE) program, a class size reduction policy in Wisconsin. Objective: In this article, we take a practice-oriented perspective on assessment, examining how assessments in schools that participated in a class size…

Three criteria for meaningful student learning--construction of knowledge, disciplined inquiry, and value beyond school--are assessed as authentic learning outcomes for an implementation of a digital documentary project in two fifth grade history classrooms where teachers' practices are constrained by a high-stakes testing climate. In all three…

An applied Information Technology (IT) course that is assessed using pen and paper may sound incongruous but it is symptomatic of the state of high-stakes assessment in jurisdictions such as Western Australia. Whereas technology has permeated most aspects of modern life, including schooling, and more has been demanded of education systems in terms…

The article deals with the contribution of background variables (gender, years of residence in a treatment center, and family status), internal resource (self-esteem), and external resources (peer, family and significant other support, sense of belonging to the community) to life satisfaction among adolescents living in residential treatment…

Assessments of studies meant to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions, programs, and policies can serve an important role in the interpretation of research results. However, evidence suggests that available quality assessment tools have poor measurement characteristics and can lead to opposing conclusions when applied to the same body of…

The widespread application of personal computers to educational and psychological testing has substantially increased the number of test administration methodologies available to testing programs. Many of these mediums are referred to by their acronyms, such as CAT, CBT, CCT, and LOFT. The similarities between the acronyms and the methods…

Background/Context: In the past 35 years, the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program has spread to 483 schools across the United States, with an ever-growing share of these schools located in the inner city. These American school sites comprise vastly different contexts than those in which the IB program began-the international schools of…

Charter Theatre is a small professional theatre in Washington, DC. Its mission is to develop and produce new plays. Like other organizations, Charter Theatre wants to be accountable. Its members saw early the need for evaluation--a repeatable process to assure the quality of their work, and have infused their development process with evaluation.…

The purpose of this article is to inform readers about the types of instruments available for assessing and improving mentoring in organizations. Extensive review of the psychological, business and medical literature was conducted to identify commercially published, practitioner-oriented instruments. All of the instruments that were…

The National Association for the Education of Young Children's Accreditations Criteria for Assessment clearly identifies the need for observation and assessment in early childhood programs. NAEYC also addresses the need to create an assessment plan and use appropriate assessment methods. Although practitioners agree that observation is important,…

Recent studies of the effectiveness of the following types of job training programs were reviewed: mainstream job training (Comprehensive Employment and Training Act and Job Training Partnership Act programs); welfare-to-work; experimental; job training for specific population groups; and specific services. Special attention was paid to the…

This report presents results from questionnaires administered to a range of individuals (N=41) involved in the organization and management of college provision for secondary pupils as well as questionnaires administered to S3 and S6 secondary students (N=863) within Scotland's Lothian Region concerning the effectiveness of college provision,…