This paper was designed to provide background information for participants of the "Statewide Evaluation of Programs and Services with Students with Disabilities" Policy Forum scheduled for August 30 and 31, 1994. The paper provides information regarding program evaluation issues, to stimulate discussion and to give examples of resources available…

This collection of papers is drawn from a conference dedicated to children suffering from the harm associated with being born to neglecting families, a circumstance that has emerged as the most challenging phenomenon for the child welfare system. Papers consider the dimensions of the problem, treatment models, policy considerations, and recent…

A survey was conducted of Colorado secondary career and technical programs in 1995 to gauge how the state has responded to mandates of the Carl Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Act of 1990. Results were reported for the first three of nine standards developed by a statewide committee in 1992. The three standards require secondary programs…

Quality has become a priority issue for all concerned with early childhood care and education services. Starting from the premise that quality is a relative and dynamic concept based on values and beliefs, this collection advocates that the process of establishing definitions of quality should involve a range of stakeholder groups. The chapters…

Many social workers are anxious about the use of evaluation techniques and are particularly reticent about using statistical research. Strategies for understanding the steps involved in integrating practice and evaluation in a school social work setting, an appreciation for the need of evaluation, and knowledge of various resources on conducting…

A study reported on progress in developing statewide norm-referenced evaluation scales for high and middle school students. Phase IV goals were to develop and try out a guidance curriculum results evaluation survey format for use by local school district personnel and to explore ways to analyze and use Missouri School Improvement data to…

Study-abroad programs are among the many academic programs being evaluated in the assessment of colleges and universities. One evaluative tool is the survey of students who participate in these programs. This paper discusses the use of such surveys by St. Mary's College (Indiana) during the past decade to gather information regarding program…

This collection of papers presented at a 1996 conference on children's mental health focuses on program evaluation efforts within states and systems of care. Individual papers have the following titles and authors: (1) "An Overview of State Public Mental Health Programs for Children with a Serious Emotional Disturbance" (Pamela C. Roddy); (2) "A…

The purpose of the developmental project described in this report was to provide intervention to learning disabled adults through individualized tutoring. During the project, the following activities were implemented: (1) information sessions on learning disabilities were conducted to raise awareness of the problem; (2) 20 adults, double the…

Six evaluations of vocational training (VT) in a territorial context (TC) that were conducted in Italy, France, Portugal, Germany, Great Britain, and Spain were compared for the purposes of constructing a coherent synthesis of the issues developed in them, establishing strategic vectors for the construction of a reference framework for the…

A project was undertaken to develop a guide to help small business programs select good education and training programs for their staff. An initial step was a review of literature related to adult education and training in small business and training evaluation. The initial plan was to have the guidebook be specific to a given industry or other…

This report examines outcomes of the Primary Language Record (PLR), a program for systematically observing students in various aspects of their literacy development. The PLR uses classroom events and samples of student work to record students' progress and interests, recommend strategies for addressing needs and building on talents, and discuss…

This document reports on a workshop conducted to bring together vocational, technical, and adult education colleges and the University of Wisconsin-Stout staff members who are working with computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM). Participants discussed current program content, identified areas that need further development, and determined how…

This five-section guide is intended to lead marketing education personnel through the program evaluation and improvement process in Missouri. The first section is an introduction that provides a rationale for evaluation, discusses the resource, process, and product standards that should be used and suggests ways these standards can be applied. The…

Involving producing, analyzing, and using information, evaluation is the central discipline of the information age. Both traditional criteria for good evaluation and standards formulated in 1981 prescribe evaluations that are useful, practical, ethical, and accurate. The burning question in evaluation is the utilization of information for…