Each year, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) publishes the "State Teacher Policy Yearbook," a comprehensive examination of the state laws, rules and regulations that govern the teaching profession, measured against a realistic set of reform goals. For five years running, the full "Yearbook" compendium…

Based on his experience as a youth planner, the author points out that the dysfunctional side effects of evaluation described by Ginsberg (TM 508 964) also apply to statewide efforts to deinstitutionalize status offenders. (BW)

Interviews with state legislators from Wisconsin (D. Bezruki), Massachusetts (T. P. Kennedy), and Virginia (P. Leone) illustrate the roles that evaluation is playing in the current state budget crisis. The influence of evaluation data appears largely specific to individual programs rather than systematically applied to the budgeting process. (SLD)

This case history of the Colorado Study of Learning Disabilities illustrates a variety of functions an evaluation study may serve for policy shapers at the state level. The impact of the initial evaluation is followed over two years, focusing on its use by influential participants in Colorado's special education policy-shaping community. (BW)

Discusses methodological issues that emerged in evaluating a three-year paternal involvement demonstration project for poor inner-city noncustodial fathers. The dilemmas that arose from the contradictory goals of program evaluation and the need to meet federal and state waiver goals are discussed, and the tradeoffs needed to ensure a meaningful…

This article uses a specific program evaluation (assessment of the Utah ladder reform report) to explore the role of evaluation information on the legislative decision-making process. Features of the report, responses to it, and its effects on Utah politics are described. Findings are broadly interpreted, and implications are discussed. (JL)

Many states have a disconnected body of laws regarding educator evaluation. Uncoordinated legislation can create problems with respect to evaluation, appropriate standards and methods to be employed, and implementation strategies. This paper describes Utah's educator-evaluation legislation to illustrate this phenomenon. Four statutory provisions…

This study investigated the significance of viewing the authority to evaluate as an indicator of the exercise of financial control. Financial control in this investigation focuses exclusively on state financial legislation. Evaluation authority in this investigation focuses exclusively on evaluation components of such legislation. (BW)

Describes a mandatory assessment process for school counselors that was part of Mississippi's Education Reform Act of 1982. To investigate the influence of the assessment process on counselors' professional identity, counselors (N=65) throughout Mississippi were surveyed. Results are reported. (TE)

This report focuses on the legal framework governing the operations of child care centers and family day care homes in the state of Hawaii. The scope, adequacy, and effectiveness of these regulations in protecting the health, safety, and welfare of young children are reviewed. A secondary focus is the management of the child care regulatory…

This paper describes efforts to design an evaluation system that has as its primary objective helping schools effect positive change through the Accelerated Schools Project. Three characteristics were deemed essential: (1) that the evaluation be useful and meaningful; (2) that it be sensitive to local conditions; and (3) that evaluations of…

The current accountability movement in education is examined in terms of its historical antecedents and federal versus state initiatives and requirements. The assumptions underlying the educational accountability movement are then considered, and refinements and extensions to these assumptions are proposed. The accountability movement in American…

This study of evaluation utilization identified organizational, political, and practical arrangements facilitating the wide use of "The Interim Report Evaluation" in policymaking for California's Early Childhood Education Program. In a program fraught by tensions, where evaluations had been political tools, this evaluation was special.…

Information about education in Oklahoma beginning with the 1989-90 school year and continuing through December of 1990 is presented in a concise and usable format. This document is an overview of information useful to the public. Sections include: (1) common education recognitions and achievements; (2) 1990 school legislation; (3) educational…

State activities to collect information on program outcomes for students enrolled in postsecondary vocational education were examined in spring 1990. A multistage process, beginning with a review of state reports and legislation, was followed by telephone interviews with state officials. The average number of respondents per state was five.…