State summative assessments play an important role in measuring student learning and guiding educational improvement efforts, despite their limitations. But there is growing momentum in individual states and nationally to rethink these assessments with an eye toward reducing time spent on testing and increasing the tests' instructional relevance.…

To assist new scientists in the transition to independent research careers, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) implemented an Early Stage Investigator (ESI) policy beginning with applications submitted in 2009. During the review process, the ESI designation segregates applications submitted by investigators who are within 10 years of…

From 2006 to 2008, Educational Testing Service (ETS) produced a series of reports titled "A Culture of Evidence", designed to capture a changing climate in higher education assessment. A decade later, colleges and universities already face a new set of challenges resulting from societal, technological, and various other influences. ETS…

A Health in All Policies approach engages cross-sector stakeholders to collaboratively improve systems that drive population health. We, the members of the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP)'s Health in All Policies Action Team, propose that adopting a Health in All Policies approach within the national Cooperative Extension…

This paper presents a new index to quantify, measure and monitor the progress towards the objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy. This index is based on a set of relevant, accepted, credible, easy to monitor and robust indicators presented by the European Commission at the time the strategy was launched. The internal analysis of the index shows…

Due to the inappropriate planning and explosive population growth in urban areas, especially in developing countries, sustainable and disaster-safe urbanization has become the most important challenge for governments. Urbanization presents benefits in different ways but has led simultaneously to changes in land use/land cover (LULC), impacting…

Researchers' social-cultural organization influences the scope, quality, quantity, coherence, dissemination, utilization and impact of research-based, theoretically sound knowledge. Five concepts--paradigm, exemplar, segment, network and gatekeeper--are salient to research on researchers' organization. Autobiographical reflections signal these…

One shortcoming in the literature on policy framing has been the absence of analytic models through which to explicate change. This paper advances research in this area in three related ways. First, it links policy frames to the actors who employ them. Second, based upon this linkage it proposes two complementary approaches for examining…

Purpose: The welfare reform bill of 1996 severely constrained noncitizens' eligibility for the Food Stamp Program (FSP). This study examined the effects of eligibility restrictions on older immigrants' FSP participation and food insecurity. We paid special attention to household composition and household eligibility as well as older immigrants'…

A meta-program theory is proposed to overcome the limitations and improve the use of program theory as an approach to faith-based program evaluation. The essentials for understanding religious organizations, their various programs, and faith and spirituality are discussed to support a rationale for developing a faith-based program theory that…

Considers the necessity for family scientists to review and evaluate public policies and legislation relevant to the family. Suggests that framework for statutory analysis may aid this task and presents an example of a statutory analysis of adolescent pregnancy legislation using such a framework. Discusses the usefulness of statutory analysis for…

The role of program evaluation is examined in relation to policy analysis. Program evaluation is most persuasive as a component of the policy process when its role is clearly understood. Clarity can be achieved by using the program mandate to guide evaluation and by including practitioners in evaluation model developments. (SLD)

Reviewed general outcome indicators using a conceptual framework from the program evaluation literature to summarize findings and issues from the domain of welfare policy in the United States. The review illustrates the new knowledge gained about the effects of requiring work and suggests questions that must be answered. (SLD)

"A tripartite conceptual model for the evaluation of mental health and psychotherapy outcomes is presented. The model highlights the values brought to bear by three 'interested parties' in these evaluations: society, the individual, and the mental health professional. Clinical, research, and public policy implications of the model are discussed."…

To enable decision makers to become more aware of the levels of confidence that can be placed in the results of particular computerized decision models, methods for establishing confidence levels are discussed. The U.S. General Accounting Office has developed criteria and review procedures for evaluating computerized policy analysis models.…