A model for quality assurance (QA) in psychiatric hospitals is described. Its functions (general QA, utilization review, clinical records, evaluation, management information systems, risk management, and infection control), subfunctions, and corresponding staffing requirements are reviewed. This model was designed to foster standardization in QA…

Describes the School Transitional Environment Project and its successor, the Project on High Performance Learning Communities, that have contributed to building a model for school improvement called the High Performance Learning Communities. The model seeks to build the principles of prevention into whole school change. Presents findings from…

Describes a two-year collaborative project that improved the reporting and management of potential and suspected elder abuse situations involving persons with dementia. The educational curriculum and cross training program as well as the handbook for caregivers are discussed. Project organization, implementation, and evaluation are also discussed…

Presents a model of treatment in which a family therapist is partnered with a community member whom is called a community resource specialist (CRS). Reports on an evaluation of the model in the treatment of adolescents with behavioral problems. (Contains 11 references.) (Author/GCP)

Discusses three challenges (dealing with program diversity, accommodating conflicting emphases, and precipitating positive change) in evaluating academic technical communication programs. Outlines an approach to program evaluation that redefines the stakeholders to include a wide range of partners in both workplace and academy, and that uses a…

Presents a critical appraisal model that is proactive, research based, and learner oriented. Discusses process, content, political, and contextual issues. Uses a case study of a continuing education master's program to illustrate the model in practice. (Contains 26 references.) (SK)

A decentralized teacher-coaching model has been adopted by several Los Angeles-area school districts through an initiative called Design for Excellence Linking Teaching and Achievement (DELTA). DELTA encourages coaches and beginning teachers to develop a personalized support plan, and stresses one-on-one relationships and support, not evaluation.…

Determined general and specific processes of program approval and program review found in 50 states and 8 foreign countries. Defines models that depict these procedures and discusses strengths and weaknesses of each. Suggests alternatives to current practices by U.S. state agencies. (SLD)

Proposes a framework for characterizing evaluation approaches that consists of the following aspects: context, purpose and social role, phenomena of interest, procedural rules, methods of justification, and sanctions. Illustrates the framework through its application to the debate over the theory and practice of empowerment evaluation. (SLD)

Shows how one can combine a large-scale planned variation experimental design and multilevel analysis to address research questions that go beyond the issue of overall treatment effectiveness. Uses data from a simulated field experiment to describe the multilevel models that can be used. (SLD)

Describes the use of the program logic model as an integrative framework in the multimethod evaluation of a middle school curriculum delivery program. Shows how the logic model was used to focus data collection, organize data, and interpret the data in an integrative framework. Focuses on the area of computer skills to illustrate the usefulness of…

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…

Mental models are one way that humans represent knowledge (Markman, 1999). Instructional design (ID) is a conceptual model for developing instruction and typically includes analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation (i.e., ADDIE model). ID, however, has been viewed differently by practicing teachers and instructional designers…

This paper discusses results from an evaluation of the UK-based Communities that Care programme. This "risk and protective" programme was set up in 1997 by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation with a central aim of exploring if such an approach could be successful in the UK context. Communities that Care puts into operation the "risk…

In 2004, the Wake County Public School System (North Carolina) received $1.3 million as one of 237 national winners of the $70 million federal Carol M. White Physical Education Program (PEP) Grant competition. The PEP Grant program is funded by the U.S. Department of Education and provides monies to school districts able to demonstrate the…