Nursery experience is now common for young children and their families. Questions of quality have focussed mainly on safety and early learning. The roles of subtle emotional processes in daily pedagogic interactions have received surprisingly little attention. This paper discusses the Tavistock Observation Method (TOM), a naturalistic method of…

Program monitoring is an important and necessary assessment practice within the field of early childhood deaf education. Effective program monitoring requires a focus on both the consistent implementation of intervention strategies (fidelity) and the assessment of children's ongoing progress in response to interventions (progress monitoring).…

In northern Nigeria, over 80% of the unskilled and uneducated adolescent street boys, or "Almajiris", are from the ethnic Hausa-Fulani tribes. They depend on street begging and menial jobs for daily survival. In dealing with the situation, state vocational centers were established as the Millennium Hope Project (MHP) to provide the boys…

This article presents the results of research conducted at the first place where autism was diagnosed in China, the Nanjing Child Mental Health Research Center. The purpose was to examine the development of service provision for children with autism in this state-run medical institution. Specifically, the specific intervention model for autism,…

The use of a qualitative technique, the evaluator's journal, is proposed for supplementing quantitative methods of program evaluation. The journal's functions are described as a data storage instrument, biography of the program, and source of feedback. Five types, or approaches, illustrate its capability for accommodating unique needs. (GK)

Addresses the problems associated with deliberation: (1) hyperindividualism; (2) limited public dialog; and (3) increased hegemony of science and technology. Describes the naturalistic evaluation model used in rural Kentucky to critique the application of the National Issues Forum methodology. (JOW)

Naturalistic inquiry is an alternative to traditional assessment and experimental methodologies for measuring the effects of early intervention programs with young handicapped children. Discussion focuses on (1) the inductive nature of the naturalistic method; (2) potential strengths and weaknesses; (3) procedures for data collection. (Author/JW)

Y. S. Lincoln and E. G. Guba consider L. Sechrest's comments on their book "Fourth Generation Evaluation" as less a criticism than an attempt to demolish. D. M. Fetterman also objects to much of Sechrest's address. E. J. Posavac generally agrees with conclusions of Welch and Sternhagen. (SLD)

The paper describes a naturalistic evaluation study of an enrichment program for gifted learners in Newfoundland. The pull-out program (for two half days out of six) is described in terms of audience concerns and issues, standards, program components, and data-generating techniques (observations and interviews). The evaluation led to a report…

A methodological approach to evaluation is presented. This model attempts to integrate quantitative and qualitative procedures in evaluating the effects of bilingual/bicultural Head Start programs on young children. The evaluation was intended to provide information on the following: (1) the extent to which the curriculum models, once implemented,…

Definitions of and approaches to naturalistic evaluation are discussed. The qualitative aspects of the discipline are reviewed; and use of naturalistic evaluation in descriptions, illustrations, explications, hypothesis testing, and assessment of public spending are defined. A new paradigm for naturalistic evaluation is proposed. (TJH)

This collection of seven short articles discusses the role of naturalistic observation in program evaluation. There are criteria that evaluators explicitly or implicitly use to reach conclusions. These papers discuss these criteria and try to determine what constitutes legitimate evaluation knowledge. (RB)

Ten evaluation models are examined in terms of their applicability to investigative, emergent design programs: Stake's portrayal, Wolf's adversary, Patton's utilization, Guba's investigative journalism, Scriven's goal-free, Scriven's modus operandi, Eisner's connoisseurial, Stufflebeam's CIPP, Tyler's objective based, and Levin's cost…

Egon G. Guba and Yvonna S. Lincoln were among the first to develop a set of extensive criteria for establishing naturalistic inquiry as a disciplined research methodology. The naturalistic paradigm--also called post-positivist, ethnographic, phenomenological, and qualitative--has gained acceptance as a legitimate alternative to the previously…

Ethical issues relating to naturalistic evaluation are addressed, focusing on the role of the evaluator, problems of privacy and data gathering techniques, and issues relating to the use/abuse of findings. Benefits and costs of the naturalistic approach to program evaluation are also identified. (EGS)