Over both recent years and many decades, California districts have produced a range of substantively different approaches to teacher evaluation, demonstrating both the potential for district-level action generally and specific design options. In this report, the authors focus on teacher evaluation programs and further focus on the features of…

Washington State is set to spend nearly $100 million in the next two years on pay bonuses for teachers who receive national board certification. This investment is supposed to improve the state's teaching force and encourage the most capable teachers to work in high-poverty schools. Does it accomplish those goals? Governor Christine Gregoire's…

We review what is known about Head Start's impacts on children and argue that the program is likely to generate benefits to participants and society as a whole that are larger than program costs. Our conclusions differ from those in some previous reviews because we use a more appropriate standard to judge program effectiveness (benefit-cost…

A 2-year study of cost-benefits in special education undertook activities in five years: development of a cost analysis framework, cost data collection, outcome data collection, development of benefit-cost analysis procedures, and benefit-cost analysis application. A generic school-based model was developed in which costs could more accurately be…

The report presents the results of an evaluation of New York's 13 Alcoholism Treatment Centers (ATCs). The goals of the evaluation were to review the role of the ATCs in relation to other alcoholism treatment facilities, to assess their effectiveness and efficiency, and to determine how much money is collected for service provided to patients.…

The General Accounting Office (GAO) conducted a review to determine whether the Army effectively managed training programs conducted by outside contractors. During the review, the GAO evaluated six of the courses most commonly taught by outside contractors, examined procedures, interviewed Army officials, and visited the schools at six…

This report documents a 3-year evaluation of Georgia's CrossRoads alternative education program. It focuses on the direct benefits to regular classrooms of removing disruptive students, the effectiveness of services rendered to those removed students, the success with which they are returned to the regular classroom, and the projected costs and…

This staff delivery policy study was initiated by the legislature and governor in response to a steady escalation in the number and costs of staff development programs in the California public schools. The report is based on four main data sources: (1) descriptions of local patterns of staff development; (2) teacher and administrator surveys; (3)…

This report discusses the findings of a study that investigated whether the New York State Education Department's Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) has improved its oversight of special education by implementing a system for evaluating the performance of special education programs, and whether…

This policy research summary outlines the paradigms and processes used in recent research and evaluation studies conducted on supported employment and rehabilitation programs in Minnesota. First, the paper reviews evaluation strategies and models for assessing the individual and societal efficacy of supported employment. It identifies key…

Education Consolidation Improvement Act (ECIA) Chapter 2 funds have been used in the Dade County, Florida, computer education program since 1982, primarily for the acquisition and support of computer stations and related hardware for the schools. Objectives for the 1984-85 school year were: continued development of a computer information system,…

An exploratory investigation was conducted of a college of education's major costs in providing the "education major" alternative to obtaining teacher certification. Basic procedures consisted of identifying appropriate cost categories and gathering the required cost information. Major effects data from previous studies were reviewed and…

This volume is a collection of profiles of 130 outstanding Chapter 1 programs across the United States. All of the programs have been given special recognition by the United States Department of Education because they have been unusually successful in meeting the needs of disadvantaged students. The criteria used for judging the effectiveness of a…

The booklet briefly reviews and illustrates the kinds of evaluation efforts funders and policymakers may reasonably expect from providers of services to handicapped infants and their families. It outlines the aims and characteristics of (1) outcome evaluations to determine the effectiveness of service programs and (2) process evaluations to…

New York's Special Delinquency Prevention Program (SDPP) was started in 1978 to provide preventive services to youth who most likely might become involved in the juvenile, social services, or mental health systems. In 1987, this program funded 542 community youth programs at a cost of $14 million. This audit assesses the Division for Youth's…