This article summarizes issues in defining character education (CE) that are relevant to program development and evaluation. No authoritative definition exists for CE, but several features seem prominent. These include a focus on enhancing civic, moral, self-regulatory, and/or intellectual virtues; and (at least implicitly) prioritizing the…

Social studies instructional time in elementary schools has declined substantially. Responding to this, the National Geographic Society (NGS) developed a professional learning program called the Elementary Social Studies Community of Practice (ESSCoP). This article describes this program's design and content, as well as evaluates its…

Many schools of social work offer courses on program evaluation. However, one component of program evaluation--theories of evaluation--may all too often be left out of the curriculum. This Teaching Note defines and describes evaluation theory and the benefits of including it in a program evaluation curriculum in schools of social work. Specific…

The Center for Research in Educational Policy (CREP) has partnered with the Virginia Department of Education since 2005 to evaluate the Commonwealth's 21st Century Community Learning Centers program. The 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) is a federal grant program established by Congress as Title X, Part 1, of the Elementary and…

Traditionally, evaluation has primarily tried to answer the question "Does a program, service, or policy work?" Recently, more attention is given to questions about variation in program effects and the mechanisms through which program effects occur. Addressing these kinds of questions requires moving beyond assessing average program…

While optimism regarding the treatment of sexual offenders has increased over the past couple of decades, research into the factors that assist offenders in maintaining therapeutic changes remains in the dark. Maintenance programs for offenders, while theoretically appearing to have a solid place in offender rehabilitation, surprisingly have not…

Training can often be the right answer--or part of the right answer--to help people learn how to do something that is new for them. Although some may be tempted to ignore instructional design when faced with a tight time line, that is exactly when following a systematic process can provide a recipe for success. Given six important questions, the…

The need for afterschool programs is clear: Research and practice demonstrate that quality afterschool programs keep youth safe; support working families; and provide critical learning, personal development, arts, and recreational opportunities. New York State alone uses nearly $300 million in local, state, and federal funds for afterschool…

In this article, the characteristics of five test review models are described. The five models are the US review system at the Buros Center for Testing, the German Test Review System of the Committee on Tests, the Brazilian System for the Evaluation of Psychological Tests, the European EFPA Review Model, and the Dutch COTAN Evaluation System for…

The Second Half Program (SHP) is an educational sports program running in Brazil. It began in 2003 and was one of the Olympic educational proposals described in the Rio 2016 Olympics bid. Using sport as a tool, the SHP aims to deliver moral education and to promote citizenship in order to counteract "social exclusion" and "social…

This paper presents some of the major issues raised in Education International's preliminary analysis of the overall PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) 2009 study. Some of these issues are: (1) PISA has serious limitations. The study does not cover the full curriculum, focusing on a narrow set of subject areas, neglecting such…

This paper discusses the rationale underlying "PENTA", an EU funded Erasmus Mundus project. In doing so, it explores the challenges of internationalising and standardising European environmental assessment (EA) practice and education to a third country audience, looking at India as a case study. It is argued that the EU EA Directives are…

The Emporia State University induction program for first year teachers is described. The format of the program, topics addressed, and program evaluation are discussed. (MT)

This article is concerned with the importance of effectively training job analysts and provides a framework for training the job analyst. It discusses why job analysts should be trained, what type of training is available, the basics of job analysis, group facilitation, practice job analysis sessions, independent training sessions, and the…

Describes development of a Public Relations Advisory Council composed of practitioners for the purpose of evaluating the public relations program at the University of Florida. (HTH)