A short, intensive orientation program offered to a small group of students before the start of their first computer science course taught a simple programing language and provided pre-programing skills. The orientation was found to be beneficial, particularly for women, for both content and social orientation. (MSE)

Criterion and construct validation analyses support the use of both retrospective questions in lieu of a pretest and a methodological innovation to compensate for the absence of a control group in a program evaluation that calls for an unavailable experimental design. The findings obtained with this method present evidence that study abroad…

A study comparing continuous assessment of a British business administration program with traditional summative evaluation found that continuous assessment had resulted in a rise in standards. (MSE)

Some major recent developments in program and student evaluation in Canadian colleges and universities are outlined and factors contributing to their success are identified. Critical issues involved in program evaluation, criteria for excellence, and evaluation of student learning are discussed, especially as related to questions of accountability…

An evaluation of an elementary teacher education program using the responsive evaluation method is described. Responsive evaluation uses observer judgment and flexible data collection methods. The problems involved in each of the strategy's 12 steps are discussed and the influence of the university setting on the program is considered. (Author/MSE)

Problems in evaluating cooperative training programs of British universities and companies in the manufacturing industry are discussed. A framework for evaluation and its application in one existing program (involving Molins Ltd., Brunel University, and Henley, The Management College), are presented. (MSE)

A study examined the relationship of five factors in the quality of the learning experience (resources, content, learning flexibility, student-faculty contact, and involvement) and the students' assessment of their college. Three evaluation models are compared, and comparisons are also made for the hard and soft sciences. (MSE)

Strategies and techniques used in evaluation of British higher education consortia are described, focusing on constraints, purposes, and methods used. The context within which the evaluation takes place is seen as a strong influence on purpose and methods. Similarities and differences in evaluation of individual institutions and consortia are…

A program providing second-year civil engineering students in Singapore with experience in constructing full-size structures assigns students to companies involved in the construction process for role-playing in each of the major functions. (MSE)

The overall system of cooperative education and teacher practicum programs at the University of Bath is described, advantages and disadvantages are discussed, and the responses of former program participants to a mail survey are presented. Several major advantages to the program type that emerged from the survey are noted. (MSE)

Smallest space analysis (SSA), a nonmetric multidimensional scaling procedure, was used to examine the effects of a four-day medical faculty workshop on the classroom verbal activities of medical faculty and students in an Israeli university. (Author/MSE)

A set of instructional materials aimed at the inservice education of teachers on the topic of student assessment was developed. The Student Assessment Project comprises seven modules in slide-tape format covering the topics of test design, item writing, analysis of norm-referenced and criterion-referenced tests, etc. (Author/MLW)

A model for measuring output of university departments is presented. The model includes teaching, research, and other activities, with weighting factors given for each. The model is applied to the College of Commerce of Kuwait University, and recommendations for its application at other institutions are made. (Author/MSE)

The Brunel University (England) education department worked with evaluation teams from two local education authorities to develop a faculty development program for local colleges. The origins, design, implementation, and response to the modular program are described as is the "in house consultancy" model developed by the program. (MSE)

The conception and development of a unit at the College of Saint Mark and Saint John (England) to support improvement of instructional quality are described. Issues addressed include the meaning of "quality," organizational structure, the unit's role in program and faculty evaluation, establishment of objectives, and operational…