There are unique challenges to estimating causal effects of preschool for students with special needs that have not received attention in the literature. We revisit the Head Start Impact Study (HSIS) to illustrate that when and how special needs is defined has implications for the internal validity of and interpretation of special needs subgroup…

This study explores the extent to which differences in research design explain variation in Head Start program impacts. We employ meta-analytic techniques to predict effect sizes for cognitive and achievement outcomes as a function of the type and rigor of research design, quality and type of outcome measure, activity level of control group, and…

This article presents findings from a lottery-based study of the impacts of a broad set of 33 charter middle schools across 13 states on student achievement. To estimate charter school impacts, we compare test score outcomes of students admitted to these schools through the randomized admissions lotteries with outcomes of applicants who were not…

The schoolwide project option of the 1988 Hawkins Stafford Amendments to Chapter 1 allowed a rural school serving a disadvantaged Native American population to restructure its compensatory and regular education services. Santo Domingo school (New Mexico) illustrates the ways modifications of federal law and policy benefit children. (SLD)

Effects of the federal compensatory education policy on the capacity of schools to deliver high-quality services to poor children is examined with a focus on federal assessment of Chapter 1 programs. Alternatives are suggested to improve evaluation usefulness in building organizational capacity by moving beyond a sole focus on student outcomes.…

The benefits of using Stake's contingency and congruence model for educational program evaluations are demonstrated by the results of evaluating two worksite programs for academically talented minority high school students. Recommendations from the Career Awareness evaluation were incorporated into the Biomedical Science program, resulting in a…

Conducted a cost-benefit analysis of a federally financed comprehensive early childhood program, the Title I Chicago Child-Parent Centers. Used data for 1,539 program and comparison group children. Findings show that an established public program can provide benefits that far exceed costs. Outlines key elements of program effectiveness. (SLD)

A detailed and critical analysis of the evaluation of the Follow Through program is presented. The history, critical decisions, and politics of the evaluation are examined. (JKS)

The RMC models for Title I program evaluations involve too large an expenditure of effort in relation to the information needs of the federal government. Too little is being done to ensure the usefulness of the models at state and local levels. (MH)

Case studies describe the changes occurring in a large urban school system following passage of the Hawkins Stafford Amendments allowing the use of Chapter 1 funding in schoolwide projects (SWPs) in schools where 75 percent or more of students are economically disadvantaged. The potential of SWPs is discussed. (SLD)

Implementation of schoolwide projects in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) illustrates some of the conceptual problems associated with the Hawkins Stafford accountability amendments to the Chapter 1 supplementary education program. Unintended negative consequences are discussed, and recommendations are made to overcome these problems, including the…